Infinity Goes Up On Trial (+)
A focus on ideas central to the depth of Bob Dylan’s music, art, and writing in a broader social, cultural, and political context. Discussing these concepts with scholars, artists, educators, activists, and myriad experts, we explore how Dylan’s ideas reflect and encompass all aspects of human existence.
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Erin Callahan
Erin Callahan teaches English at San Jacinto College in Houston, Texas, where she has been a faculty member since 2007. She completed her Ph.D. in Modern History and Literature at Drew University in 2014, writing her dissertation on Bob Dylan’s identity construction and the American voice.
Erin is a regular contributor to The Dylantantes Substack and is co-editor of “The Politics and Power of Bob Dylan’s Live Performances: Play a Song for Me” with Court Carney, a collection of essays about Dylan’s live performances that was published by Routledge in 2023.
She has presented on Bob Dylan at many conferences, including ACA/PCA, “Bob Dylan in the 21st Century” in Arras, France, and The World of Bob Dylan, in Tulsa, Oklahoma 2019 and 2023.
Since Robert Shelton’s New York Times review of Bob Dylan was published almost exactly 63 years ago, on September 29, 1961, Dylan has been the subject of intense critical focus. Journalists, academics, and fans have created an expansive catalog chronicling the minutiae of Dylan’s seven-decades in the public sphere. From studio releases and live performances, through books and films, to personal relationships and shifts in identity, every aspect of Dylan’s life and career has been scrutinized to gain a greater understanding of his oeuvre. In this episode, journalist and podcaster, Harold Lepidus, and I further expand the catalog as we discuss Dylan through the lens of Harold’s work, his fandom, and the expectations the sustained focus has created, and how Dylan has defied them.
Harold Lepidus is the author of Friends and Other Strangers - Bob Dylan Examined, an anthology of writings from the Bob Dylan online column he wrote for Examiner.com. He is a prolific content creator across his social media platforms, sharing his experience and insight on Dylan, the Beatles, Robyn Hitchcock, and music more broadly. His most recent review is VIETNAM, WATERGATE, AND THE ART OF MOTORCYCLE MAINTENANCE: Bob Dylan/The Band - The 1974 Live Recordings (Linked below).
A Video Version of this Episode is Available at TheFM.Club
Links:
- VIETNAM, WATERGATE, AND THE ART OF MOTORCYCLE MAINTENANCE: Bob Dylan/The Band - The 1974 Live Recordings.
- Friends and Other Strangers: Bob Dylan Examined - Kindle edition by Lepidus, Harold.
- Instagram: @hlepidus
- Twitter: @dylanexaminer
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- Infinity Goes Up On Trial - Episode Directory
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