“I write songs when: the mood strikes me, not with a set routine. My method is transportable. I can write songs anywhere at any time, although some of them are completed and redefined at recording sessions, some even at live shows,” Bob Dylan says in one of his interviews. At 84, Bob Dylan seems to have lived a hundred lives. In the 1960s he turned the musical world upside down, exploded conventions, and sold millions of records. Later he assembled a collection of every imaginable award: from ten Grammys to an Oscar (which he didn’t even bother to attend the ceremony to receive) and the Nobel Prize in Literature. And all of that is just part of the story. Dylan proved to be not only a musician, but also an artist with an army of collector-fans. It is no wonder that his work continues to inspire writers to new books and studies – Dylan still remains a source of endless inspiration.
Chris Gregory returns to Bob Dylan with his new book” Minstrel Boy “- the second part of his planned trilogy “Picasso of Song “, which continues what was begun in “Determined to Stand: The Reinvention of Bob Dylan.” The premiere is set for October 2025. This time, the critic focuses on Dylan’s “middle period,” from 1967 to 1990: years of silence and near‑withdrawal, followed by an unexpected revival and a rediscovery of his own voice. In his trilogy Gregory tries to capture exactly this – the musician’s constant metamorphosis, his curious twists of the path, and his astonishing ability to stay relevant. Minstrel Boy balances between academic rigor and the heartfelt love of a listener: serious textual analyses sit alongside gripping scenes of live concerts, while cultural references lead the reader from William Blake and American gospel to rock’n’roll legends.
The author himself emphasizes that he writes for everyone, not only for scholars. His style is at once light and thoughtful, generously laced with irony, open to the widest range of interpretations, and grounded in deep knowledge of how folk, blues, country, and other genres intertwine in Dylan’s music. This is a book about changes and transformations, the joy of being a witness to his endless search.
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