Xochitl Chury

More than thirty years ago, “Guns N’ Roses” were “knocking on a heaven’s door” when covering Bob Dylan’s masterpiece, reviving the curiosity for the folk and rock legend. Before that, many artists, including the eternal ‘Rolling Stones” answered the question of Dylan’s lyrics about “How does it feel? To be without a home. Like a complete unknown. Like a rolling stone”. Unlike the widespread perception that the reigning grandfathers of British Rock & Roll band names are directly related to the American songwriter lyrics, the band led by the incomparable Mick Jagger was inspired by Muddy Waters’s line “ A Rolling Stone Gathers No Moss.” through his Brian Jones one of the United Kingdom’s band founder.
Nevertheless, Dylan’s song “Like A Rolling Stone” was a pending subject for Jagger and Richards due to the connection to the semantics of the lyrics and at a time when other bands were doing isolated, spontaneous tribute covers to the Minnesotan musician. That time was the nineties when true rock union and collaboration were pivotal due to the overflow of music label lab-created pop bands. Out of nowhere, “Guns N’ Roses” decided to revive the anthem created by Dylan and reintroduce the song to a new generation that appreciates the musical arrangements and energetic take on the song simultaneously “The Rolling Stones” while on tour in Europe, presented organically their cover of “Like A Rolling Stone” a music creation that was destined to be performed due to the mirroring nature of the band’s name and the words of the folk American artist.
Just like that, a seamless movement of revival put the musician masterpieces in the hands of curious Gen X’s who enjoyed and felt the Novel Prize recipient’s words, melodies, and poetic justice while blasting the sounds on a DVD player or a tape Boombox. From Dolly Parton to Jimmy Hendrix to the more contemporary Adele, Dylan’s music and legacy have been kept alive due to the curiosity and recognition of their peers of the musician’s artistry. Notwithstanding the test of time, generations of millennials and Generation Z demographics did not know much about Bod Dylan until the release in theaters of the film “ A Complete Unknown.” a critic-acclaimed movie heading to the Oscars whose roster of young performers of the likes of Timothee Chalamet and Monica Barbaro reintroduced the folk midwestern singer-songwriter to a group of listeners that never knew about the artist existence. Avid to know more of the irreverent, introverted lothario who is on the opposite side of the current wave of performers that are most of them created by design, cutting paste trendy style and not by instinctive inspiration like is the case of “The Complete Unknown” musician. Nevertheless, the box office success of the movie, the award season buzz, and the accolades accompanied by the impressive loyal social media presence of the actors had created the perfect storm to put once more in the spotlight the masterpiece, lyrical genius of Bob Dylan and his archives of music goods to the enjoyment of new set of young ears and hopefully to inspire up and coming musicians to create a new current of artist that much like Dylan’s music destiny was a product of his environment and not a customize vision of an artist made in the music industry boardrooms.
Hope for future creators in the hands uncovered the vault of the sixties folk music is the result of “A Complete Unknown” theater release, which significantly contributes to up-and-coming musicians. Such is the impact of the Minnesotan singer-songwriter who once went to New York with a guitar and the dream of meeting his hero Woodie Guthrie and pouring his soul to him through his poetry sprinkled with melodies that marked the sound of a generation and were part of a string of talented musicians that had found new listeners who appreciate their storytelling and relatability of the simplicity of the human early youth experiences which usually marks the heart of an adult. Only time will tell if the current recognition and rediscover of Dylan’s catalog carried the same weight that iconic bands of the likes of “Guns N’ Roses” and “The Rolling Stones” had when they energetically took on two of the rock and folk legend classics and propelled through the nineties asserting the hegemony of guitarist such as Slash and vigorous vocals by band leader Axel Rose.