Overview

Robert Shelton met Bob Dylan when the young singer arrived in New York in 1961. He became Dylan's friend, champion, and critic. His book, first published in 1986, was hailed as the definitive unauthorized biography of this moody, passionate genius. Shelton tells the intimate and first-hand story of Bob Dylan's formative years in Greenwich Village NYC, and it is the only biography that has been written with his active cooperation. Dylan gave Shelton access to his parents, Abe and Beatty Zimmerman - whom no other journalist has ever interviewed; to his brother, David; to childhood friends from Hibbing; to fellow students and friends from Minneapolis; and to Suze Rotolo, the muse immortalized on the cover of Freewheelin', among others. Concluding Dylan's story backstage during his triumphant 1978 world tour, No Direction Home took 20 years to complete and when it was finally published the book received widespread critical acclaim. Following his Nobel Prize for Literature Award in 2016, Dylan's standing is higher than at any time since the 1960s and Shelton's book is now seen as a classic. This new illustrated edition includes key images of Dylan throughout his incredible, enduring career, making it a must for all Dylan fans.

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9781786751621

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After all of these years, it still remains the definitive Dylan biography. With its subject’s consent and access to a wide range of authentic sources coupled to the writer’s keen eye for detail, No Direction Home transports the reader right back into those artistically febrile times.  -- God Is In The TV Shelton’s book is such an essential read amongst the crowded market of Dylan biographies... As a Dylan primer, it’s in a class of its own... Simply put this is a lavishly illustrated book. -- Americana UK No journalist has covered Dylan's career longer or with more respect than Robert Shelton. * New York Times * The most accurate description of the development of Bob’s musical and poetic evolution, his innovative genius and perplexity... it is impossible to deny Shelton a legacy as an authority on popular music and an emeritus on Bob Dylan. -- xsnoize A landmark account of Dylan's genesis and ascension. -- David Fricke * MOJO * I don’t believe Bob Dylan ever covered a Hawkwind song – though I can imagine him doing a mean version of “Masters of the Universe”, with added nasal howl – but he was, of course, one of the kings of the underground, and the Sixties counterculture, and what with it being his 80th birthday any minute, there’s a tranche of books coming out, not to bury but to praise. Biggest, and the best in terms of its design and illustrations and closeness of its author to its subject, is Liz Thomson’s fine editing job on the classic Robert Shelton bio, No Direction Home, here published as a coffee table slab packed with fantastic photos and ephemera – posters, tickets, all that. -- The Arts Desk 'This is a book which you will want to own. It oozes quality and is lavishly illustrated with more than 150 images.'  * Living Tradition magazine *

"After all of these years, it still remains the definitive Dylan biography. With its subject's consent and access to a wide range of authentic sources coupled to the writer's keen eye for detail, No Direction Home transports the reader right back into those artistically febrile times. -- God Is In The TV Shelton's book is such an essential read amongst the crowded market of Dylan biographies... As a Dylan primer, it's in a class of its own... Simply put this is a lavishly illustrated book. -- Americana UK No journalist has covered Dylan's career longer or with more respect than Robert Shelton. * New York Times * The most accurate description of the development of Bob's musical and poetic evolution, his innovative genius and perplexity... it is impossible to deny Shelton a legacy as an authority on popular music and an emeritus on Bob Dylan. -- xsnoize A landmark account of Dylan's genesis and ascension. -- David Fricke * MOJO * I don't believe Bob Dylan ever covered a Hawkwind song - though I can imagine him doing a mean version of ""Masters of the Universe"", with added nasal howl - but he was, of course, one of the kings of the underground, and the Sixties counterculture, and what with it being his 80th birthday any minute, there's a tranche of books coming out, not to bury but to praise. Biggest, and the best in terms of its design and illustrations and closeness of its author to its subject, is Liz Thomson's fine editing job on the classic Robert Shelton bio, No Direction Home, here published as a coffee table slab packed with fantastic photos and ephemera - posters, tickets, all that. -- The Arts Desk 'This is a book which you will want to own. It oozes quality and is lavishly illustrated with more than 150 images.' * Living Tradition magazine *"

Author Information

Robert Shelton was born in Chicago in 1926 and was on the staff of the New York Times for two decades until he went to Europe. Best known as the man who 'discovered' Bob Dylan, he was the principle chronicler of the 1960s US folk revival. His books include the Woody Guthrie collection Born to Win, The Face of Folk Music, The Country Music Story and The Electric Muse. He died in 1995. Elizabeth Thomson knew Robert Shelton for the last 15 years of his life. She was responsible for the 2011 edition of No Direction Home, which restored Shelton's original manuscript and reshaped the book so it honoured his original intentions. This new edition abridges that text making it accessible to a wider readership. Thomson has been a Visiting Fellow of the Open University Sixties Research Group and was a contributor to The New Grove Dictionary of Music & Musicians. A widely published journalist, her books include Conclusions On the Wall: New Essays on Bob Dylan, The Dylan Companion, and Joan Baez: The Last Leaf. Elizabeth Thomson has interviewed Joan Baez numerous times over the course of forty years and was present at the recording of Ring Them Bells. A contributor to The New Grove Dictionary of Music & Musicians, she is also the revising editor of Robert Shelton's classic biography, Bob Dylan: No Direction Home, has been a Visiting Fellow of the Open University Sixties Research Group, and is the author of several books. She is the founder and Executive Producer of The Village Trip, a festival celebrating the history and culture of Greenwich Village, New York City.

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