Like a Rolling Stone

Zoo Freaks, get ready to vibe with some far-out trivia about Like a Rolling Stone, the iconic track from Bob Dylan’s 1965 album Highway 61 Revisited, spinning on THE ZOO with your favorite hippie DJs, the Zoo Crew! This six-minute masterpiece was a game-changer, shaking up the music world with its raw, electric energy. Rolling Stone magazine, partly named after this very song, called it the greatest rock song ever in 2004, and it still holds a top spot on their “500 Greatest Songs of All Time” list. The track’s creation was a wild ride—Dylan distilled it from a 10-to-20-page “piece of vomit” he wrote, fueled by frustration after a grueling UK tour, into four verses and a chorus that hit like a thunderbolt. Bruce Springsteen once said that opening snare shot was like “somebody’d kicked open the door to your mind,” capturing its explosive impact. Al Kooper, a rookie session musician, bluffed his way onto the organ, improvising that unforgettable Hammond B2 riff despite never having played the instrument before, a move that critics like Greil Marcus say defined the song’s soul. The recording was chaotic—Dylan and the band struggled through takes, with the fourth being the keeper after 11 more tries, and Columbia Records nearly shelved it for being too long and too electric. Fans at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival famously booed Dylan’s electric performance of it, shocked by his shift from folk to rock, though some say the boos were more about the short set time. There’s also buzz that the song’s “Miss Lonely” might be a jab at socialite Edie Sedgwick, tied to Andy Warhol’s scene, with lyrics dripping with resentment and revenge, though Dylan later hinted he was singing about himself, too.

Another groovy tidbit: Mick Jagger of The Rolling Stones claimed in 1998 and again in 2024 that Dylan wrote Like a Rolling Stone for them, a bold statement that adds a layer of rock ‘n’ roll lore to the song’s legacy. Dylan performed it with Jagger and a massive crew at the 1988 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction, blending it with Satisfaction in a historic jam. The song’s influence is massive—Jimi Hendrix covered it live, and artists like David Bowie and My Chemical Romance have paid homage to Dylan’s work from Highway 61 Revisited. Dylan himself called it a breakthrough, pulling him back from the brink of quitting music, as he told Playboy in 1966. The handwritten lyrics sold for $2 million at a 2014 Sotheby’s auction, setting a record for pop music manuscripts. Posts on X from fans like @DylanRevisited highlight the song’s impromptu magic, noting how Kooper’s organ part was a happy accident that became rock history.

Now, let’s rewind to how Bob Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman on May 24, 1941, in Duluth, Minnesota, kicked off his legendary career. Growing up in Hibbing, Minnesota, young Bob was drawn to the raw sounds of rock ‘n’ roll, idolizing Little Richard and Jerry Lee Lewis. He played piano in high school rock bands and even gigged with Bobby Vee’s band under the name Elston Gunn. By 1961, he’d ditched college and headed to New York City’s Greenwich Village, chasing the folk scene and a chance to meet his hero, Woody Guthrie. Dylan soaked up the folk and blues traditions, blending them with his knack for poetic lyrics. His 1962 debut album, Bob Dylan, was packed with traditional covers, but 1963’s The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan made him a star with originals like Blowin’ in the Wind, which became anthems for the civil rights and antiwar movements. His early work mixed sharp social commentary with literary flair, pulling from Beat poets and classic literature, setting the stage for the electric revolution of Highway 61 Revisited.

Zoo Freaks, you can keep up with Dylan’s ongoing journey through his official website at bobdylan.com, where you’ll find tour dates, lyrics, and news like his recent Rough and Rowdy Ways tour. Connect with him on socials via Facebook, Instagram, and X for updates and throwbacks. For deeper dives, check out fan communities like the r/bobdylan subreddit, where diehards share obscure facts and debate his legacy. There’s also the fan site Bob Dylan Commentaries for song-by-song analysis, and the Facebook group Bob Dylan Fans for connecting with fellow freaks who live for his music. So, crank up Like a Rolling Stone, let that organ riff wash over you, and keep it real with the Zoo Crew!