Bob Dylan’s childhood home in Hibbing, Minnesota.
As more evidence of the world’s constant drive to become smaller, I enjoyed hearing this Australian radio interview of my friend David Leaver, a marketing professor in Manchester, England. Leaver is a scholar of tourism, specifically music tourism as it relates to the hometowns of famous musicians. He visited Hibbing, Minnesota, a few years ago on tours of the hometowns of Bob Dylan, Buddy Holly, Elvis Presley and the Beatles. You can hear the interview here (the part about Hibbing is about ten minutes in).
His observations about Hibbing and the mystique of Bob Dylan’s story in this Iron Range mining town is spot on. And the fact that this interview exists is pretty good evidence of Dylan’s ability to put the Iron Range on the world map.
I am one of the co-organizers of Dylan Days, an live music and arts event held ever May in Hibbing.
If Bob had the right kind of booking agents they might have landed him a spon on “Tent Show Radio” from Bayfield, WI.
(It’s a great way to get some “regional” exposure that might some day lead to “national” recognition.)
Bally Hoo!