1941-
Folk and Rock Performer, Songwriter

The Man from Minnesota.

Soon after coming to national attention in 1962, Bob Dylan was recognized as one of the most promising songwriters and performers in the new folk-music revival. Born Robert Zimmerman in Duluth, Minnesota, he moved to New York in 1960 and soon established himself in the folk-music scene, playing in coffeehouses in Greenwich Village.

Protest Songs.

In 1962 he recorded his first album, a compilation of traditional folk songs in the manner of his hero Woody Guthrie, called Bob Dylan. The same year he wrote "Blowin' in the Wind," which rhetorically questioned establishment attitudes and claimed that "the answer . . . is blowin' in the wind." This stance of youthful challenge and expectation of imminent social change was popular with young listeners; the song was successfully recorded by Peter, Paul & Mary the following year, setting the stage for Dylan's own successful version...