Bob Dylan and the creative leap that transformed modern music

Dylan and singer-songwriter Mimi Farina relax at the Viking Hotel in Newport, R.I., in July 1964.
John Byrne Cooke Estate/Getty Images
Ted Olson, East Tennessee State University

The Bob Dylan biopic “A Complete Unknown,” starring Timothée Chalamet, focuses on Dylan’s early 1960s transition from idiosyncratic singer of folk songs to internationally renowned singer-songwriter.

As a music historian, I’ve always respected one decision of Dylan’s in particular ...