Almost Wordless Wednesday: Oh What A Week -- Duluth Dylan Fest 2018

ALMOST WORDLESS WEDNESDAY

A handful of images from another memorable Dylan Fest.

This year's winner of the singer/songwriter competition
Marths'a Stolen Horses, flanked by Amy Grillo and Pat Eliason.

Many of the photos on this page (all the better ones) and during my coverage of DDF 2018 were taken by Michael Anderson, who has so graciously been covering many of our events in the past. Here is a link to an online Dylan Fest gallery of Michael Anderson photography that you will surely want to check out. Thank you, Michael.

Related Links
Visions of Duluth Art Show at the Zeitgeist
Skye's Tribute to Dylan in the Great Hall at the Depot
May 24 Birthday Celebration at the House
Another Great Night: Singer/Songwriter Contest at Sacred Heart
Harvard Classics Prof Pulls Back the Curtain on Dylan's Lyrics

Do you have a favorite moment or highlight from this year's Dylan Fest? Did you celebrate Dylan's birthday somewhere else in some special way? Please feel free to leave a comment.

Inspired By Scorsese's Biopic on Dylan, Skye's Art Inspires Others in Duluth

Photo courtesy Michael Anderson

This week, a Door County artist has decorated the Great Hall in the Depot with a project that birthed in her heart and evolved into a passion. Yesterday afternoon her display "Shakespeare's in the Alley," a collection of 45 song panels hand-stenciled with lyrics from the songs of Bob Dylan, was the focus of attention on the fifth day of Duluth Dylan Fest. Around 5:30 those present gathered to hear Skye give a talk about this dramatic presentation.

Skye, a stone sculpture up till this point in her career, said that Martin Scorsese's documentary No Direction Home proved to be the seed that grew into this powerful display. Initially she did research on Dylan, checking out books from the library, and the more she learned the more she recognized in him "an amazing example of just don't stop." During a morning walk she had a vision so to speak of panels unrolling. She felt that to follow through would be a tribute to him as an artist. She would try to make it happen. The first summer, 2011, she did 15 panels. In 2012 she decided to do more.

The creation has been a very personal journey. In 2016 she knew that to publicly share it she would have to ask permission. She did not ask permission sooner because she felt it necessary to execute that which was inside of her. It proved to be a huge relief when Jeff Rosen, Bob Dylan's business manager, replied and said yes.

Skye noted that this was the first time the installation has been displayed outside of Wisconsin and only the third time in all. Because of the special occasion she added the 45th panel, "Girl from the North Country," which is also the title of the play that opened last year in London with 1930's Duluth as its "place."

Skye shared the process by which the panels were created and the materials used: pencil, rulers, tape, fabric markers. The title comes from a line in Dylan's "Stuck Inisde of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again."

There's a Japanese term that means "living national treasure" and she said it applied to Dylan who is himself "a preserver of culutural treasures and creator of them."

"How lucky you are," she said to the Duluthians gathered for her talk. "He was born here." She then read a passage from 11 Outlined Epitaphs which he wrote when he was 22.

The images here are from The Great Hall.

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Related Links
Interview with the Artist Skye
No Direction Home by Martin Scorsese

REMINDER: There will be a birthday cake and music at Bob Dylan's birth home at 3:00 p.m. in front of the yellow duplex at 519 Third Avenue East. Happy Birthday, Bob.

Meantime art goes on all around you. Engage it.

The Problem with Dylan Trivia Contests at Carmody's During Dylan Fest

Scene from the opening reception for Monday's Dylan Fest Art Show.

We're midway thru Duluth Dylan Fest 2018 and the best is yet to come. Yesterday I was asked to share the Dylan Fest Trivia Contest we did at Carmody's Sunday evening. This was my fifth, maybe sixth, year of creating the contest and it would appear that my dilemma is irresolvable. The dilemma I'm referring to is the challenge of creating a contest that is easy enough to make newbies feel confident while simultaneously challenging the Dylanophiles.

When all is said and done, the Dylanophiles have pretty much internalized every song from every album, including the bootlegs, so stumping these folk amounts to an exercise in futility. They not only know the title of every album from the beginning, they know the title of every track, in order. Example: Blood on the Tracks begins with Tangled Up In Blue, followed by Simple Twist of Fate, etc. etc. etc.  So if I ask the question, "What Dylan album was Idiot Wind on?" half the trivia night competitors don't even need to wait for the answer options.

If I ask a question like, "Which of the following actors did NOT play Dylan in the film He's Not There?" you'll overhear someone at the next table say, "Did anyone here see that?" If I ask what the name of the character Dylan played in Masked and Anonymous, Dylanophiles all know it was Jack Fate before the multiple choices are offered. The other half are scratching their heads and wondering what Masked and Anonymous was.

You see the problem. And we still haven't gotten into the niche trivia yet. C'est la vie.

