"A friend of my mother's who attended Minnesota during Dylan's frat boy days... [said] he met Dylan more than once, and all he ever talked about was how he had the biggest Bar Mitzvah in the history of Hibbing."
This interesting tale of Dylan attending someone else's Bar Mitzvah took place in a Minneapolis synagogue in the 70s, according to Ken, who says the scene was "reported by a friend of mine who married a cousin of Bob's."
"Bob was evidently very taken by the Yiddish singing that was going on at the party and started tape recording all the older folks singing. What began as a frosty relationship between this scruffy guest and the rest of the folks took a real positive turn when they found their common bond - music."
Alan Zoldan tells the following:
Our synagogue's Rebbetzin hails from Minneapolis, and her mother once attended a wedding of some distant cousin along with Bob.
Three of the women attending had a tradition of singing a medley at all family simchas. Bob seemed apprehensive and muttered something about how "they better not ask me."
One of the women, overhearing this, then exclaimed "Oh take it easy! Nobody's here to hear you!"
A little shot of humility, along with the hor d'oeuvres!
The November 21, 1974 issue of Rolling Stone featured an article entitled "Blood on the Tracks: Dylan Looks Back," by Larry Sloman. It previewed of that upcoming album, providing some background on its recording, beginning September 16th:
Hammond heard of the session the day it started "and I could hardly believe it," he said. "So I went over there. I said to Bob, 'This is a strange day to start recording," because it was Rosh Hoshanna and it was hard to get musicians. And Bob said, "Well, why not today? It's the new year, isn't it?'"
--Mark Landis
"The night of the Seder, I was listening to the Dylan albums - even the "Slow Train Coming" album, which is moving even with the "Christian" message.
I went to the Lubavitch House, and there were services beforehand. In between the services, the rabbi gave a sermon. After he was done, he went running out of the room. He came back in with - well, you know who.
I just about fell on the floor.
I then had Passover Seder with Dylan and the other 40 or so people there.
He had brought his family.
His presence took away my role as an observer, for only he could do this. He seemed to watch certain things very intensely. I remember him looking at a young boy he was sitting next to in a manner that I had not seen before.
On the other hand, he also seemed to be searching for something (the true spirituality of the early Chasidic movement, I suspect) and not finding it. There was an attempt at some spirited singing and dancing by the Rabbi and others, but it seemed without true Spirit."
--J.M. via the 'Net
"He was at a seder with us [in 1985 or 86]"
--testimony heard first hand from source requesting anonymity.
In the late eighties I was a regular at the house of Meir R. Meir and his wife are ex-hippies turned elders of the Lubavitcher ba'alei teshuva [returnees to Tradition].
At some point, Bob was a regular in their house in Crown Heights. I guess he could relate to them better then to regular Lubavitchers. I met Bob in their house twice, on a Shabbat meal and on Purim, when Bob came with his friends and his then 15? year old son. I am from Russia, so Bob talked to me about his trip to Moscow. He was upset that the Russians (it was just at the start of perestroika) did not allow him to visit Odessa, his grandparents' hometown.
--e-mail from A.N.
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