No Direction Home

In a sea of choices, two watchtowers of Bob Dylan documentation are Martin Scorsese's generous, colorful No Direction Home: Bob Dylan (2005) and the hip black and white Don't Look Back (1967) by D. A. Pennebaker, which I had the good fortune to see in London, where much of the action takes place. The two work well together, but I am delighted with Scorsese's inclusion of all sorts of vivid color film versions of the Dylan-goes-electric moment that provides the narrative structure for his film. In both cases, Dylan is at the top of his game.

D. A. Pennebaker captures the raw excitement of the 1965 tour of England, featuring Dylan, Albert Grossman, Bob Neuwirth, Donovan, Marianne Faithfull, and all manner of the personal and projected Dylan personae. Scorsese's work is more comprehensive, going back to Minnesota and forward to the near past with candid interviews and assessments of the times, musical work, and cultural impact. Joan Baez is particularly incisive in her comments, but there are many other gems. The core of the narrative ends with Dylan's motorcycle crash.

One of Luma's comments inspired me to find a link to Dylan's new radio show, launched earlier this month: http://www.xmradio.com/bobdylan/

Thanks to Luma, Gloria, Barb (hey!), Vickie, and Jim, and also to his sister Sarah, with whom I had many a fun conversation about Mr. Dylan in Chapel Hill, and to Joe McGeary in Philly, another huge Dylan fan. On the fly, from all along the watchtower, ciao!