The Flavel is delighted to welcome Michael Gray on 19th September, when he will be presenting 'Bob Dylan & The History of Rock'n'Roll', which is more a one-man show than a talk.
Read the interview with Michael below:
You began writing about Bob Dylan in the late 60s, and then 'Song and Dance Man' was published in 1972 - what attracted you to him originally?
MG: The fact that he sounded like no-one else on earth and sounded different with every record he made.
You are an authority on Dylan's work - how have you seen his music progress over the years?
MG: He'd already 'gone electric' by the time I came across his work - in fact he went electric 50 years ago this year - but since then I've witnessed his exploration of every form of American Popular music, from Country to Black Gospel.
Did you ever meet Bob Dylan? If so, what were your impressions of him?
MG: Yes - I met him in1978, because he sent a message asking me to 'come backstage and say hello' at one of his Earl's Court (London) Concerts, so I did, and I took my nine-year old son with me, and Bob was very nice to him and smoked two of my cigarettes. Sometimes when I perform I tell the whole story, and it's a good one, but very rarely: it has to be an especially warm, responsive crowd.
I hear some people say that they like Dylan's lyrics but prefer other artists singing his songs. What would you say to them?
MG: Get real!
What kind of legacy do you think Dylan will leave the world of music?
MG: Actually Mitch Benn put it very well recently on Radio 4; he said that people say Elvis changed the world, and that the Beatles changed the world, but really Bob Dylan did: he changed what a rock star can be, and more importantly he changed what songs can be and what singing can be - and changed all that for the better.
After a busy day, which artists do you listen to for relaxation? Any particular tracks?
MG: You mean apart from Bob Dylan? Well, I love a lot of old Blues artists - Blind Willie McTell, Memphis Minnie, Blind Willie Johnson, Garfield Akers - and then I like Van Morrison's early stuff, some Neil Young, some classic Rock'n'Rollers and half-forgotten R&B artists like Clarence Frogman Henry, and I absolutely love newer artists like Teitur, Mary Gauthier, Alabama Shakes, Gone Dead Train and Morning Jacket. But I like a bit of Romantic Classical music too - Brahms,Fauré, Bruch...
What do you enjoy most about living in France?
MG: The climate - not just the temperature but the level of light - and the lovely empty roads, at least in the region I live in, which is the South West.
Do you have further writing connected to music in the pipeline?
MG: Well actually I'm trying to find a publisher for a book I've finished writing recently, but it isn't music: it's a travel memoir. And I'm proud of my last book, which was a mix of music and travel: 'Hand Me My Travelin' Shoes: In Search of Blind Willie McTell' - and that's still in print!
For more information and to buy tickets click here: http://theflavel.org.uk/TheFlavel.dll/WhatsOn?Programme=2293134
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