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The singer who inspired Bob Dylan to become a folk star

Posted on by angelo

The musician who made Bob Dylan a folk singer: "Something vital"

(Credits: Far Out / Sony Music Entertainment)

“All roads led to Bob Dylan,” Martha Wainwright once said of America’s most esteemed songwriter. It seems that almost every musician cites the folk legend as a vital inspiration, being the talent that ignited generations of talent to come. But even he had to cast someone. Just as Dylan provided that initial spark for his loyal fans, an artist did it for him.

Dylan’s praise has always been bestowed upon artists like a golden crown. When he talks about his love for artists like Joe Cocker or his support for George Harrison, it feels like he’s knighting them in some way. Perhaps it’s because he’s never been more open to sharing his personal tastes and, even less, his influences.

Instead, he seems to prefer to keep his music as something mythical. He never reveals to the world the meaning of his songs, their inspirations, nor the faces or stories behind the world. He never talked much about his songwriting process. The closest fans get to witnessing a behind-the-scenes glimpse of his life as an artist is through the Bootleg Series’ many demos, hearing him slowly lay out a track through multiple takes, or in that of Martin Scorsese. Rolling Thunder Review documentary where the artist is captured on tour.

However, Dylan admitted that certain artists have had a huge impact on him as a music creator, songwriter and fan. One of them was Woody Guthrie, as he referred to himself as “Jukebox Woody Guthrie.” But if Guthrie inspired his songwriting, another artist inspired him to become a folk singer.

“The first thing that attracted me to folk singing was Odetta,” he said. Playboy. “I heard one of his records in a record store, back when you could listen to records right in the store. It was 1958 or something. At that point I went out and traded in my electric guitar and amplifier for an acoustic guitar, a Gibson flat top.

Often considered “the voice of the civil rights movement,” Odetta’s impact not only on Dylan but on the entire folk or music world is impossible to underestimate. She was a pioneering figure fusing folk tradition with blues, protest lyrics and jazz attitude. Alongside Joan Baez and later Dylan himself, she was one of the most important figures of the folk revival of the 1950s and 1960s.

For Dyaln, his album was imbued with something special, calling it “Just something vital and personal.” From the first moment he heard Odetta’s voice, Dylan was driven to pick up an acoustic guitar and keep things simple. With no bells and whistles beyond her sheer talent, Odetta taught Dylan that good lyrics and a good melody were all he needed.

But beyond singing, Odetta also helped Dylan learn to play his instrument. “I learned every song on this record. It was his first, and the songs were ‘Mule Skinner,’ ‘Jack of Diamonds,’ ‘Water Boy,’ ‘Buked and Scorned,'” he said. As he learned his work, he became familiar with his more classic, hand-picked folk style, which he then put his signature on his first releases.

Joan Baez was also a big fan, saying, “Odetta was a goddess. His passion moved me. I learned everything she sang. Thus, Dylan’s love for Odetta not only inspired him to become a folk star, but also connected him to his peers as part of a collective force of folk revival.

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