Bob Dylan Wins Nobel Prize in Literature

Minnesota's own Bob Dylan is a Nobel laureate. The Nobel Prize committee announced Thursday that they awarded Dylan a Nobel Prize in literature "for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition."

Dylan's enigmatic, ever-changing style was credited as one reason he was given the award.

In an interviewed posted on Twitter, Nobel Permanent Secretary Sara Danius said Dylan "is a great poet in the English-speaking tradition, and he is a wonderful sampler, a very original sampler."

"He embodies the tradition, and for 54 years now he’s been at it, and reinventing himself constantly."

When asked of her favorite album, Danius said listeners should start with "Blonde on Blonde," Dylan's album from 1966, which included tracks "Just Like a Woman" and "Visions of Johanna."

Dylan's first studio album was released in 1962 and was titled Bob Dylan. Three years later, Dylan released what would become one of his most revered classics, Mr. Tambourine Man, on his fifth studio album titled Bringing It All Back Home.

Dylan was born in Duluth and was raised in Hibbing, Minnesota. He moved to Minneapolis in September 1959 and enrolled at the University of Minnesota. During this time, Dylan lived in the Dinkytown building that currently houses the Loring Pasta Bar.

Dylan, who's now 75, has so far released 37 studio albums in his career. His most recent album, Fallen Angels, was released in May.

Image via YouTube