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'''Bob Dylan''' (birth name Robert Zimmerman), is one of the towering figures of [[America]]n music, and has made contributions to many musical genres, including [[Rock music|Rock]], [[Country Music|Country]], and [[Rhythm and Blues|R&B]].  He has also, though some may have forgotten it, made enormous contributions to [[Christian music]] and [[Gospel]], particularly through two of his albums, [[Slow Train Coming]], and [[Saved]], released after his public declaration of his [[Christianity]] in the late 1970s.  Even though he soon ceased recording songs that were explicitly [[Christian]], he continued to perform the songs from those albums, and for some time dedicated the song ''In the Garden'' to [[Jesus Christ]] when he performed it publicly. By the mid-1980's, however, his vision of Christian faith dimmed somewhat, so much so that by 1997 he was writing songs like [[Not Dark Yet]] in which he sings, "Don't even hear a murmur of a [[prayer]]/It's not dark yet, but it's getting there," clearly signifying his diminishing faith.

'''Bob Dylan''' (1941 - ) is one of the towering figures of 20th century music. Born Robert Zimmerman in [[Duluth]], [[Minnesota]], he grew up in Hibbing and left to attend the [[University of Minnesota]] in [[Minneapolis]].  It was there that he developed a deep interest in [[folk music]], listening to the recordings of artists such as [[Odetta]] and [[Woody Guthrie]].  In 1961, he dropped out of college and headed to [[New York City]], where he became part of the burgeoning folk music scene in [[Greenwich Village]] and eventually landed a contract with [[Columbia Records]], for whom he still records today.

Robert Zimmerman was born on May 24, 1941 in [[Duluth]], [[Minnesota]], and grew up in Hibbing.  His father owned an appliance store, and Zimmerman grew up listening to the [[radio]], where he got his first musical education.  After playing in some short-lived high school bands, he left to attend the [[University of Minnesota]] in [[Minneapolis]]. It was there that he took a deep interest in [[folk music]], listening to the recordings of artists such as [[Odetta]] and [[Woody Guthrie]]. In 1961, he dropped out of college and headed to [[New York City]], where he became a part of the burgeoning [[folk music]] scene in [[Greenwich Village]].  Sharing the stage with a wide variety of folk acts, among them [[Dave von Ronk]] and [[Tiny Tim]], he eventually landed a contract with [[Columbia Records]], for whom he still records today. He most recent album, [[Modern Times]] (2006), reached #1 on the pop music charts; at age 65, he is the oldest artist to have attained that mark.

His first four studio albums<ref>Bob Dylan (1962); The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan (1963); The Times They Are a-Changin' (1964); and Another Side of Bob Dylan (1964)</ref> established Dylan as a major voice within the developing protest counterculture of the early Sixties. It was ''Bringing It All Back Home'' (1965), however, that propelled him to international fame and stardom. To howls of protest from his devoted "folkie" fans, Dylan "plugged in" for the first time and the album's glorious fusion of electric guitars, driving rock rhythyms and his unique lyrical style<ref>By turns surreal, poetic, visionary and political.</ref> set a benchmark to which all other artists aspired. He arguably never scaled these heights again, especially in terms of producing an album of such consistent quality and musical completeness. His next three albums<ref>Highway 61 Revisited (1965); Blonde on Blonde (1966); and John Wesley Harding (1967)</ref> are rightly highly regarded, but after these his output became of increasingly variable quality and ''Blood On The Tracks'' (1975) is his last studio album of any true musical significance.

Over a long and varied career, Dylan has collaborated with numerous other artists, including [[Joan Baez]], [[Johnny Cash]], the [[Grateful Dead]], [[Mark Knopfler]] and [[Tom Petty]].  In 2004, he published the first volume of [[Chronicles]], his planned autobiography. Since 2005, he has had a weekly radio show on [[XM Radio]]; among the themes of each week, he recently chose "The Bible," playing songs by the Reverend J.M. Gates, Kitty Wells, and the Reverend Gary Davis.

In 2004, he published the first volume of ''Chronicles'', his planned autobiography. Since 2005, he has had a weekly radio show on XM Radio and he chose "The Bible" as the theme of a recent show, playing songs by the Reverend J.M. Gates, Kitty Wells, and the Reverend Gary Davis. His most recent album, ''Modern Times'' (2006), reached #1 on the pop music charts; at age 65, he is the oldest artist to have attained that mark. 

==References==

== Notes and references ==

* [http://web.utk.edu/~wparr/IsDylanStillChr.html "Is Dylan Still Christian", by Bill Parr, gives much more detail on Dylan's faith]

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==External links==

== External links ==

*[http://www.bobdylan.com/songs/forever.html Forever Young] starts with the words "May God bless and keep you always"

[http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/bobdylan/discography Dylan discography on Rolling Stone.com]

[[Category:Musicians|Dylan, Bob]]

[[Category:Musicians|Dylan, Bob]]