Robert Allen Zimmerman famed as Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, author, and visual artist. He has been a major figure in popular culture for more than 50 years. In the year 1962, he released his debut studio album, "Bob Dylan", which was certified as silver in the UK and also managed to creep up to the #13 position on the UK music charts. In the year 1967, he made his theatrical film debut in the documentary film "Don"t Look Back" that covers his 1965 concert tour in England. On 10th March 1964, he made his first TV show appearance on the comedy talk show, "The New Steve Allen Show". On the same day, he also appeared in "The Times They Are A-Changin" episode of the TV show, Quest. His most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when songs such as "Blowin' in the Wind" (1963) and "The Times They Are a-Changin'" (1964) became anthems for the civil rights and anti-war movements. He made his breakthrough as a songwriter with the release of "The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan" in 1963. As an author, he has published eight books of drawings and paintings, and his work has been exhibited in major art galleries. He has sold more than 100 million records, making him one of the best-selling music artists of all time. Hе has wrіttеn ѕеvеrаl bооkѕ lіkе 'Таrаntulа,' 'Тhе Nоbеl Lесturе,' 'Тhе Lуrісѕ: Ѕіnсе 1962', аnd 'Lуrісѕ.' In 2016, Dylan was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature "for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition". Read on to known his full biography, birthday, wiki, family details, facts, career, songs, wife, net worth and more.
Famous For
- Being an American singer-songwriter, author, and visual artist.
- Being one of the most popular musical artists with more than 100 million record sales to his name.
- For his work as one of the most influential and popular lyricists. His lyrics carry political, literary, philosophical, and social influences.
- For winning the much-coveted and prestigious Nobel Prize in Literature.
- Being the recipient of more than ten Grammy awards, an Academy Award, and a Golden Globe Award.
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Early Life of Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan was born on 24th May 1941 with the birth name/real name of Robert Allen Zimmerman to his parents; Abram Zimmerman and Beatrice Stone in Minnesota, the USA; his birthplace/hometown. He was raised in a close-knit Jewish community. He then changes his religion to Christian. His nationality is American and his ethnicity is American-White. His race is White and his birth sign is Gemini. He also has a sibling; David Zimmerman (Younger Brother). He loved music from a young age and spent hours listening to the radio. As per his education, he attended Hibbing High School and as a student played with many bands. He enrolled at the University of Minnesota in 1959. While in University he started performing at coffee houses and became active in the Dinkytown folk music circuit. As of 2020, he celebrated his 79th birthday.
Career of Bob Dylan
- In the year 1960, he left college at the end of his first year and traveled to New York City in the year 1961 to perform there and visit his musical idol Woody Guthrie, who was seriously ill with Huntington's disease in Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital
- From February 1961, he played at clubs around Greenwich Village, befriending and picking up material from folk singers there, including Dave Van Ronk, Fred Neil, Odetta, the New Lost City Ramblers, and Irish musicians the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem.
- He commenced a two-week engagement at Gerde's Folk City, supporting John Lee Hooker on 11th April.
- He played harmonica on folk singer Carolyn Hester's third album and this brought him to the attention of the album's producer, John Hammond who signed Dylan to Columbia Records.
- His eponymous debut album, "Bob Dylan" was released on 19th March 1962 which contained folk songs and two of his compositions. The album sold only 5,000 copies in its first year, just enough to break even.
- In August 1962, he legally changed his name to Bob Dylan and signed a management contract with Albert Grossman.
- He had signed an agreement with Roy Silver in June 1961.
- In 1962, Grossman paid Silver $10,000 to become the sole manager.
- By the release of Dylan's second album, The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, in May 1963, he had begun to make his name as a singer-songwriter.
- The album was a combination of protest songs, love songs, and blues with social messages which greatly appealed to the audience and popularized the singer.
- During this time he also actively became involved in the civil rights movement.
- In July 1965, Dylan's six-minute single "Like a Rolling Stone" peaked at number two in the U.S. chart. In 2004 and in 2011, Rolling Stone listed it as number one of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time".
- From September 24, 1965, in Austin, Texas, Dylan toured the U.S. and Canada for six months, backed by the five musicians from the Hawks who became known as The Band.
- He toured Australia and Europe in April and May 1966.
- His next release, Nashville Skyline (1969), was a mainstream country featuring Nashville musicians, a mellow-voiced Dylan, a duet with Johnny Cash, and the hit single "Lay Lady Lay".
- He signed to Sam Peckinpah's film Pat Garrett and Billy the Kid, providing songs and backing music for the movie, and playing "Alias", a member of Billy's gang with some historical basis in the year 1972.
- Despite the film's failure at the box office, the song "Knockin' on Heaven's Door" became one of Dylan's most covered songs.
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- He embarked on a year-long world tour in the year 1978 in which he was accompanied by an eight-piece band and three backing singers.
- He also performed concerts in Japan, Europe, and the US, giving a total of 114 shows which earned him more than $20 million.
- Over the 1980s, he took to touring more and often collaborated with other musicians and bands.
- He even toured with Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers from 1986-87.
- His biggest albums of the period include Infidels (1983), Knocked Out Loaded (1986), and Oh Mercy (1989).
- He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in January 1988, with Bruce Springsteen.
- He then released the new Lanois-produced album, Time Out of Mind in September 1997 which went on to win three Grammy Awards including Album of the Year award.
