Re: [Marxism] Dylan documentary

["Calvin Broadbent" <calvinbroadbent@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

But the proliferation of socially-aware popular music after Bob Dylan is not
simply the result of the magnititude of Dylan's lyrical and musical
greatness, but is far more the product of the exponential commodification of
music from the 1960s on, especially as produced through increasingly
monopolistic corporations. If any popular musicians can claim to have
kickstarted *that* process, its the Beatles, not Bob Dylan.

Paul is surely right that neither Crass nor Public Enemy have had the same
mass resonance as Bob Dylan. Nonetheless, both of those band's influence on
their respective musical forms are as significant as Bob Dylan's on the
folk/rock scene. I would rather listen to Bob Dylan than Crass myself (their
politics are pretty terrible), but would *far* rather listen to Public
Enemy's *It takes a nation of millions to hold us back* than anything by
Dylan.

Also, is it surprising that more Pakistanis have heard of Dylan than
Americans have heard of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan? So what?! I would rather
listen to the latter.




PAUL DILLON WROTE:

Crass?    Dylan was the first one to take popular music into the realm of
social critique at the LEVEL he did, he created that space in the face of
huge opposition (in particular from Brits as was clear from the
documentary).   Whether there will be documentaries on Public Enemy 40 years
from now is what I find highly doubtful, perhaps crass, even.  They will be
just another band in the multitudes that followed the one who opened the
door.

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