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The celebration, which local singer Steve Horton dreamed up as a way to honor the signal singer-songwriter of this era, will raise money to support cultural programming at Lawson-McGhee library. Nelda Hill, director of the library’s Sights and Sounds department, explained this includes any number of programs the library uses to take music, poetry and other arts to the larger community. In the past few years, the library has emerged as a major player in the downtown arts scene through musical and literary outreach programs like the Rothrock Café series and the jazz and poetry festivals. “Shows like the Dylan festival go a long way toward helping raise money so we can continue hosting these kinds of events,� Hill said.

This year’s lineup is headlined by the legendary Carawan family—Guy and Candie plus son Evan. The Carawans are a living repository of American folk music. “Considering the Carawans long association with politically conscious music and the use of music to educate people about the need for social change, particularly in the South and Appalachia, it is especially poignant that they are involved in a celebration of Bob Dylan’s music by some of the best musicians in East Tennessee,� she continued.

Plus, as Horton joked, it’s a good opportunity to celebrate his own birthday—the same day—“without having a bunch of hippies over to the house.�

Horton and Maggie Longmire are co-leaders of longtime favorite country rockers The Lonesome Coyotes. “The idea for the Dylan's birthday celebration grew out of discussions between Maggie and me about the need for an event to draw together the various elements of the local music scene. Bands typically don't get to hear each other perform. And when they do, bands tend to go hear other bands in the same genre. Back in the old days, there were benefits that put country, rock, jazz, and bluegrass acts on the same bill, for the same cause. That doesn't seem to happen as much now.