They are yellowed, frayed and punctured: the two typewritten text sheets from 1964. No more than historical waste paper. If there weren’t these handwritten notes in the margins from musician Robert Allen Zimmerman from Duluth, Minnesota. At that time he was already living and working as Bob Dylan in New York.
These are original poetry sheets that have now been auctioned for over $500,000 almost 61 years after they were designed
It is not confirmed whether the auction house “Julien’s Auctions” in the fine Beverly Hills linked the time to the film “A Complete Unknown” that was recently released in cinemas (release in Germany: February 27th).
In any case, there was more Dylan luxury memorabilia on offer on the day of the auction. For example, an electric guitar branded “Fender Telecaster” from 1983 and a signed oil painting by the master from 1968. A Levi’s denim jacket that Dylan wore in the 1987 musical film “Hearts of Fire” changed hands for $25,400 .
Three typewritten text drafts by “Mr. Tambourine Man”
The pages in question contain three typewritten draft texts by “Mr. Tambourine Man”, with corrections and annotations made by Dylan himself.
According to Julien’s Auction, the sheets were probably typed in March 1964 at the home of music journalist Al Aronowitz. Aronowitz is considered “the godfather of rock journalism,” who also introduced Bob Dylan to the Beatles in the same year. The aspiring singer/songwriter spent that night hacking the lyrics into Aronowitz’s typewriter.
“Mr. Tambourine Man” was then released on the 1965 album “Bringing It All Back Home”. A month later, the song reached number one in the US and UK charts in The Byrds’ cover version. The first Dylan composition to top both hit lists.
In his Dylan story Bob Dylan “The Champ Has No Contenders,” the journalist wrote that he found “a wastebasket full of crumpled failed attempts” for the song. “I took the crumpled sheets, smoothed them out, read the crazy leaps of thought and had to think about the twists and turns smiles that didn’t make it into the text. I then put the sheets in a file folder.”
Six decades, the results of one feverish night are now worth a small fortune.