When asked by the interviewer if Bob Dylan and Brian Wilson were two of his main inspirations, he said: “Yeah. I think that’s right. Brian (Wilson) because he was a proper composer and a sonic producer, with only one good ear.”
“Dylan because he was a master. Not just because of the use of words in a creative sense but as a folk singer. A folk singer is someone with a good memory, basically. He had a wealth of American folk songs and Irish, Scottish folk songs. If you’re an expert folkologist is infuriating to be a Dylan fan. You know, someone like Roy Harper is always banging his head against the wall saying that ”Masters Of War’ was written in Scotland in 1706!'”.
Bob Dylan was an inspiration when he was composing “My Generation”
The musician once again praised Dylan when talking with Rolling Stone. He revealed that the American musician was an inspiration when he was writing The Who’s “My Generation”: “Dylan definitely created a new style of writing. Dylan was the one who I think got the message across to The Beatles. (That) was that you can write songs about subjects other than ‘falling in love’.”
Townshend recalled being wholly devoted to Dylan before he realised his idol was not who he thought he was. He recalled: “Well, there was Bob Dylan. When I was a kid … well, not a kid, but younger and listening to Dylan, I couldn’t wait for the day when somebody would get to him and do that in-depth interview where everybody would find out what really was in the back of his head. And when I discovered that there was nothing there at all … nothing … I must say I was incredibly disappointed.”
The guitarist continued: “From that day onward, he ceased to be my hero. He remained somebody who wrote music that I loved. I still love the earlier stuff for the pure nostalgia of remembering how stimulating he was, but he wasn’t quite the gladiator I had expected. You can’t deny, though, that Dylan’s music marked a new dimension in rock ‘n’ roll. He opened the door for rock to say bigger and better things.”
When discussing Dylan’s return Townshend, who had already so openly decried the American’s personality, changed his tune once more. He asserted that Dylan changed “the function of the song.”
He said: “This is Bob’s due, his time, his legacy and his destiny. From the first moment I heard this wonderful man when I was just 16 I knew he would one day change the world, change the function of the song, and make a billion dollars. The last part is possibly still to come.”
