The Bob Dylan Archive has officially opened its doors to qualified entities and individuals who wish to access the archive’s wealth of elements spanning nearly 60 years of Bob Dylan’s extraordinary life and career. It was announced today by Ken Levit, executive director of the George Kaiser Family Foundation, and Dr. Gerard Clancy, president of The University of Tulsa.
GKFF has issued a request for qualifications from agencies interested in submitting proposals for The Bob Dylan Center, which will be dedicated to the study and appreciation of Dylan and located in Tulsa’s vibrant downtown Brady Arts District.
Noted author and historian Douglas Brinkley has begun accessing archive elements for his forthcoming book, Dusty Sweatbox Blues: Bob Dylan and the Open Road, 1974-1978. The book will focus on Dylan’s mid-1970s albums – Planet Waves, Blood on the Tracks, Desire, and Street Legal – and will be published by Harper Collins/Infinitum Nihill in 2018.
Guggenheim Fellow and TU Chapman Professor of English Randall Fuller is currently examining the archive’s rich trove of manuscripts and rare audio and video for a book-length study that examines the relationship between Dylan and African-American music. “The Bob Dylan Archive is an invaluable resource for this project,” he said. “I’m discovering so many revelations in the songwriter’s exploration of blues, gospel, and soul forms. Without access to the Archive, my book would be all but impossible.”