Egypt 1987. Dylan is poolside holding court over the Heartbreakers and the rest of the crew, when… he goes off on one of his prophetic tangents, telling us all over cocktails that he's a great believer in the sound of words, and their derivations coming to mean what they are even more than their actual definitions. He says that, in Hebrew, the word media means darkness and that since he's learned this he refuses to use the media.“The media is the devil,” Bob says, “and it won't be long before all it'll take is one charismatic leader to bring the whole world to its knees.” ~ Seeing The Real You At Last  by Britta Lee Shain, Chapter 4, Tangled Up In Blue

ACTIVISM

I identify as Bleeding Heart Liberal ~ Britta Lee Shain

An excerpt from my interview with Author Marco Zoppas’ book Conversations with Dylanologists says it all. It was a last question from a marvelous interview in which Marco, who is Italian and a Dylanologist himself, asks many fascinating and unusual questions about my book, Bob and me that I had not been asked before. 

Marco: Is there anything in particular you would like to share with us?

Britta: In the ‘60s, as a student at Berkeley, I participated in many political demonstrations. I was at Sproul Plaza when the “establishment” pulled the plug on political activist Mario Savio, who had become the spearhead of the Free Speech Movement. Later, I would march on the Oakland Induction Center (with 10,000 others) against the Viet Nam War. I never thought I would have to be engaged in that way again, but as our favorite folk hero said then––and it will probably always apply––“the times, they are a-changin’.”

Bob’s intuition in 1987 that “one charismatic leader might bring the whole world to its knees” has come true, except that it’s many leaders now around the world who have set out to take away our freedoms.

I’ve been more politically active in these last three years (sic) than the entire time between the ‘60s and now. Last year, with the help of others, I produced three music events in Los Angeles to raise money for Rock the Vote, an organization in the U.S. dedicated to registering young people ages 18 to 25 to not only vote, but to make sure they get to the polls. This year I will be producing two more events, one the size of a small festival.

“We Live in a political world.” Bob Dylan said that.

I recently wrote an anti-gun violence song called “Do Something.” Yes, I’ve become a sometime singer/songwriter in addition to being an author. I often wonder if I would have transitioned into music from prose without having fallen in love with not only Bob Dylan’s music, but also with Bob Dylan, the man.

Conversations with Dylanologists by Marco Zappos, Chapter 3,

Britta Lee Shain: Meeting and Touring with Dylan (February 19, 2020)

To read Marco’s book go here.

For more info on Britta’s take on contemporary culture including her review of the Bob Dylan biopic A Complete Unknown, check out her Blog Page.