I was thinking the other day how did I get to become a dedicated Dylan fan. Maybe some of you wonder about that sometimes. Of course, I was aware of his well known hits like "Blowing in the Wind" and "The Times are achanging" before and I thought that was it to Dylan. Then one day, I heard he had played for the Pope at a Bologna Catholic Youth event. The juxtaposition of Dylan and the Pope kind of blew me away and filled me with loads of questions. Like why did the Pope invite a Jew, that I associated with the Swinging Sixties and hippies, to a Eucharistic event? And why did Dylan go? I bought a biography some time later by Clinton Heylin to unravel the mystery.

What a time to discover him just when he was returning to form. It is hard to remember what the first album I bought of Dylan's was. I thought it was "Time Out of Mind" (1997), followed later by "Oh Mercy", which I loved, still do. But, it wasn't these I got first. Not knowing his current material, I went for an album collection with much of his well known material - it was Biograph. I listened to the 3 cds a lot. It was a good introduction to him, but the material obviously didn't fit together, taking as they were from so many different recordings. I liked the classic stuff in it, warmed to some of the other stuff and found some of the other material unimpressive and dull. Thankfully, I got some of his other albums.

I remember during a Summer vacation to Kos (Greece) in 1999 doing Karaoke for the first time, I did "Blowing in the Wind" - such an easy song to sing, it made me sound great, even though I have a limited singing range.

I went to see Bob Dylan play at Nolan Park in Kilkenny, Ireland on July 15, 2001 from Limerick. I drove across Ireland to get there (I was playing Elvis Costello's Spike in the car). There was a lot of acts supporting him before hand, including Elvis Costello and Glen Hansard (he of "the Committments" and "Once"), who did a great hammer-on style solo on acustic guitar, and shouted "Its f***ing Bob Dylan day". All the acts were clearly excited that Dylan was coming on later and they were meeting the "Legend" himself resumably backstage. There was also a group called the "Blind Boys of Alabama", who did a memorable version of "House of the Rising Sun" (I think to the tune of "Amazing Grace"). There was also a female singer who came on wearing very unflattering clothes, reminiscent of the 60s (who's name I can't remember and possibly it is better that way), who got some terrible heckling for being ugly from some male members of the crowd. It was quite unfair on her actually.

Bob came on at 8 pm and did loads of 60s numbers, revamped according to his new mathematical system. It was very blues oriented. It was frustrating not being able to sing along to familiar songs "Like a Rolling Stone" in its original melody, but I learned that Bob doesn't do anything the same twice. Ron Wood came out a few times to join him. I think it helped make Bob let down his guard a bit and flash a smile. He didn't talk to the crowd except to introduce the band at the end, as is his way, but it was a pity, because there is no crowd, like in Ireland that enjoys a bit of banter and joking around, even if it can get a little hand sometimes (why did he drop that joking about in the 60s?). As I paid for a standing ticket (which I was so glad of), I got to stand just a few away from the man himself. He looked at the crowd and even seemed to look at me. He enjoyed the atmosphere there I think.

I got "Love and Theft" in 2001 as soon it came out in September, I wished I had got that before the concert to be primed for some of his new songs and style. It was a complete eye-opener. Such a mix of genres rolling around. It wasn't just folk, it was blues, it was r & b, you name it... it was in there. Before that, I was coming to a job interview one day, everyone was standing around in the office acting kind of weird - then they told me that 2 planes had hit the World Trade Centers in New York. Strangest interview of my life. Didn't get that job, but got that album not long after.

I worked as a nurse's aid from 2001/2002, which often involved being on watch for a single patient for a 12 hour shift - sometimes days, sometime nights. That was a long time to fill and I listened to Dylan when I could and read his biography by Clinton then. All of his discussion of his albums meant little to me then, it probably pointed me in the right direction of where to start. I don't remember when or where I got "Blood on the Tracks", (some of whose songs I had heard on Biograph). I heard it referred to a lot and maybe that was the reason I got it. I loved the lyrics of "Tangled Up in Blue" and I remember inserting them on my tracks on my computer trying to memorise them. It inspired me to write some lyrics and poems during 2002-2003 - nothing any good though. I played that CD a lot - I liked the bitterness on "You're a big girl now" and "Idiot Wind" or should I say I could relate to it. Very different proposition to "Love and Theft" - it is strange how I could like both. I also got "Desire", which feels like a twin to "Blood on the Tracks", both produced a year apart.

In 2006, I remember getting "Modern Times". I played it through the first time and the only song I liked was "Working Man's Blues", I couldn't hear it enough times. Then, all the other songs slowly grew on me, till I got into them too. I remember once traveling by Ferry across to England in 2007 (feeling homesick and a little seasick) listening to it on my ipod and really getting the songs, discovering that it was the perfect companion, when traveling by sea. It is all about movement and its rockabilly feel and water related imagery really worked well with where I was physically and emotionally.

I saw Dylan's concert earlier this year, Saturday April 25th, 2009 in O2, London. I had ordered his latest album "Together through Life" online, which was to come a few days later, so it was a double treat. A friend of a friend drove me there. He was an even bigger fan than I was and lent me "Bootleg Series Vol 8" (on which I found 2 great versions of Mississippi and a number of cool songs I hadn't heard before) and pointed me to some albums I must get, especially the Bootleg recordings of '64 and '66. Since then, I have been getting as many of his albums, as I could to complete my collection, beginning chronologically with Bob's first album and then on to the later stuff. It has been a joy, especially when I got a book of interviews he has done from the early days till recently, that have helped explain the inner workings of his mind and art, to the point at which I pretty much understand where he is coming from with his music and writing now. His book the Chronicles has greatly educated me on his influences and the circumstances behind the writing of his songs. I haven't many albums left on my list of "to listen to"s - I think I will give "Self Portrait" a miss though.

It has been an amazing ride I have on. I loved discovering the music - the good and the bad. It's been a blast! I don't know if Bob ever reads stuff on here. I know he has made a number of big changes in his life, but I feel has one more big one yet to do. It is a spiritual one. The media and others have boxed him in with labels and hurt him over the years, causing him to get closed up. I wont say he is hard heated now, but there is healing there to be done I feel. Also, the other thing that occurred to me is that I am surprised he never became a Catholic, because the themes of all his songs and the truths he unfolds, such as his the nature of sin and conscience, love, you name it (time limits me here)... are all very Catholic. He looks at the world in a very Catholic way. Maybe he did dream he saw St Augustine after all.

I leave below a very rough and unkempt lyric I wrote today inspired by the man himself:
I never did get far from Mississippi
"I have been down the hall
and sometimes off the wall
Travelled every highway and narrow track
And taken the broad road back
Rode out of Missouri sane
On the back of a freight train
Took off before Woodstock turned hippy
But I never did get far from Mississippi

Stayed some time in St Louis,
The land that Napoleon set free.
Took my feet out walking on Market street
Bought something nice there
Rested in Lafayette Square
Took off before Woodstock turned hippy
But I never did get far from Mississippi

Hunkered down in Memphis, Tennesse
Home to Waters, Hayes and Presley
Without purpose, took my chromehorse solo
All around the Gulf of Mexico
Even spent time in the studio
Nailed some tracks in New Orleans
They werent worth a hill of beans
Took off before Woodstock turned hippy
But I never did get far from Mississippi."