The Dylantantes Podcast

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit thedylantantes.substack.com Twenty-one years ago, the whole wide world was stunned by the release of a new Bob Dylan project unlike any before, a feature-length movie of his own creation aimed at a generalish audience. Led by a future Nobel Laureate co-crafting the satirical script, populated with a brilliantly star-studded cast, and helmed by a maverick director out to compose what he described as “a great Bob Dylan song” in film, Masked and Anonymous was destined to be a masterpiece. It. Could. Not. Fail.

You may know Dan Brown as the author of the bestseller The DaVinci Code, but you’ve got the wrong guy. This Dan Brown was born in Tarrytown N.Y, and after a stint in the United States Air Force he moved to New City, NY, entered into a career in the restaurant industry. For the last 15 years, he has been owner of the Wherehouse Restaurant in Newburgh, NY. His lifelong passion for music has resulted in The Wherehouse being a hub for young local musicians to perform as well as network. The decor is also reflective of the passionate musical journey he has taken. And though he is a fan of many bands and performers, Bob Dylan stands above the crowd not only as a songwriter but most important as a storyteller. On more tidbit: the Wherehouse serves a drink called “Blood on the Tracks,” which features Bob Dylan’s Heaven’s Door whiskey. We're a proud member of The FM Podcast Network along with PodDylan - Dylan.FM - The Bob Dylan Primer - and more. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedylantantes.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit thedylantantes.substack.com Bob Dylan’s 15th, 16th, and 17th studio albums, Planet Waves, Blood on the Tracks, and Desire, had been solid successes when he released Street-Legal in 1978. The album was not universally well received by critics although it was a commercial success. The band was mostly drawn from the large ensemble performing during Dylan’s Japanese and Australian tours and notably included a chorus consisting of Dylan’s future wife Carolyn Dennis, veteran singer Jo Ann Harris, and Helena Sprigs, who was all of 17 at the time.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit thedylantantes.substack.com Bob Dylan’s 31st studio album, “Love and Theft,” was released on September 11, 2001. The album’s lyrics are among the first to be heavily researched for references to and lifts from other works, and there are many—perhaps most notably some lines from Japanese true crime writer Junichi Saga’s Confessions of a Yakuza. The songs are rich with characters—men and women, real and fanciful—and events— as devastating as a flood and as benign as the sound of fornication in the room next door. And there is humor, including some hardcore dad jokes. Sonically the album is as eclectic as any Dylan has released, spanning such genres as rockabilly, old-timey torch ballads, and some of the most hard-driving blues Dylan has ever produced.

Last year a New York Times article opened with "Henry Bernstein has seen Bob Dylan 27 times in concert and owns three items autographed by him: a copy of “The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan’ album, a photograph of the singer and a “John Wesley Harding” songbook. His favorite song is “Tangled Up in Blue.” Henry says this is a double crowning achievement in life. When he's not obsessing over Bob Dylan Henry works in Operations and Logistics for a local Jewish Day School in Chicago. His other great loves besides his family and Bob Dylan are Superman, Star Trek and the Chicago White Sox. In 2018 Henry along with his friend Rabbi Brandon Bernstein (no relation) took their love of Judaism and Comic Books and started a podcast called "Funny They Don't Look Jewish." Henry describes the podcast as a deep dive into explicit Jewish content within super-hero comic books. This can be a character identifying as Jewish, practicing Judaism, speaking Hebrew, learning Torah and everything in-between. Henry also co-hosts a podcast with Dr. Sam Brody called Superman & Lois & Pals, an episode by episode review of the popular CW tv show. Henry can be heard talking about Bob Dylan often on Pod Dylan. Henry credits his dear friend Rob Kelly with introducing him to the Bob Dylan Twitter community and giving him a platform to be a voice in that group. Henry lives on the Northside of Chicago with his wife—a guitar playing rockstar rabbi—and his two young children, all of whom enjoy Bob Dylan and tolerate his obsession. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedylantantes.substack.com/subscribe

Last year a New York Times article opened with "Henry Bernstein has seen Bob Dylan 27 times in concert and owns three items autographed by him: a copy of “The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan’ album, a photograph of the singer and a “John Wesley Harding” songbook. His favorite song is “Tangled Up in Blue.” Henry says this is a double crowning achievement in life. When he's not obsessing over Bob Dylan Henry works in Operations and Logistics for a local Jewish Day School in Chicago. His other great loves besides his family and Bob Dylan are Superman, Star Trek and the Chicago White Sox. In 2018 Henry along with his friend Rabbi Brandon Bernstein (no relation) took their love of Judaism and Comic Books and started a podcast called "Funny They Don't Look Jewish." Henry describes the podcast as a deep dive into explicit Jewish content within super-hero comic books. This can be a character identifying as Jewish, practicing Judaism, speaking Hebrew, learning Torah and everything in-between. Henry also co-hosts a podcast with Dr. Sam Brody called Superman & Lois & Pals, an episode by episode review of the popular CW tv show. Henry can be heard talking about Bob Dylan often on Pod Dylan. Henry credits his dear friend Rob Kelly with introducing him to the Bob Dylan Twitter community and giving him a platform to be a voice in that group. Henry lives on the Northside of Chicago with his wife—a guitar playing rockstar rabbi—and his two young children, all of whom enjoy Bob Dylan and tolerate his obsession. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedylantantes.substack.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit thedylantantes.substack.com As much as we love Bob Dylan’s many versions of his own music, we at Million $ Bash would be remiss if we did not discuss some of the gazillions of covers of Dylan’s work. Given the buzz emanating from Cat Power’s reconstruction of Dylan’s set from his 1966 British tour, it makes sense to discuss specifically covers of Dylan by women.