- In 2003, he revisited the evangelical songs from his Christian period and participated in the CD project Gotta Serve Somebody: The Gospel Songs of Bob Dylan.
- In October 2004, he published the first part of his autobiography, Chronicles: Volume One.
- His career as a radio presenter commenced on May 3, 2006, with his weekly radio program, Theme Time Radio Hour for XM Satellite Radio, with song selections on chosen themes.
- He released his Modern Times album in August 2006.
- Nominated for three Grammy Awards, Modern Times won Best Contemporary Folk/Americana Album and Bob Dylan also won Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance for "Someday Baby." Modern Times was named Album of the Year, 2006, by Rolling Stone magazine, and by Uncut in the UK.
- His album, Christmas in the Heart, was released in October 2009.
- On 29th May 2012, U.S. President Barack Obama awarded him a Presidential Medal of Freedom in the White House.
- He released the album "Tempest" in the year 2012.
- In February 2015, he released Shadows in the Night, featuring ten songs written between 1923 and 1963.
- He then released a triple album of a further 30 recordings of classic American songs, Triplicate, in March 2017.
- On 2nd November 2018, he released More Blood, More Tracks as Volume 14 in the Bootleg Series.
- Netflix released the movie Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese on 12th June 2019, describing the film as "Part documentary, part concert film, part fever dream".
- The next installment of Dylan's Bootleg Series, Bob Dylan (featuring Johnny Cash)-Travelin" Thru, 1967-1969: The Bootleg Series Vol. 15, was released on November 1.
- On 26th March 2020, he released a seventeen-minute track "Murder Most Foul" on his YouTube channel, revolving around the assassination of President Kennedy.
- Three weeks later, on 17th April 2020, he released another new song, "I Contain Multitudes", on his YouTube channel.
- On 7th May, he released a third single, "False Prophet", accompanied by the announcement that "Murder Most Foul", "I Contain Multitudes" and "False Prophet" would all appear on a forthcoming double album, Rough and Rowdy Ways, to be released on June 19. This will be his first album of original material since 2012.
- In October 2019, his touring company indicated that he would play 14 concerts in Japan in April 2020.
- However, on 12th March 2020, it was announced that these scheduled shows had been canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Awards and Achievements of Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an award-winning singer. He is the proud recipient of several awards. He has won 11 Grammy Awards, the most recent one being Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance for "Someday Baby" in 2007. He won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for "Things Have Changed" from "Wonder Boys" in 2000. He also received the Presidential Medal of Freedom-the the highest civilian award of the United States-in May 2012. He won the 2016 Nobel Prize in Literature “for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition”.
Personal Life of Bob Dylan
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Regarding the marital status of Bob Dylan, he is a married man. His first serious relationship was with artist Suze Rotolo, a daughter of American Communist Party radicals. According to Dylan, "She was the most erotic thing I'd ever seen... The air was suddenly filled with banana leaves. We started talking and my head started to spin." Their relationship ended in 1964. Later, he married Sara Lownds on 22nd November 1965. Their first child, Jesse Byron Dylan, was born on January 6, 1966, and they had three more children: Anna Lea (born July 11, 1967), Samuel Isaac Abram (born July 30, 1968), and Jakob Luke (born December 9, 1969). Sara worked as a model and a secretary at Drew Associates. He also adopted Sara's daughter from a previous relationship, Maria. The couple then divorced on 29th June 1977. He then married singer Carolyn Dennis on 4th June 1976 which resulted in the birth of a daughter on 31st January 1986. This marriage too ended in divorce in the year 1992. As of now, he is assumed to be single. His sexual orientation is straight and he is not gay.
Net Worth of Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, author, and visual artist who has been a major figure in popular culture for more than 50 years. He is one of the most renowned singers in the world. He had earned a huge amount of money from his multi-career as a singer and writer. His estimated net worth is estimated to have $200 million as of 2020. He inherited this wealth from the sale of his albums. Whereas his exact salary and assets information is unknown. His major source of wealth is from his record sales, albums, concerts, tours, and more. Apart from singing, he also earns a cool amount of money from his books as hе has wrіttеn ѕеvеrаl bооkѕ lіkе 'Таrаntulа,' 'Тhе Nоbеl Lесturе,' 'Тhе Lуrісѕ: Ѕіnсе 1962', аnd 'Lуrісѕ.' Не hаѕ аlѕо wrіttеn аrt bооkѕ lіkе 'Drаwn Вlаnk,' 'Тhе Вrаzіl Ѕеrіеѕ,' 'Воb Dуlаn: Fасе Vаluе,' аnd 'Тhе Веаtеn Раth.' As of now, he is satisfied with his earnings and he is living a lavish lifestyle. He has done endorsement work for the following brands such as IBM, Watson, The Traveling Wilburys, AARP Services, Chrysler (Super Bowl Advert), Victoria"s Secret, Cadillac Escalade, Pepsi, Apple iPod.
Body Measurements of Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan, being at the age of 79, still looks very handsome with charming personality attracting a lot of people towards him. He has got a tall height of 5 feet 7.5 inches and his weight consist of 67 Kg. He has a pair of blue eyes and salt and pepper hair color. He wears the shoe size of 8 (US). His other body information such as chest size, waist size, hip size and more is unknown yet. Overall, he has got a healthy body.
