u/Next_Concentrate_153

This is a pic of the School of Discipleship at the original Vineyard Christian Fellowship in Reseda, CA, 1979. This course of bible study was just under 300 hours over a period of three months. Bob Dylan and his girlfriend, Mary Alice Artes, are on the left.
Credit: Alan Allison.

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2026/magazine/best-living-american-songwiters-reader-picks.html

Paul McCartney has explained why Bob Dylan is the one artist that he feels “nervous” to approach.

The two music legends have been mutual admirers for over 60 years, having first met when Dylan came to The Beatles’ hotel suite in New York in August 1964 and introduced them to marijuana for the first time.

In a new interview on BBC Radio 2’s Track Of My Years, McCartney was asked to pick his favourite songs and among them was Dylan’s ‘Mr. Tambourine Man’.
When asked about his relationship with the singer-songwriter, he said: “I’m a fan, but y’know, I don’t know him well enough. George [Harrison] knew him very well because they were in the Travelling Wilburys together. I’m a little bit nervous to approach him.”

McCartney continued: “Some people, it’s easy, you sort of think we can chat easily. Last time I saw Bob, it was a few years ago, we are at Coachella and they did the Desert Trip, so it was a lot of vintage acts: us, the Stones, Bob, Neil Young. And one of our girls said, ‘Bob Dylan wants to see you’.”
He went on to explain that he was surprised that it would be a private one-on-one meeting. “I came in to see him, and it was like, ‘Wow’. It was just him and me in this massive, big tent backstage. He was very complimentary, it’s funny because it was kind of a little bit embarrassing. He said, ‘You’re a star’. I thought, what do you say to that. ‘Thank you Bob, I love what you do’.”

Dylan has spoken highly of McCartney many times, including in 2007 when he said: “I’m in awe of McCartney. He’s about the only one that I am in awe of. He can do it all. And he’s never let up…He’s just so damn effortless.”

The comments were reciprocated by McCartney in 2020, when he spoke to BBC Radio 2 and said that The Beatles’ more “interpersonal, reflective” songwriting was influenced by the American folk icon.
“We certainly got a lot from Dylan and I know I had one of his first LPs at home before The Beatles,” he told Sean Ono Lennon. “I used to play that quite a lot so I was steeped in him and I think your dad was too, but that was just one of the influences.”
He also said that year that he always wished he “could be a bit more like” Bob Dylan, particularly when it comes down to not worrying about what other people think.

https://www.nme.com/news/music/paul-mccartney-on-why-bob-dylan-is-the-one-artist-hes-nervous-to-approach-3947589

Fax letter from John Lee Hooker offering Bob Dylan, a speedy recovery on May 29, 1997. 
Dylan had known Hooker since receiving his first big break opening for the blues legend at Gerdes Folk City in April 1961. As Hooker later told music writer Tony Scherman:
“Did you used to hang out with Bob Dylan back in the day?”
“He hung out with me!” said Hooker. “When I used to play Gerde’s Folk City, ain’t nobody heard of Bob. He used to come and see me all the time. Bob and his girlfriend, Suze. Bob and Suze used to come visit me at the Broadway Central Hotel, where I always stayed. It’s no longer there. We’d sit around and drink and play. Bobby would ‘bout blow on his harmonica. Yeah, those were the days.”

This is not my screenshots, I got this from a Bob Dylan fan group on Facebook. It’s from Mojo Magazine’s June 2026 issue. Jeff Tweedy is the one interviewing Elvis Costello.