Bob Dylan Center Opened in Tulsa This Past Week for VIPs, and for the Public It's Tomorrow

Photos courtesy The Bob Dylan Center.
(All photos on this page: Getty Images)

On Thursday May 5, The Bob Dylan Center in Tulsa opened its doors, celebrating with a VIP Grand Opening that drew luminaries and media from around the world. The 29,000-square-foor museum complex features more than 100,000 items created and/or collected by Bob Dylan throughout his life. 

Based on the smidgen we've already seen of the Bill Pagel archives, this is a pretty heady collection of artifacts on a much grander scale than seems possible. Handwritten lyric manuscripts, never before seen photos and film footage, unreleased recordings, art, fan letters and stories have been artfully displayed, making it a first class tribute to one of the most significant artists of the past 100 years.

Mavis Staples  

The Bob Dylan Center just happens to be located within walking distance of the Woody Guthrie Center in Tulsa's blossoming arts district. Both centers are managed under the auspices of the American Song Archives, a project of the George Kaiser Family Foundation, which acquired Dylan's archives in 2016 and Guthrie's in 2010. 

Mavis Staples took the stage for the opening night concert on Thursday, with Pattti Smith and Her Band entertaining Founding Members on Friday. Elvis Costello and the Imposters were the ticket for Saturday night at Cain's Ballroom. Each of these artists have noted the heavy influence Dylan had on their careers.

Bob Dylan Ctr director Steve Jenkins, with Patti Smith

Seeing this image reminded my of Warhol's bigger-than-life "Double Elvis"

Cards from well-wishers after his motorcycle accident in '66.

Tuesday May 10 the Bob Dylan Center will open its doors to the public. Congrats to everyone involved in making this a world-class point of interest for music fans of all stripes. Learn more here at The Bob Dylan Center website.

The video below is a fun re-make of one of the first, and most memorable, music videos in recorded history. 

ABOUT THE CENTER
The Bob Dylan Center® is committed to exploring the myriad forms of creativity that enrich the world around us. The center will serve to educate, motivate and inspire visitors to engage their own capacity as creators. Through exhibits, public programs, performances, lectures and publications, the Center aims to foster lively conversations about the role of creativity in our lives.

Psalms, Proverbs and the Dylan Archives

Over the course of a lifetime there have been years in which I would start my day by reading a chapter from the book of Proverbs in the Old Testament. There are 31 chapters, which is pretty convenient. You can read a chapter for each day of the month -- chapter one on the first, 2 on the second, etc.-- and in six of those months you will get all 31. (Or you can read that tribute to the "wife of noble character" as a bonus track on the other six months.)

This periodic ritual was recently brought to mind when I attended portions of the recent TU Institute for Bob Dylan Studies in May. On the first morning several people presented aspects of the kinds of research Dylan archivists were undertaking. Nathan Blue talked about the bags of fan mail that had never been opened and what they were revealing about fan culture in the 60s. (The title of his talk was, appropriately, "Don't Send Me No More Letters, No.") 

The next presenter was Michael Kramer. His talk was titled, "One Should Never Be Where One Does Not Belong: The Elusive Magical Mysteries of John Wesley Harding." 

Kramer opened by noting that Dylan was immersed in the counterculture yet repudiated it. John Wesley Harding became a pivot point in his early career, from high profile ultra hip to reclusive mystic. 

"Dylan has always been private," Kramer said, "But here his privacy is revealed. His archives show him doing what we might expect." His diaries during the JWH period show him to be re-thinking where his music should go. It was a new style in that he didn't speak "for" his generation but rather "to" his generation. It was also a new style that drew from history and was not distancing itself from it.

Kramer then shared how Dylan was doing a lot of Bible reading during this time, quoting the Bible extensively in his journals. This was all taking place against the backdrop of a war in Vietnam, post motorcycle crash. Dylan was "looking back to look forward," Kramer said, "beyond sex, drugs and rock & roll, looking back to foundations."

* * * 

The next speaker, Shawn Latham, continued with this deeper dive into Dylan's notebooks. Latham, who had done serious study of James Joyce's archives, noted that studying a man's archives while he is still alive is most unusual. 

Latham's focus was on the notebooks of 1966-1969. This was a period in which Dylan was sorting his life. He used different colors of ink throughout. One challenge was that many entries are undated. 

A recurring theme in this period was Dylan trying to decide what he wants to be and his relationship to the world. For what it's worth, my forty years of journals have had periods in which I've wrestled with the same thing at various junctures. 

