Archive - Dylanology

How Does Dylan Write His Songs? Dylan's Own Masterclass (Dylanology 28, part 4)

There is a very simple way to answer the question about how Dylan writes his songs: Watch him do it, live. We have it on tape, and it answers all the…

Feb 25 •

January 2024

How Does Dylan Write His Songs? Melodies from Words (Dylanology 28, part 3)

A closer look at some remarks from the San Francisco press conference in 1965

Jan 1 •

December 2023

How Does Dylan Write His Songs? Blues and Ballads (Dylanology 28, part 2)

As I showed in part 1, in order to write a Dylanesque song we need harmonic simplicity, as a foundation for a vocal delivery that is virtuosic in its…

Dec 9, 2023 •

November 2023

How Does Dylan Write His Songs? (Dylanology 28, Part 1)

Is it possible to extract song-writing lessons from the greatest song-writer of all times?

Nov 4, 2023 •

October 2023

In defense of “Wiggle, Wiggle”

Did you think “Wiggle Wiggle” is a bad song? Hallvard Østrem urges you to think again!

Oct 6, 2023 •

Hallvard Østrem

September 2023

Olof Björner (1942–2023)

The Tireless Chronicler in memoriam

Sep 13, 2023 •

In Nobel Denial 2: The Committee’s Flawed Motivation (Dylanology 27)

Why Bob Dylan Should Not Have Received the Nobel Prize, part 2

Sep 3, 2023 •

July 2023

Why Dylan Should Not Have Received the Nobel Prize (Dylanology 26)

The first of three texts about Dylan as a literary figure, about reasons for being right or wrong, and about prose music

Jul 26, 2023 •

June 2023

From the Vaults: Shadows in the Night (2015)

Reflections in a Pond of Withering Lilies

Jun 1, 2023 •

May 2023

Happy Birthday, Bob!

May 24, 2023 •

Good as I Been To You/World Gone Wrong part 3: The Riffs, the Genre Pieces and the Final Verdict (Dylanology 25)

In the two previous issues I have discussed the Bass Melody style and the Csus4 Thing as central techniques or styles which define the sound of Bob…

May 16, 2023 •

Good As I Been To You/World Gone Wrong – Part 2: The Csus4 Thing (Dylanology 24)

It's hardly even a chord, but it plays several parts on Dylan's acoustic 90s albums. In this issue, I explore the many roles the insignificant little…

May 3, 2023 •

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