Steve Paul
@sbpaul.bsky.social
Career journalist now writing literary biography. Transplanted New Englander in the deep Midwest. Book hound, jazz hound, music lover, traveler, food-wine explorer, poem-flinger, social introvert more or less. President, Biographers International Org.
Pinned
Steve Paul
@sbpaul.bsky.social
· May 10
See Hear: Steve Paul on Rambling Around the Arts | The vibes and musical planet waves still stretch back to the early ’60s – KC STUDIO
I’m happy to report that the spirit of what we think of as folk music and the legacy of the octogenarian Nobel laureate Bob Dylan seem to be alive and well.
kcstudio.org
The world of Bob Dylan (and Joan Baez) continues to grow in the wake of "A Complete Unknown." My latest column for @kcstudiomag.bsky.social
kcstudio.org/the-vibes-an...
kcstudio.org/the-vibes-an...
A quick hit on the Allis Plaza art project. Feels good to me:
kcstudio.org/new-public-a...
kcstudio.org/new-public-a...
Arts News | New public artwork taking shape for Barney Allis Plaza – KC STUDIO
The Belgian art and engineering team proposing a large-scale installation around the rebuilt Barney Allis Plaza came up with a brilliant plan.
kcstudio.org
August 30, 2025 at 3:02 PM
A quick hit on the Allis Plaza art project. Feels good to me:
kcstudio.org/new-public-a...
kcstudio.org/new-public-a...
The @kcsymphony.bsky.social marshals all the forces plus two choirs for Mahler's huge 3rd Symph tonight. Buckling up.
May 31, 2025 at 12:55 AM
The @kcsymphony.bsky.social marshals all the forces plus two choirs for Mahler's huge 3rd Symph tonight. Buckling up.
Yes, indeed, it's barbecue season. In this blog from the Library of Congress, Kansas City gets some historical love and cooks from all over provide some age-old guidance on the grillin' and smokin' business. blogs.loc.gov/folklife/202...
“Get it hot off of the pit”: a celebration of barbecue | Folklife Today
In celebration of National Barbecue Month, AFC Folklife Specialist Meg Nicholas turns to the Center's archival collections for inspiration and insight on what makes for the best barbecue.
blogs.loc.gov
May 27, 2025 at 3:43 PM
Yes, indeed, it's barbecue season. In this blog from the Library of Congress, Kansas City gets some historical love and cooks from all over provide some age-old guidance on the grillin' and smokin' business. blogs.loc.gov/folklife/202...
My latest column for @kcstudiomag.bsky.social tracks ways that "A Complete Unknown" has fired up a new generation of fans. @bobdylancenter.bsky.social @definitelydylan.bsky.social kcstudio.org/the-vibes-an...
See Hear: Steve Paul on Rambling Around the Arts | The vibes and musical planet waves still stretch back to the early ’60s – KC STUDIO
I’m happy to report that the spirit of what we think of as folk music and the legacy of the octogenarian Nobel laureate Bob Dylan seem to be alive and well.
kcstudio.org
May 26, 2025 at 1:27 AM
My latest column for @kcstudiomag.bsky.social tracks ways that "A Complete Unknown" has fired up a new generation of fans. @bobdylancenter.bsky.social @definitelydylan.bsky.social kcstudio.org/the-vibes-an...
The world of Bob Dylan (and Joan Baez) continues to grow in the wake of "A Complete Unknown." My latest column for @kcstudiomag.bsky.social
kcstudio.org/the-vibes-an...
kcstudio.org/the-vibes-an...
See Hear: Steve Paul on Rambling Around the Arts | The vibes and musical planet waves still stretch back to the early ’60s – KC STUDIO
I’m happy to report that the spirit of what we think of as folk music and the legacy of the octogenarian Nobel laureate Bob Dylan seem to be alive and well.
kcstudio.org
May 10, 2025 at 4:06 PM
The world of Bob Dylan (and Joan Baez) continues to grow in the wake of "A Complete Unknown." My latest column for @kcstudiomag.bsky.social
kcstudio.org/the-vibes-an...
kcstudio.org/the-vibes-an...
Three book-related events in NY this week--Gillian Flynn launches an imprint, "Ulysses" on trial, @ronaldchernow.bsky.social on Mark Twain.
May 8, 2025 at 2:56 PM
Three book-related events in NY this week--Gillian Flynn launches an imprint, "Ulysses" on trial, @ronaldchernow.bsky.social on Mark Twain.
If you're not reading @andreapitzer.bsky.social, you're missing out. Contra AI, she writes, "When it comes to expressing yourself, only you can live and invent your own life."