Latham, too, pointed out Dylan's fascination with the Bible. There are lists of Bible verses, with much interest in the Psalms and Proverbs, and the role of the prophets. He was asking himself, "What is my responsibility toward being prophetic?"

He was fascinated with Old Testament Messianic passages. Psalms were also a strong interest, a source of primal songwriting material. On one of the pages it seemed like a rough draft of a song, grabbing words from I Samuel, another Old Testament book. 

He was also intensely interested in the present current events... the riots, the serial killer Richard Speck. You can even see the start of the Never Ending Tour. His '66 to '69 notebooks are a significant piece of music history. 

* * * 

A number of commentators have noted that John Wesley Harding is filled with Biblical references. It's not surprising that these spiritual influences continued to re-emerge throughout his career, in subtle and not so subtle ways. 

Here's a Proverb that he must have read many times over the years. Followed by a song that may have been birthed from this seed.

If a man shuts his ears to the cry of the poor
he, too, will cry and not be answered
--Proverbs 21:13

What Good Am I?

What good am I if I’m like all the rest
If I just turn away, when I see how you’re dressed
If I shut myself off so I can’t hear you cry
What good am I?

Full Lyrics: https://www.bobdylan.com/songs/what-good-am-i/

For more about the TU Institute for Bob Dylan Studies visit:  https://dylan.utulsa.edu/ 

Sneak Preview of "Which One Is the Real Bob Dylan?"--Select Pieces from the William Pagel Archives

Darkness at the break of noon
Shadows even the silver spoon
The handmade blade, the child’s balloon
Eclipses both the sun and moon
To understand you know too soon
There is no sense in trying

So begins one of the most remarkable songs from a remarkable period in Bob Dylan's career, that first trajectory change from folk to rock, a period of time in which the young artist went from being Bob Dylan to simply "Dylan." A period of time that produced a trio of iconic albums: Bringing It All Back Home, Highway 61 Revisited and Blonde On Blonde. A period of time in which Robert Shelton's camera never seemed to pause from clicking, taking it all in and offering up to the world countless images of the most hip young man on earth at the height of his powers.

Next week is Duluth Dylan Fest, and one of the highlights of the event for me each year is seeing what new items Bill Pagel will display from his extensive personal collection. The title for this year's exhibit at Karpeles Manuscript Museum is "Which One is the Real Bob Dylan." The objects in the 13 cases will reveal many sides of the Northland's native son. Bill loves bringing new facets of his Dylan stash to the public and this year's no exception. There will be letters, original lyrics and more.

From the Bob Dylan Song Book.

One case will display photos from the Daniel Kramer book, with pages inscribed and signed by Dylan. On the cover of the book Bob wrote, “what do you think the man without the shades is thinking?”

That book has an interesting history. In 1968, a young woman who knew Bob asked him to autograph it. Bob agreed but wanted to take the book with him overnight. When he returned it, he'd written on nearly every page and signing them. During Dylan Fest, and through the summer, you'll be able to see several of the pages from the Kramer book.

Another display case will contain pages from the Bob Dylan Song Book with drawings and notations by Bob Dylan.

In December 1960, Bob left Minneapolis--where he had been attending college at the University of Minnesota--with the intention of going to New York City. When he hitchhiked out of the Twin Cities his first stop was Chicago where he met up with Kevin Krown, a folk singer he’d performed with during a summer in Denver. Kevin had told Bob to look him up if he ever got to Chicago.

Mark Eastman and Kevin Krown were both students at the University of Chicago. While staying with Kevin, Bob met Mark Eastman. Bob stayed for several weeks before heading north to Madison, Wisconsin and then on to New York City.

Mark and Bob ended up in New York City in January, 1960 when Bob first arrived there. Mark accompanied Bob the first time he met Woody Guthrie at Greystone Hospital in Morris Plains, New Jersey. After graduating from the University of Chicago, Mark moved to New York City and taught at the Manhattan New School for a time. Mark and Bob remained close friends throughout the Sixties. Bob inscribed many of the pages in Mark’s copy of the song book, some of which will be displayed at Karpeles.

Photos courtesy William Pagel Archives

All this to say that whether you join us next week for one or all of the events, make sure you stop in at Karpeles Manuscript Museum to check out "Which One is the Real Bob Dylan?"

Related Links
Duluth Dylan Fest 2019
It's Alright Ma (I'm Only Bleeding)

And if you see me, say hello....