The Old Weird America

I think it's pretty clear that director Todd Haynes read Greil Marcus' The Old Weird America as part of his research for his avant-garde Bob Dylan biography I'm Not There. Here's a scene from that movie that aptly illustrates the form and context of the obscure folk styles that influenced Dylan, who drew on traditions first excavated in the 1950s by Harry Smith (as explained in Marcus' book). We assigned the book to our Pop Music and Society Honors seminar this semester, but I don't think the students liked it very much-- frankly, it's the kind of analysis that only makes sense once you've lived a little longer than most of them have. I wish I'd thought to show this clip to them, though; maybe something would've clicked: