How Bob Dylan let Frank Zappa down
Artists draw inspiration from a myriad of influences, each source leaving a unique imprint on their creative expression. While musicians commonly find inspiration in the genres they pursue or the instruments they choose, Bob Dylan stands apart. His impact extends beyond mere musical preferences, offering people not just a genre but subject matter for conversation, a new mode of thought, and a distinctive approach to crafting music. The allure of Dylan’s influence reached far and wide, captivating individuals from various corners of the globe, and even iconic figures like Frank Zappa found themselves swept up in the cultural phenomenon.
The way that Bob Dylan could highlight societal injustices while continuing to be poetic and concise was a shining light for many musicians. Bruce Springsteen once said “Bob Dylan is the father of my country,” which is high praise from one of the leading songwriters and performers in music. Zappa also looked up to Dylan, so much so that he nearly quit playing music before he had properly started, owing to the fact Dylan had essentially completed it.
“When I heard ‘Like a Rolling Stone’, I wanted to quit the music business,” Zappa said, “I felt [that] if this wins and it does what it’s supposed to do, I don’t need to do anything else… But it didn’t do anything. It sold, but nobody responded to it in the way that they should have.”
‘Like a Rolling Stone’ inspired Zappa in two ways. Firstly, it inspired him to make more political and observatory music. He wrote about the world around him, and it will no doubt have been Dylan’s influence that made him want to do this. On the other hand, the reaction to ‘Like a Rolling Stone’ made Zappa think that he was fighting a losing battle, so he had more fun with his sound, and it granted him poetic license to be as individual as his mind would allow him to be.
Suffice to say, as with many musicians, we wouldn’t have Frank Zappa were it not for Bob Dylan. But that doesn’t mean Zappa unquestioningly loved everything the musician released; quite the opposite, as one of Dylan’s later releases rubbed the musician the wrong way.
Zappa believed that Dylan began to move away from his responsibilities and started to embody what it was about America that he didn’t like: commercialism… and cowboys. Nigey Lennon once said about Zappa, “He had an instinctive hatred of almost everything America, especially cowboys.”
Zappa followed that comment with, “Art is moving closer to commercialism. And never the twain shall meet.” As such, when Dylan released Blonde on Blonde, Zappa’s subsequent disapproval will have been less about the actual sound of the album and more to do with the inspiration Dylan previously gave Zappa steadily dwindling.
“Highway 61Revisited was really good,” said Zappa, “Then we got Blonde on Blonde, and it started to sound like cowboy music. You know what I think of cowboy music.”
When Dylan became iconic and connected with so many people, he simultaneously laid out the blueprint for his abandonment. He wrote in a way that spoke to people on levels beyond the surface, as fans interpreted what his songs meant to them on a personal level rather than just listening to what Dylan was saying. As such, it was easy for fans to disconnect when he released anything that didn’t align with that personal meaning. It feels like this is what happened with Zappa, given that it’s pretty tricky to call Blond on Blonde a country album.
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