Bob Dylan to receive Presidential Medal of Freedom

[Death on Credit]

Bob Dylan awarded Presidential Medal of Freedom | Grand Forks Herald | Grand Forks, North Dakota

Northland native Bob Dylan has been named a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor.

The White House on Thursday announced 13 recipients of the honor, including the famed musician who was born in Duluth and raised in Hibbing, Minn. Other recipients, who will receive the awards later this spring, include former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, former astronaut and senator John Glenn, author Toni Morrison, former Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens and former Tennessee women’s basketball coach Pat Summitt.

The Medal of Freedom is “presented to individuals who have made especially meritorious contributions to the security or national interests of the United States, to world peace, or to cultural or other significant public or private endeavors,” according to the White House news release.

“These extraordinary honorees come from different backgrounds and different walks of life, but each of them has made a lasting contribution to the life of our nation,” President Obama said in the news release. “They’ve challenged us, they’ve inspired us, and they’ve made the world a better place.”

Here is Dylan’s award citation:

“One of the most influential American musicians of the 20th century, Dylan released his first album in 1962. Known for his rich and poetic lyrics, his work had considerable influence on the civil rights movement of the 1960s and has had significant impact on American culture over the past five decades. He has won 11 Grammys, including a lifetime achievement award. He was named a Commandeur dans l’Ordre des Art et des Lettres and has received a Pulitzer Prize Special Citation. Dylan was awarded the 2009 National Medal of Arts. He has written more than 600 songs, and his songs have been recorded more than 3,000 times by other artists. He continues recording and touring around the world today.”

 

[Berserker]

I am not a fan, I think that is awful.

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This guy earned a metal.

 

[Death on Credit]

the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor

ci·vil·ian
   [si-vil-yuhn] Show IPA
noun
1. a person who is not on active duty with a military, naval, police, or fire fighting organization.

 

[LG]

I see nothing wrong with Bob Dylan receiving an award like this one, it doesn't take anything away from those who have served with distinction in the military.

I do wonder if Bob will attend the ceremony though, back in the 60's I'm sure he would have told them to "Get Stuffed" rather than accept anything like this.

 

[Death on Credit]

I'm wondering the same thing, LG. He's very curmudgeonly when it comes to awards and recognitions of this nature. I can still see him telling them to "Get stuffed."

But, he did perform at the White House a couple of years ago, so who knows...

 

[ILoveJimmyPage]

As long as they don't give one to Jane Fonda...

Congrats to him! That's a pretty neat honor.

 

[Mr. Bob Dobolina]

Dylan received the Kennedy Center honor in 1997. I'm guessing he'll accept this one, too.

 

[Lynch]

Why in the HELL would Dylan get this award?

 

[TheSound]

Bob Dylan is probably the most widely influential rock musician/song writer that there has ever been, maybe with the single exception of The Beatles, if not him, then who? In fact one of the most influential figures of the 20th century, both musically and culturally. He's just a giant and an icon, and a household name even to people who don't know the first thing about popular music, you ask some 16 year old rapper kid on the street in the ghetto who Bob Dylan is, or ask your 90 year old grandmother, they possibly won't know exactly what it is he does, but they'll more than likely say ... he's a singer. And failure to acknowledge that fact - regardless of whether or not his music happens to be your own particular cup of tea - to me just betrays an ignorance on the heritage and history of popular music since the 1960's right up to the present day. And he's done it all simply by sitting down with his guitar or at his piano, writing songs, working his ass off touring continually for 50 years, and not once that I can recall ever courting publicity, or behaving like some prima-donna, or living the 'rock-star' life style smashing up hotel rooms and going out of his way to offend or be outrageous, he just writes, sings, records, tours, and then he writes some more, and so on.... The word 'artist' for me was created to describe someone like Bob Dylan, there's no award that they can give him to sufficiently represent his contribution to music, I haven't the time to try and prove it, but I can guarantee there are more cover versions of Dylan songs - and by the most wide variety of artists in different genres - than probably of any musician who ever lived. This award is a very special honour that very few people ever get, only 30 musicians ever, they don't just hand them out to anybody, it's probably the USA equivalent of a knighthood.

 

[Sweaty]

He does deserve it, such a reserved chap, seen him a couple of times and he does what he does, got a lot of his stuff and I respect him, great writer