Who invents the world
Hint: it's not magic or billionaires, or even an algorithm.
degenerateart.beehiiv.com
May 7, 2025 at 3:05 AM
If you're not reading @andreapitzer.bsky.social, you're missing out. Contra AI, she writes, "When it comes to expressing yourself, only you can live and invent your own life."
Terrific piece of baseball history and the American history the other team wants to suppress.
Gerald Early traces the role of baseball in Black communities in Reconstruction-era America.
How Baseball Shaped Black Communities in Reconstruction-Era America
From the end of the Civil War to World War I, African Americans experienced extraordinary change. In one respect, they went from being enslaved people to citizens, from slavery to freedom, in a com…
buff.ly
May 2, 2025 at 12:06 AM
Terrific piece of baseball history and the American history the other team wants to suppress.
Interesting complaint in Lauren Jackson's @newyorker.com review of Chernow's Twain bio: "Chernow, with a fortune-teller’s fondness for physiognomy, detects 'a turbulent gaze,' evidence of 'a tough, hardheaded practicality' destined for success. Or maybe it’s just a teen-ager trying not to blink."
May 1, 2025 at 11:15 PM
Interesting complaint in Lauren Jackson's @newyorker.com review of Chernow's Twain bio: "Chernow, with a fortune-teller’s fondness for physiognomy, detects 'a turbulent gaze,' evidence of 'a tough, hardheaded practicality' destined for success. Or maybe it’s just a teen-ager trying not to blink."
What? No Nick Adams, from "Big Two-Hearted River"?
“They include, as with any decent restaurant, a bunch of absolute freaks.”
The 7 Greatest Cooks in Literature - Electric Literature
We’re inundated with chef content in film and television, but where are the novels?
buff.ly
April 28, 2025 at 10:24 PM
What? No Nick Adams, from "Big Two-Hearted River"?
Brilliant.
New Suzanne Vega song based on the Chambermaid in Dylan’s song ‘I Want You’.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=7oG8...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=7oG8...
Suzanne Vega - Chambermaid (Official Audio)
YouTube video by Suzanne Vega
www.youtube.com
April 9, 2025 at 3:27 AM
Brilliant.
Dylan sighting, obit for actress Sian Barbara Allen: 'her daughter suggested honoring her mother by reading your favorite book in bed, listening to the "entire Graceland album or any of Bob Dylan's music," and eating some mac and cheese...' @dylan.thefm.club @definitelydylan.bsky.social
April 1, 2025 at 6:07 PM
Dylan sighting, obit for actress Sian Barbara Allen: 'her daughter suggested honoring her mother by reading your favorite book in bed, listening to the "entire Graceland album or any of Bob Dylan's music," and eating some mac and cheese...' @dylan.thefm.club @definitelydylan.bsky.social
In Topeka last night we're told that Dylan said something like "are these songs for these times, or what?"
Bob must've eavesdropped on @definitelydylan.bsky.social discussion group Sunday. @virgilkinsley.bsky.social @inthephishbowl.bsky.social @britteisnor.bsky.social
Bob must've eavesdropped on @definitelydylan.bsky.social discussion group Sunday. @virgilkinsley.bsky.social @inthephishbowl.bsky.social @britteisnor.bsky.social
March 31, 2025 at 5:49 PM
In Topeka last night we're told that Dylan said something like "are these songs for these times, or what?"
Bob must've eavesdropped on @definitelydylan.bsky.social discussion group Sunday. @virgilkinsley.bsky.social @inthephishbowl.bsky.social @britteisnor.bsky.social
Bob must've eavesdropped on @definitelydylan.bsky.social discussion group Sunday. @virgilkinsley.bsky.social @inthephishbowl.bsky.social @britteisnor.bsky.social
The pregame view from Crafts and Drafts at the @royals.com ball yard.
March 29, 2025 at 7:56 PM
The pregame view from Crafts and Drafts at the @royals.com ball yard.
From the super-fantastic Jesse Ed Davis exhibit at the @bobdylancenter.bsky.social in Tulsa. Dylan, Davis, George H, and poet John Trudell, who collaborated with Davis. Also see Dylan on Trudell in PoMS.
March 26, 2025 at 9:24 PM
From the super-fantastic Jesse Ed Davis exhibit at the @bobdylancenter.bsky.social in Tulsa. Dylan, Davis, George H, and poet John Trudell, who collaborated with Davis. Also see Dylan on Trudell in PoMS.
Yes, one of the best of RARW tour.
