American musician, songwriter and producer Bob Neuwirth has died at the age of 82 in Santa Monica, California. Neuwirth is primarily known to followers of Bob Dylan.
“On Wednesday night in Santa Monica, Bob Neuwirth’s big heart stopped beating,” Neuwirth’s family told ROLLING STONE colleagues. “Bob was an artist in every cell of his body and he loved encouraging others to make art themselves. He was a painter, songwriter, producer and recording artist whose work is loved and respected. For over 60 years, Bob has been at the center of cultural events, from Woodstock to Paris, from ‘Don’t Look Back’ to Monterey pop, from Rolling Thunder to Nashville and Havana. He was a generous initiator who often produced in secret and set things in motion. Art was important to him, not fame. He was an artist, mentor and supporter to many. He will be missed by all who love him.”
The relationship between Neuwirth and Dylan
It would be unfair to reduce Neuwirth only to his role in the Dylan cosmos. The musician, who got his start on the Cambridge, Mass. folk scene, has self-released five solo albums — including his self-titled debut in 1974. In the 1960s he became friends with Bob Dylan and reportedly practiced even had an important influence on him. Dylan — at the height of his fame — may have admired Neuwirth’s attitude above all else, as an unnamed colleague told ROLLING STONE in 1972: “Neuwirth had a negative attitude, emphasized pride and ego and said, sort of, ‘Take that Cheer up man, don’t take it, just take over the scene.’ He was someone who could influence others, who worked on their ego and supported that ego. His whole negative attitude perfectly matched what Dylan was feeling.’” If you look closely, you can at least see the bottom half of Neuwirth on the iconic cover of Dylan’s album, Highway 61 Revisited.
The thing with Janis Joplin, Mercedes Benz and Kris Kristofferson
Neuwirth’s roles include the DA Pennebaker documentary Don’t Look Back and Dylan’s film Renaldo and Clara. But his role in Dylan history doesn’t end there: he was a key part of the Rolling Thunder revue, for which he put together Dylan’s backing band. Neuwirth is also a co-author of the Janis Joplin classic Mercedes Benz, along with beat poet Michael McClure and the singer herself — he also introduced Joplin and Kris Kristofferson.