Jim Windolf: The Beatles' 'Dylan Month' (1966)

In this episode we talk to the journalist and author Jim Windolf about a 'testy, interesting and weird' month in the mid-1960s when Bob Dylan and The Beatles came into close and sometimes volatile contact. May 1966 would be recalled by Neil Aspinall, The Beatles' road manager, as 'Dylan Month'.

This month came at a loaded moment for each of the acts. Both of them were, by this point in the Sixties, cultural sensations. But they were also burned out from the years of touring and seeking to transcend the identities that had first brought them fame. The following month Dylan would release his classic album, Blonde On Blonde, while The Beatles would reply later in the summer with Revolver.

Here Windolf takes us to look at the relationship between these musicians at close quarters. Much was happening, he explains, although not all of it was stated openly.

The scenes, characters and storylines in this episode of Travels Through Time all feature in Jim Windolf's book, Where The Music Had To Go: How Bob Dylan and the Beatles Changed Each Other and the World. 

Show Notes

Scene One: Early May 1966. Bob Dylan arrives in London and checks into the May Fair Hotel in the Mayfair district of London. 

Scene Two: 13 May 1966. Dylan checks into the Adelphi Hotel in Liverpool, then goes on a tour of Beatles' sites.

Scene Three: 26 May 1966. Dylan plays the Albert Hall and the next morning steps into a limousine with John Lennon.

Memento: Dylan's suede Levi’s jacket.

People/Social

Presenter: Peter Moore 

Guest: Jim Windolf

Producers: Maria Nolan

Theme music: Winds of Change by SoundIdeasCom