All that being said, let's roll out the trivia questions I invented for this year's contest. It's always multiple choice, so you can at least guess. Answers will be at the end of this post. Let me know what you think... It may help in the development of next year's contest.

DDF TRIVIA 2018
Note: It is a violation of the rules to use Google, Siri or any other assistance here.

Part One: NUMBERS
1. 10,000 Men is a Dylan song on what album?
a. Under the Red Sky
b. Shadows in the Night
c. Together Through Life
d. The Basement Tapes

2. Complete the title of this song: SEVEN ______
a. Miles Down the Road
b. Curses
c. Old Friends
d. Times Gone

3. What kind of Car is in the song "From a _______ 6" on Highway 61 Revisited?
a. Ford
b. Pontiac
c. Buick
d. Chrysler

4. On the album Self Portrait Dylan recorded a song titled "Days of _____"
a. 31
b. 49
c. 61
d. 59

5. How many Strong Winds blew on Bootleg #11?
a. 3
b. 4
c. 8
d. 9

6. Dylan has famously mentioned Highway 61 a couple times in his songs. What highway did he sing about on his first album?
a. Highway 209
b. Highway 51
c. Highway 22
d. Highway 1

7. Which of the following songs with number in them is incorrect?
a. I Shall Be Free #10
b. Bob Dylan’s 115th Dream
c. Rainy Day Women #12 & 35
d. Workingman’s Blue #7

8. Love minus what number has no limit?
a. Zero
b. One
c. Three
d. Five

9. How many Miles does Dylan sing about on Time Out Of Mind?
a. a thousand miles
b. ten thousand miles
c. a million miles
d. ten million miles

10. On the album Down in the Groove, how fast does Dylan drive down a dead end street?
a. Sixty miles an hour
b. Seventy miles an hour
c. Eighty miles an hour
d. Ninety miles an hour

Part Two: PLACES
11. What town was Dylan stuck in when he had the Memphis blues?
a. San Francisco, California
b. Mobile, Alabama
c. Camden, New Jersey
d. Louisville, Kentucky

12. Dylan once mentioned seeing a movie with Gregory Peck in it. What town is featured in this song?
a. St. Louis
b. Los Angeles
c. Brownsville
d. San Antonio

13. Dylan once tried to become part of Bobby Vee’s band for a very short time as a piano player. Where did this take place?
a. Fargo
b. St. Paul
c. Denver
d. Chicago

14. Which country is mentioned in the song Idiot Wind?
a. Brazil
b. Germany
c. Italy
d. Mexico

15. “Hot chili peppers in the blistering sun” is the first line of a song about a romance where?
a. Cuernavaca
b. Durango
c. Cincinnati
d. Rio

16. On the album Together Through Life Dylan sings a song about a town where “you better do right” or the sheriff will get you. What town is this?
a. Miami
b. New Orleans
c. Oxford Town
d. Houston

17. Where did Dylan go to see the Gypsy?
a. Las Vegas
b. A little Minnesota town
c. Sunset Strip
d. A carnival in the desert

Part Three: PEOPLE
18. Whom did Dylan pity in his song on John Wesley Harding?
a. The carpenter
b. The immigrant
c. The childless widow
d. The broken soldier

19. Also on John Wesley Harding, whom did Dylan ask to not put a price on his soul?
a. The priest
b. His father
c. His landlord
d. A lawman

20. On the album Shot of Love, Dylan sang that he rode with this man in a taxi once for about a mile and a half, but it seemed like a couple of months. Who was he?
a. Martin Luther King, Jr.
b. Lenny Bruce
c. Nat King Cole
d. Woody Guthrie

21. The civil rights protest song “Only a Pawn in their Game” is about the murder of what important civil rights leader?
a. Emmett Till
b. Medgar Evers
c. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
d. Malcolm X

22. In two of Dylan’s 1960’s albums he recorded the song “Girl from the North Country.” The second time it was a duet with whom?
a. Kris Kristofferson
b. Waylon Jennings
c. Harry Belafonte
d. Johnny Cash

Part Four: CLOSING TIME
23. The renovated Nidaros Cathedral is a sanctuary in Norway decorated with fabulous architecture and numerous sculptures depicting various characters from the Bible. Which one of these sculptures, on the Northwest Tower, used the face of Bob Dylan?
a. The Angel Gabriel
b. John the Baptist
c. Michael the Archangel
d. St. Luke the Physician

24. Bob Dylan has been a musician, a songwriter, painter, sculptor and more. His latest venture is a whiskey business. The name of his whiskey was taken from what familiar Dylan song?
a. All Along the Watchtower
b. Forever Young
c. Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door
d. Caribbean Wind

25. To find the schedule for the rest of this week’s Duluth Dylan Fest, you should go to what website?
a. BobDylan.com
b. BobDylanWay.com
c. BobLinks.com
d. Highway61Revisited.com

* * * *
ANSWERS
1. a----2. b----3. c----4. b----5. b----6. b----7. d----8. a----9. c----10. d
11. b----12. c----13. a----14. c----15. b----16. d----17. b----18. b
19. c----20. b----21. b----22. d----23. c----24. c----25. b

* * * *

All in all, it was a fun way to spend an evening with friends. A member of our Duluth City Council was there playing, himself an avid Dylan fan. And tomorrow, when we cut the cake at Bob Dylan's first home on the Duluth Central Hillside tomorrow, it's my understanding that the mayor will be present to share the moment. The house is a yellow duplex at 519 3rd Avenue East. Will we see you there?