He is NOT 83; he is so vital and gives his energy to us all
Out of my 427 Bob shows this is one of the best
Everyone agrees and we are outside stunned and no one can really talk
Best Desolation Row I've ever heard and a Key West to absolutely cry for
Thank you Bob Dylan
Out of my 427 Bob shows this is one of the best
Everyone agrees and we are outside stunned and no one can really talk
Best Desolation Row I've ever heard and a Key West to absolutely cry for
Thank you Bob Dylan
March 26, 2025 at 5:21 AM
Yes, one of the best of RARW tour.
Agree with all yr points, one of the best I've heard. New appreciation of My Own Version of You, which now feels like the crux of RARW. All the slower songs seemed powerful.
Opened with Watchtower, included baby blue, it ain’t me babe, desolation row, a few others. 80% the RRW show but a few more nods to the ACU songs. Pristine sound, powerful singing with the minor exception of Goodbye Jimmy Reed. Close with Grain of Sand. Really really really excellent.
Absolutely incredible. Damn near perfection. WOW
March 26, 2025 at 3:19 AM
Agree with all yr points, one of the best I've heard. New appreciation of My Own Version of You, which now feels like the crux of RARW. All the slower songs seemed powerful.
Our man @virgilkinsley.bsky.social playing Dylan tunes at Saturn Room in shadow of Tulsa Theater, where we'll see Bobby himself tonight. @definitelydylan.bsky.social
March 25, 2025 at 10:31 PM
Our man @virgilkinsley.bsky.social playing Dylan tunes at Saturn Room in shadow of Tulsa Theater, where we'll see Bobby himself tonight. @definitelydylan.bsky.social
Another member of @biographersintl.bsky.social offers good advice in this @literaryhub.bsky.social piece. #books #writing
Vanda Krefft explains how biographers who struggle to find primary sources can still recover a past believed to be lost.
Writing Biography Without an Archive: On Recovering a Past Believed to Be Lost
As a biographer, I’m most intrigued by people on whom history has turned its back—yet who nevertheless made a big difference in public life. People like Katharine Gibbs, who started a school for yo…
buff.ly
March 10, 2025 at 8:20 PM
Another member of @biographersintl.bsky.social offers good advice in this @literaryhub.bsky.social piece. #books #writing
I've been immersed in the '74 #Dylan tour and noting the same as @rogovoy.bsky.social explores in this spot-on look at “It’s Alright Ma (I’m Only Bleeding)” as an anthem of our new dark days: “even the president of the United States sometimes must have to stand naked.” forward.com/culture/musi...
In 1964, when he was just 23, Bob Dylan wrote the prophetic anthem that encapsulates Trump's America
Decrying a world characterized by materialism, violence and blind conformity, Dylan echoed the warnings of King Solomon.
forward.com
March 10, 2025 at 12:36 PM
I've been immersed in the '74 #Dylan tour and noting the same as @rogovoy.bsky.social explores in this spot-on look at “It’s Alright Ma (I’m Only Bleeding)” as an anthem of our new dark days: “even the president of the United States sometimes must have to stand naked.” forward.com/culture/musi...
Same as it ever was: "Medicare is not a bank to be used to pay for a tax break for the wealthy." -- Rep. John Lewis, 1994, via @davidgreenberg.bsky.social's bio, "John Lewis"
March 10, 2025 at 3:40 AM
Same as it ever was: "Medicare is not a bank to be used to pay for a tax break for the wealthy." -- Rep. John Lewis, 1994, via @davidgreenberg.bsky.social's bio, "John Lewis"
In the latest @kcstudiomag.bsky.social: My column on expanding the @nelsonatkins.bsky.social #architecture #art kcstudio.org/the-nelson-a...
See Hear: Steve Paul On Rambling Around the Arts | The Nelson-Atkins envisions a bold new step into the future – KC STUDIO
The best architecture makes us feel alive. The way designers shape materials and the space around people can produce a buoyant sensory engagement before we even think about it.
kcstudio.org
March 3, 2025 at 9:33 PM
In the latest @kcstudiomag.bsky.social: My column on expanding the @nelsonatkins.bsky.social #architecture #art kcstudio.org/the-nelson-a...
Enlightening: Anna Cannoni on her grandfather Woody Guthrie's intersections with Pete and Bob at @folk-alliance.bsky.social gathering in Montreal. Stunning home movies. Her mother, Nora, then 11, was watching American Bandstand and couldn't be bothered when Dylan first came to the door. #bobdylan
February 23, 2025 at 3:13 PM
Enlightening: Anna Cannoni on her grandfather Woody Guthrie's intersections with Pete and Bob at @folk-alliance.bsky.social gathering in Montreal. Stunning home movies. Her mother, Nora, then 11, was watching American Bandstand and couldn't be bothered when Dylan first came to the door. #bobdylan