At Last, Okemah! contains many references to Bob Dylan's life and music (as well as songs and artists that figure prominently in the "Dylan universe".) In honor of Dylan's upcoming 3 night residency at the Aragon Ballroom in our beloved hometown of Chicago, here is a Dylan fan's guide to At Last, Okemah! (and remember, folks, this movie is only 17 minutes long - including credits!):
The British Economist is named after a traditional folk song heroine. There are several recordings of Dylan performing the song live in 1961.
2. "Fear not, gentle roadie. It's the way Woody wants it!"
Winston's mission to become anointed by the "spirit" of Woody Guthrie in his hometown of Okemah, OK is a modern day version (indeed the only kind still possible) of Dylan's pilgrimage to visit Woody at Greystone Hospital in 1961.
3. "Hard travelin', travelin' hard . . ."
Winston references Woody's song "Hard Travelin", which in turn inspired the final line of Dylan's own "Song to Woody": "The very last thing that I'd want to do / is to say I've been hittin' some hard travelin' too"
4. "Back then Winston went by his birthname . . ."
The name change that accompanies Winston's change of persona is a familiar story for many rockers turned folkies, Robert Zimmerman included. But Winston's true surname "Grossman" is a further reference to Albert Grossman, the notorious business manager who first brought to Dylan to international fame in the early '60s.
5. "Harvey's girlfriend, Bonnie, played bass."
Bonnie's name is a reference to Bonnie Beecher, one of Dylan's Minnesota girlfriends before he moved to New York in 1961.
6. ". . . that little toad was Winston Thomas?!"
Suzy Brack's colorful description of Winston as a "little toad" is a direct quotation of a phrase Joan Baez once used to describe Dylan.
7. "Anthology of American Folk Music . . . Edited by Harry Smith"
The songs on Harry Smith's Anthology, originally compiled in 1952, provided much of the soundtrack to the Folk Revival, which was in full swing when Dylan first arrived in Greenwich Village. The songs from the Anthology that Dylan has either covered, or that have served as lyrical or melodic sources for his own songs, number in the dozens.
8. "He started on the Anthology and Woody Guthrie but soon hit the harder stuff."
In a faux-interview, Bonnie paraphrases a line from Dylan's 1965 song "Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues": "I started out on Burgundy but soon hit the harder stuff."
9. ". . . those weird old ballads about roses growing out of people's brains . . ."
Bonnie again closely paraphrases Dylan, this time describing traditional folk music in a 1966 interview with Nat Hentoff.
10. "King of the Midwestern Blues"
The title of one of Winston's self-released albums humorously references Robert Johnson's immortal anthology "King of the Delta Blues Singers". Dylan first encountered the Johnson collection, always one of his biggest inspirations, when Columbia talent scout John Hammond gave him an acetate in 1961 (prior to its official release).
11. "Goin' to the Station Feeling Bad"
The newspaper headline describing Winston's break-in to the Old Town School of Folk Music references a family of folk songs variously known as "Goin' Down the Road Feeling Bad", "Lonesome Road Blues", etc. This family of songs served as the inspiration for Dylan's 1962 composition "Worried Blues"; Dylan wouldn't officially cover "Goin' Down the Road Feeling Bad" until he played it in Joliet, IL in 2003. Could Harvey Grossman have been at that show?
12. "I think he wanted to be anointed in the sort of way that Dylan was . . ."
During a faux-interview segment, Mekon Jon Langford makes the only overt reference to Dylan in the film.
13. "Folk Song Stylist"
For his appearance on Mark Bazer's Interview Show, Winston is identified by a title card reading "Folk Song Stylist". This exact phrase was used by Robert Shelton in his famous review of Dylan's live show that led directly to Dylan being signed by Columbia Records.
14. "I felt a hand on my shoulder and a presence in the room that couldn't have been anybody but Woody."
Substitute "Jesus" for "Woody" and you have a verbatim quote by Dylan explaining his conversion to Christianity in 1978.
15. "That song you did about the girl who stabs the guy and throws him down a well? And then the talking bird comes? That was awesome!"
Miguel's fanboy gushing to Winston describes the traditional murder ballad "Henry Lee", covered by Dylan as "Love Henry" on World Gone Wrong in 1993.
16. ". . . the sky above will become endless highway . . ."
Winston alludes to Woody Guthrie's "This Land is Your Land", memorably covered live by Dylan in 1961 and 1975.
17. ". . . the Go-liaths will be conquered . . ."
Winston alludes to Dylan's 1963 song When the Ship Comes In: "Like Go-liath, they'll be conquered."
18. "They're like Joe Hill. They shot him down but he never died."
Labor activist/songwriter Joe Hill, whom Dylan movingly writes about in Chronicles Vol. 1, indeed lives on through his own songs as well as Alfred Hayes' tribute poem/song "I Dreamed I Saw Joe Hill Last Night". The latter also served as the inspiration for Dylan's 1967 song "I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine".
19. "Don't You Dare Miss It!"
The style of the poster for Winston's concert (including the slogans "Live in Show and Concert" and "Don't You Dare Miss it!") is based on recent posters advertising Dylan's Never Ending Tour.
20. "Good evening ladies and gentlemen. Would you please welcome . . . Winston Thomas!"
The wording and intonation of Miguel's introduction of Winston closely resemble Dylan's introduction at recent live shows by stage manager Al Santos.
21. "I asked Miguel to go with me . . ."
Winston pointing to Miguel in the audience at The Hungry Brain is a visual quote from Martin Scorsese's The Last Waltz where Dylan likewise points to an unseen audience member during "Forever Young".
22. "Woody said, 'I'm not a sell-out, I won't knock on heaven's door . . .'"
Winston makes a humorous lyrical dig at one of Dylan's most well-known songs.
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