Uploaded October 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Conversation begins at 9:00
One of my fave writers, Ron Rosenbaum (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ron_Rosenbaum), returns to the show to celebrate his amazing new book, BOB DYLAN: Things Have Changed (A Kind Of Biography) (Melville House Press, bookshop.org/a/4669/9781685892258). We talk about how his lifetime fandom of Dylan led to this book, why he opted for a biographical meditation over strict biography, the week he spent with Dylan in the '70s for a Playboy interview (scrapsfromtheloft.com/music/bob-dylan-playboy-interview-1978/), what our response to Dylan's songs say about us, and how he got over his sense of betrayal when Dylan joined a Jesus-cult for a few years. We get into his insight into Dylan's Nobel acceptance and the Rosebud-moment therein, the question of theodicy (radical evil) and Dylan's argument with God, Ron's experience falling in love with someone to Dylan's songs, and how Dylan's post-Jesus songwriting methods became a reflection of his One-Mind consciousness. We also discuss authenticity vs. sincerity, the discontinuity of being, the impact of Salinger & Dylan on American language and outlook, Ron's top 20-ish of Dylan's songs, the 4+-hour movie Dylan made in the '70s (imdb.com/title/tt0078151/) and how it may have led to his crack-up (and why Ron thinks it should be reissued), and more. • More info at chimeraobscura.com/vm/episode-659-ron-rosenbaum • Listen to our 2013 (chimeraobscura.com/vm/podcast-disarm), 2014 (chimeraobscura.com/vm/podcast-re-explaining-hitler), and 2023 (chimeraobscura.com/vm/episode-550-ron-rosenbaum) conversations • Support The Virtual Memories Show via Stripe (buy.stripe.com/dR603B83MbhS4XS3ce), Patreon (patreon.com/vmspod), or Paypal (paypal.me/vmspod), and subscribe to our e-newsletter, https://buttondown.email/vmspod
Conversation begins at 9:00
One of my fave writers, Ron Rosenbaum (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ron_Rosenbaum), returns to the show to celebrate his amazing new book, BOB DYLAN: Things Have Changed (A Kind Of Biography) (Melville House Press, bookshop.org/a/4669/9781685892258). We talk about how his lifetime fandom of Dylan led to this book, why he opted for a biographical meditation over strict biography, the week he spent with Dylan in the '70s for a Playboy interview (scrapsfromtheloft.com/music/bob-dylan-playboy-interview-1978/), what our response to Dylan's songs say about us, and how he got over his sense of betrayal when Dylan joined a Jesus-cult for a few years. We get into his insight into Dylan's Nobel acceptance and the Rosebud-moment therein, the question of theodicy (radical evil) and Dylan's argument with God, Ron's experience falling in love with someone to Dylan's songs, and how Dylan's post-Jesus songwriting methods became a reflection of his One-Mind consciousness. We also discuss authenticity vs. sincerity, the discontinuity of being, the impact of Salinger & Dylan on American language and outlook, Ron's top 20-ish of Dylan's songs, the 4+-hour movie Dylan made in the '70s (imdb.com/title/tt0078151/) and how it may have led to his crack-up (and why Ron thinks it should be reissued), and more. • More info at chimeraobscura.com/vm/episode-659-ron-rosenbaum • Listen to our 2013 (chimeraobscura.com/vm/podcast-disarm), 2014 (chimeraobscura.com/vm/podcast-re-explaining-hitler), and 2023 (chimeraobscura.com/vm/episode-550-ron-rosenbaum) conversations • Support The Virtual Memories Show via Stripe (buy.stripe.com/dR603B83MbhS4XS3ce), Patreon (patreon.com/vmspod), or Paypal (paypal.me/vmspod), and subscribe to our e-newsletter, https://buttondown.email/vmspod
