By Matthew Squire
I was 12 years old, sitting on the floor of my bedroom, with a budget Crosley facing me, a record placed carefully upon it with the black already spinning . Next to me lay a sleeve, a man staring up at me, hair tousled and eyes glaring, daring me to look back, challenging me and inviting me in equal measure. The record caught. ‘That snare shot that sounded like somebody’d kicked open the door to your mind’. Now I agree with Bruce Springsteen on a whole number of matters (there is a reason we call him “The Boss” after all), but this quote I hold as gospel, it encapsulates hearing Bob Dyan for the first time.
When I heard there was to be another piece of media made about the man himself, I cringed to a degree. Having already taken in so much music, writing and film, I figured this new picture was simply a Hollywood money grab, an opportunity to introduce Bob as a new figure to stand at the altar of the social media generation; I realise now I may have been mistaken. The film I watched tonight was not a commercial, nor was it a mindless piece of film celebrating an era so pined after. No, what I watched was a picture that celebrated a man who has given so much to art and the world, whilst holding close to heart the most important feature of the story, Dylan’s music.
However, you may take this with a sizable grain of salt. Such high praise is to be expected from such a big fan like myself, someone who holds some of his dearest memories in the same arena as the catalogue of Bob Dylan, and in the same cage as some of his worst. I feel praise for A Complete Unknown extends beyond the expected fans, such as myself. This is an old story told in a new way, made accessible for a new generation to unlock and appreciate the music that has affected so many.
However, this is where the problem will lay for some of us; the ability to let go of our ‘ownership’ of Dylan’s music. Music that has become synonymous with our own personalities, our own moments and memories. But, it is imperative that the message and the sound continues to reach new ears and new minds. I myself have been guilty of trying to hold this experience out of reach to those unfamiliar with Dylan’s music, as I’m sure many have. Many times I’ve allowed his songs to do their job too well, coming too close to my heart and pushing me to gatekeep them with a vigour not reserved for other music. This is why A Complete Unknown is such an important film, it forces us ‘pure’ Dylan fans to a noble defeat and drags us gladly kicking and screaming into a new age, one where we must be ready to accept his universal appeal as a positive.
Although I’m not quite ready for a Blood on the Tracks era biopic, I think we must accept the fact that it is more important to share music than it is to keep it to ourselves, as important lessons and myths lay within. Let us not be the ‘lone soldier on the cross’, but push others ‘down the road to ecstasy’.