With the film “A Complete Unknown” creating a lot of interest in Bob Dylan and the Newport Folk Festival where he made history in 1965, we thought it was time to hear from some local experts. We spoke to several music fans who were there on that fateful day 60 years ago when one of the greatest singer-songwriters of all time plugged in his electric guitar.
Note: The film continues through January 16 at Jane Pickens Theatre – click here for details.
Movie Review: New Bob Dylan biopic ‘A Complete Unknown’ is a complete hit
Local musician Tom Perotti, a teenager at the time, was working at the festival alongside his father, selling hamburgers and beer. “My grandfather and father were members of the Kiwanis Club; they helped to found it in Newport. Kiwanis was given the original contract for the Jazz festival, running the concessions, selling the beer and the burgers.”
He has fond memories of ’65. “I had all the early Dylan albums, and I saw Dylan at the workshops in ’63 and ’64. When ’65 came around, ‘Like a Rolling Stone’ was on the radio; I was so taken by the music.“
Perotti was backstage when Dylan rehearsed with his band at Festival Field. “What a day that was,” he exclaimed. “He did ‘Like a Rolling Stone’ as a sound check. There was definitely a divide there, but I remember great excitement and great applause. In his book, Al Kooper, who was in the band, maintained the booing wasn’t because of Dylan playing electric, but it was because it was such a short set.”
Of course, the event is widely known for the controversy that ensued around the booing that accompanied Dylan’s performance. Was it due to sound issues, the brief three-song set, or displeasure at the artist playing an electric guitar at a festival where many fans worshiped acoustic instruments?
A student at Rogers High School at the time, musician Curt Bessette also has fond memories of the evening.
“I was already out of my mind excited to see Bob Dylan, expecting an amazing Dylan performance with just his acoustic guitar,” said Bessette. “When he came out with his Stratocaster and the band, you could actually feel this incredible energy from the crowd. It was like everyone there knew something different and amazing was about to happen (even if they hated the electric guitars).”
Bessette recalls the boos, and the mixed reaction from the audience. “I’m fairly sure that there were no vague ‘middle of the road’ opinions in that crowd that night – you either loved it or you hated it. I just remember being so fixed on what I was seeing on stage that I was able to tune out the booing. I knew there was anger… most in the crowd knew something big was happening right in front of us!”
“That sound and that visual changed my life,” continued Bessette. “After graduating from Rogers, I went to URI and almost didn’t graduate because I spent most of my time playing Dylan songs in the stairwells of the dorm and rehearsing with my rock band. I made music my life’s work and am still gigging today… thanks to Bob Dylan.”
But not everyone heard the booing. “I had just graduated from high school, finally had enough money for a real ticket, a big upgrade from sitting on the curb on Memorial Blvd. and listening to the Folk Festival at Freebody Park,” says Judy Bynes. “Our seats were halfway up on the right side. There was no booing where we were; most of it must have been up by the stage toward the front.”
Newport native Gretchen Lendrum has vivid memories of the concert.
“As Native Newporters and folk music aficionados, we had come to hear from the master,” she recalled. “We heard him in ’63 and in ’64; we were convinced this would be his best. His new hit ‘Like a Rolling Stone’ spoke to us and to our generation.”
“Dressed in a leather jacket, he opened the set with a song with which we were familiar but never heard played this way,” Lendrum explained. “‘Maggie’s Farm’ was played up-tempo with very loud accompanying guitars and thundering drums. We struggled to hear and understand the words, but every syllable was drowned out. Dylan seemed to race through the song; there soon came a mixture of clapping and yelling and a roar of boos. We stood on our chairs and booed along with the rest. The man next to me applauded.”
“Next came ‘Like a Rolling Stone,’” continued Lendrum. “We knew it, we loved it, but we couldn’t hear or understand any of it. We screamed to turn down the sound, but the cacophony screeched on. Many in the crowd continued to boo throughout the entire song. And then it ended, and Dylan abruptly left the stage. Peter Yarrow tried to calm down the crowd, but we were all pleading for them to bring back our old Dylan.”
“Did people show displeasure for Dylan’s performance because he had changed from a quiet troubadour to a rock singer? Perhaps some in the crowd felt that way. I felt more disappointed in the performance aspect. We always hung on every word that Dylan sang. He was a poet. With the blaring electric guitars and the heart-stopping thrash of the drums, the beautiful poetry was lost. We had lost our beloved folksinger, and some of us weren’t certain that we would ever forgive him.”
No doubt, Bob Dylan has created an air of mystery around himself over the years, often displaying eccentric behavior. He is camera-shy, rarely does interviews, and has little interest in interacting with the public beyond his stage appearances.
Local musician Ed McGuirl, who was there in ’65, was also working backstage in 2002 when Dylan returned to Newport for his only appearance since going electric.
“In 2002, I was working stage crew; that day was just weird,” said McGuirl. “Of course, he (Dylan) had the fake hair and beard. Even with production passes, everything was on lockdown. They also cleared the photographer’s pit. Post 9-11, there was a lot of paranoia, that had something to do with it. His security was Hell’s Angels, and they were concerned about telephoto lens pointed at the stage.”
McGuirl noticed black SUVs pulling into Fort Adams, accompanied by state troopers, and snipers on the roof of the Fort. “It turns out it was Al Gore, being brought into the Fort.”
Will Dylan return for the 60th anniversary this summer? It would certainly be a historic moment, but he’s as elusive as ever, and not one generally inspired by sentimentality. But you never know…
Ticket information for the 2025 Newport Folk Festival will be announced soon. Click here to learn more.