Today in history marked the birth of a career at the forefront of creating the musical tapestry which is the soundtrack to our lives. On October 26, 1961, Bob Dylan signed his recording contract with Columbia Records, a relationship that would span five decades and produce numerous anthems for the Baby Boomer generation (not to mention John and Paul got high with a little help from their friend).
When Dylan sold his songwriting rights for $350 million, I actually was surprised it wasn’t more. Blowin’ in the Wind, The Times They Are a’-Changin’, , A Hard Rain’s Gonna Fall, Don’t Think Twice It’s Alright, My Back Pages, It Ain’t Me, Mr. Tambourine Man, Rainy Day Women #12 and 35, Just Like a Woman, Gotta Serve Somebody, Forever Young, Tangled Up in Blue, All Along the Watchtower, Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door, Hurricane, I Shall Be Released, Everything Is Broken, Make You Feel My Love, and on and on.
Sadly, almost thirty years ago to the day, on October 25, 1991, concert promoter Bill Graham was killed in a helicopter crash. Graham’s Fillmore theaters in San Francisco and New York were key to breaking bands as diverse as The Grateful Dead and Jefferson Airplane to Zeppelin and Hendrix to Janis and The Band. Bill is more responsible than anyone for our getting to hear and savor Duane, Gregg and the boys’ classic Live at the Fillmore all these years. He is, by far, the most iconic concert promoter in the history of live music and is as responsible as Bob Geldof for the biggest concert in history, Live Aid (Bill produced the entire American part of the concert).
Thank you, Robert Zimmerman and Wulf Grajonca (their real names), a couple of Jewish guys who helped to lay the foundational bricks of our lives.