LATER TODAY, join us in the Great Hall at the Depot as the artist Skye discusses her remarkable forest of tapestries based on the songs of Bob Dylan, "Shakespeare's in the Alley." Wednesdays are Free so take advantage of this rare opportunity. Afterwards the Poets of the North Country will convene in the Duluth Playhouse.

Meantime, life goes on all around you. Get into it.

Visions of Duluth Art Show at Zeitgeist: Opening Reception Features Tom O'Keefe, a Selfie Wall and More Bob Dylan

"Chairishing Young Bob" by Kris Nelson

Tom O'Keefe (center) & Friends lifting spirits at 2017 Dylan Fest.

Let's just say it like this: Duluth Dylan Fest is off to a great start and we've only just begun. Tonight there's an Art Show Opening Reception at the Zeitgeist Atrium from 5-7 p.m. and we have several special features to go with it. For starters, it's Tom O'Keefe's birthday, so I'm personally inviting you to come say "Happy Birthday" to Tom as a way of saying "Thank You" for all the generous music he has shared with us in the Twin Ports these past many years. Tom O'Keefe and Friends will be creating ambience for us throughout the reception, which will also include libations and finger food courtesy Zeitgeist Cafe. The theme this year is Visions of Duluth, synthesizing many of the Northland influences that helped shape the character we know as Bob Dylan.

"Forever Young" by Daniel Botkin
based on Norman Rockwell's
famous triple self-portrait.

The artists on tap have produced a range of really fun images again. Time does not permit me from detailing everything, but I would like to point out a few especially fun paintings that you owe it to yourself to see. Daniel Botkin of Chicago has once again outdone himself, producing four pieces based on classic and historical American paintings, Dylanized. These include Christina's World, Washington Crossing the Delaware, American Gothic, and Norman Rockwell's hilarious painting of himself doing a self-portrait. Mr. Botkin has suitably altered each to feature Bob Dylan in the "title role."  Do not miss these.

I commend our Aussie co-curator Susan Laing for her having become inspired to take up painting and expand her creative horizons here. Her painting of the late John Bushey, founder/host of KUMD's Highway 61 Revisited radio hour is noteworthy.

Other artists include Timothy J. Beaulier, Sue Rauschenfels, Margie Hellstrom, Kim Buskala, Tanya Beyer, Jim Hall, Kris Nelson, Susan Krochalk, Susi Watson and Ed Newman.

* * * *

Co-Curator Susan Laing in front of her tribute to John Bushey.

"When the Ship Comes In: Dylan Crosses His Delaware." 

Timothy Beaulier's "East on 8th Street"

Kris Nelson's "Chairishing Young Bob" at the top of the page is one of literally hundreds of chairs painted by the former art teacher, and one of many unique submissions that have made the Dylan Fest Art Shows so much fun. But in the Spirit of the Times, we've also added this year a...

SELFIE WALL

We've also assembled a Selfie Wall which we encourage you to use. When you take your Selfie, be sure to post it on your favorite social media sites with this year's art show hashtag #DDF2018. The Selfie Wall will be in place all week, so if you can't make it to our reception, stop by another time for lunch, supper or a look at our show... and share your Selfie.

And why not you?

MAKE YOUR MARK 
for a Chance to Win
We're also giving away one piece of original art at tonight's event. We screen printed a half dozen Double Dylans and everyone who joins us is invited to write their favorite Dylan song, Dylan lyric or Dylan album on the piece, after which you can put your name in the hat for a chance to win. At the end of the night there will be a drawing. If you put contact info on your submission, then you needn't be present to win. On the other hand, if you stay you'll likely be glad you did. The music is free, the energy uplifting. Will you join us?

AND FINALLY...
Do not miss Shakespeare's in the Alley, the exhibit in the Depot's Great Hall by the artist Skye. This fabulous display features 44 panels of Dylan lyrics which took ten years to complete. Read Christa Lawler's DNT story "Tangled Up In Lyrics." and my interview with Skye in January.
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RELATED LINKS
More about Kris Nelson's Chairs
Schedule for the rest of the week.
A Shout Out to our Sponsors

Meantime, art goes on all around you. Engage it.