Bob Dylan Reveals He Digs Metallica and Other Surprising Artists

Bob Dylan doesn't talk to the press often, so when he does, he often says something fans wouldn't expect. That was definitely the case with his new interview with The Wall Street Journal.

Dylan took part in the outlet's "20 Odd Questions" series to promote his latest book, The Philosophy of Modern Song. One of the questions asked was how the iconic singer-songwriter discovers new music today. Dylan said, "Mostly by accident, by chance ... Performers and songwriters recommend things to me. Others I just wake up and they’re there. Some I’ve seen live."

He then lists a surprising variety of artists he enjoys saying, "The Oasis Brothers, I like them both, Julian Casablancas, the Klaxons, Grace Potter. I’ve seen Metallica twice. I’ve made special efforts to see Jack White and Alex Turner. Zac Deputy, I’ve discovered him lately. He’s a one-man show like Ed Sheeran, but he sits down when he plays. I’m a fan of Royal Blood, Celeste, Rag and Bone Man, Wu-Tang, Eminem, Nick Cave, Leonard Cohen, anybody with a feeling for words and language, anybody whose vision parallels mine."

Dylan goes on to shout out Guns N' Roses bassist Duff McKagan and one of his solo songs. He said, "There’s a Duff McKagan song called 'Chip Away,' that has profound meaning for me. It’s a graphic song. Chip away, chip away, like Michelangelo, breaking up solid marble stone to discover the form of King David inside. He didn’t build him from the ground up, he chipped away the stone until he discovered the king. It’s like my own songwriting, I overwrite something, then I chip away lines and phrases until I get to the real thing. Shooter Jennings produced that record. It’s a great song."

The whole Dylan interview is well worth the read, but it's behind a paywall on the WSJ's website. Fortunately, it's available for free on BobDylan.com.

Bob Dylan: his voice isn't for everyone, but you can't deny his songwriting ability. In his six decades of making music, he's been covered by a huge range of artists, including Jimi Hendrix, Eddie Vedder, Stevie Wonder, Heart with Layne Staley, U2, Elvis Presley, Tim Armstrong of Rancid, Silversun Pickups, Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers and many more. There's a reason why he recently sold his music publishing for a rumored nine-figure deal.

With that in mind, we thought we'd celebrate his 80th birthday with a list of the best versions of his 80 best songs. So, it's a mix Dylan's versions, and a few of his live performances as well and lots of covers by the aforementioned artists.

And yes, we know that some Dylanologists will be mad that some of the "classics" are missing (we just don't love "Just Like A Woman" or "Mr. Tamborine Man" as much as everyone else). We love some of the material from the second half of his career as much as the music from his more celebrated first half. We love the covers, and we gave them extra points in some cases for introducing his music to younger generations. And with that, let's start with number eighty.