Dylan was born Robert Allen Zimmerman in 1941 and began his musical career in 1959, playing in coffee houses in Minnesota.
Much of his best-known work dates from the 1960s, when he became an informal historian of America`s troubles.
Songs like Blowin` in the Wind and The Times They are A-Changin` became anthems of the anti-war and civil rights movements.
His move away from traditional folk songwriting, paired with a controversial decision to "go electric" proved equally influential.
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