Bella Napolitano is a nineteen-year old from Baltimore, and is currently a Psychology major at Bard College in Upstate New York. Bella is an aspiring child psychologist, loves creating visual art, enjoys going on long walks, and is a live-music enthusiast. She has had lifelong exposure to Dylan’s music through her father and has developed a taste for it. She saw Dylan live for the first time in Baltimore on November 24th, 2023. At about the 20:30 mark, Bella references her artwork. You can see the piece in the screenshot below. For a video version of the Zoom interview, click below. Thanks for joining us! Now let us know what you think. If you like this episode, please share it. The Dylantantes is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support our work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. We're a proud member of The FM Podcast Network along with PodDylan - Dylan.FM - The Bob Dylan Primer - and more. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedylantantes.substack.com/subscribe

Michael Johnson is a Dylan adventurer. He was born in 1956 and grew up at the Jersey Shore. His first concerts were at Convention Hall in Asbury Park, NJ, starting with Black Sabbath in 1971. The next 3 plus years saw a huge shift largely as the result of him not filling out the selection cards from the Columbia Records Album Club and having to accept the album of the month, which transformed his musical horizons. He has had many jobs and started a career in teaching at age 42 in 2000. He has since transitioned from 8th-grade English teacher to school librarian, which was a survival move. Two major events in his life were sobriety in 1995 and marriage in 2015 at age 58. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedylantantes.substack.com/subscribe

In this latest episode of the Million $ Bash roundtable, the gang goes at the surprise 2009 release of Christmas in the Heart, Bob Dylan’s first and perhaps only album of Christmas music, at least until there is a Bootleg Series box set of the session outtakes. The album is, unsurprisingly, contentious, and the M$B roundtable participants, despite their academic restraint, are not immune from that controversy. Enjoy this special holiday edition of the Million $ Bash! This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedylantantes.substack.com/subscribe

n this latest episode of the Million $ Bash roundtable, the gang talks about their contributions to the new collection, The Politics and Power of Bob Dylan’s Live Performances: Play a Song for Me, edited by our very own Erin Callahan and Court Carney and published by Routledge. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedylantantes.substack.com/subscribe

Roberta Rakove is a partner in the firm of Rakove and Strassberger which advises and trains nonprofits and foundations on how to build effective advocacy. Prior to that she served for many years as the Senior Vice President for External Affairs for Sinai Health System in Chicago advocating on Medicaid(as in Shot of Love “Doctor can you hear me? I need some Medicaid”),immigration, and gun violence prevention. Since 1968 she has spent much of her free time obsessing about Bob Dylan and in 2022 coordinated an adult education class on Bob Dylan for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Northwestern University. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedylantantes.substack.com/subscribe

Elizabeth Cantalamessa is currently a Ph.D. candidate in philosophy at the University of Miami and an instructor at the University of Houston-Downtown. She grew up in Houston, Texas, and has published on topics including political speech, disagreement, and copyright law. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedylantantes.substack.com/subscribe

In this latest episode of the Million Dollar Bash Roundtable, the gang takes on the Dylan songs they think deserve greater attention and recognition. Will sparks fly? Will inspiration flare? Well, there is only one way to find out! This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedylantantes.substack.com/subscribe

Laura Tenschert is a writer, podcaster, and musician living in London, UK. She is the creator of Definitely Dylan, a podcast about Bob Dylan’s work and creative process. The episodes on Rough and Rowdy Ways, Shadow Kingdom, and Dylan’s visual art have established her as a crucial voice on the artist’s recent work. Laura has presented and organised panels at the World of Bob Dylan conferences in Tulsa several times, and her work features regularly in books, zines, and other podcasts. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedylantantes.substack.com/subscribe

Harold Lepidus is the author of Friends and Other Strangers - Bob Dylan Examined He also hosts the Boston Harold Podcast. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedylantantes.substack.com/subscribe

The Stoics taught us that the contemplation of the fleeting nature of life helps prepare us for the end, encourages us to appreciate and make the best of the present, and softens the blow when we lose those we care about. In that spirit, The Dylantantes presents a Million Dollar Bash Roundtable focused on Bob Dylan’s legacy now and forevermore even as he embarks on a new leg of his latest tour. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedylantantes.substack.com/subscribe

Rebecca Slaman is a freelance writer and editor. She has a BA from Fordham University in English and Classics. Her writing specializes in fan communities on social media. She has been cited as a Bob Dylan expert in speaking engagements at University of Tulsa and Florida International University. You can find her on Twitter @ithrewtheglass, on the web at http://rslaman.wixsite.com/website, and on Substack. Thanks for listening and let us know what you think. If you like what you hear, please share. Thanks for visiting The Dylantantes! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support our work. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedylantantes.substack.com/subscribe

Dr. Keith Nainby is Professor of Communication Studies at California State University, Stanislaus. There, his primary academic interests include pedagogy, philosophy, and performance. Keith currently focuses on the cultural contexts of musical performances, such as listener engagements and fan communities. He has published a book and four essays, with a fifth forthcoming, on Bob Dylan (most with co-author John M. Radosta). His book on Taylor Swift and Swiftie identities is also forthcoming. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedylantantes.substack.com/subscribe

Dr. Anne Marie Mai is our guest on The Dylantantes podcast (interview by Erin Callahan). The discussion ranges widely before zeroing in on Dylan and masculinity. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedylantantes.substack.com/subscribe