Local musicians bringing the music of Bob Dylan to Englert Theatre

Kevin Hanick's life changed shortly after he caught Bob Dylan at the Iowa City Field House in 1968. The fledgling musician and future realtor/teacher was just 17, and he was moved by arguably the greatest songwriter of the rock era.

"The cultural impact Dylan had on society was massive," Hanick said from his Iowa City home. "I experienced outrage for the first time when I heard him sing 'Masters of War.' Dylan changed everything. I understood what social consciousness was with him playing 'The Times They are A-Changin.' I remember going down to Joe's Place day after day ordering a hamburger and playing ‘Like a Rolling Stone.’ Dylan changed my view of the world while I was still in high school. If there was ever a time to revive Dylan, it's now considering what's going on in our world. What he wrote hit me hard when I was just a teenager."

Over recent years, Hanick has noticed that most teens were unaware of Dylan. However, Hanick, 76, who curated the "Forever Young: The Music of Bob Dylan" concert slated for Saturday at the Englert Theatre, is thrilled that one of the six recording artists on the bill, Room Service, is comprised of City High School students.

"I love that these high school kids know and love Dylan," Hanick said. "I would love it if much of those who show up for this concert are young people. They need to know about Dylan and his music."

The aforementioned Room Service will share a stage with Hanick's band, the Recliners, the Beaker Brothers, Low and Away, Dave Zollo and Brian Johaneson. Each artist will play three Dylan songs.The stipulation is that no tune can be repeated.

"But what's amazing is that it's no problem since everyone came back with three different Dylan songs," Hanick said. "That speaks to the depth of the Dylan catalog. There are just so many Dylan songs since he has been so prolific."

No recording artist can match Dylan's span of brilliance dating back to his 1962 eponymous debut through his latest album, 2023's "Shadow Kingdom." One of Dylan's greatest albums, 2020's "Rough and Rowdy Ways," was created when he was 79.

There isn't much more for Dylan to accomplish. The Nobel Prize recipient has won 10 Grammy Awards, an Academy Award and a Golden Globe and has been awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

But what catapulted Dylan, who has sold more than 125 million albums, into the public's consciousness this year was the film "A Complete Unknown."

"It is funny since Dylan won a Nobel Prize for literature but people don't notice that like they do a movie about him," Hanick said. "But I'm more than fine with that. I love the movie. It's fantastic. The actress who played Joan Baez (Monica Barbaro) is better than Joan Baez! If the film introduces Dylan to a new generation, well, that's just great."

The show, which starts at 2 p.m., benefits the Summer of the Arts programs, which is chaired by Hanick.

"We always need money to hire bands," Hanick said. "We used to get $75,000 from the University of Iowa, but that all dried up. I suggested we do this show at the Englert and hopefully a lot of people show up. I scheduled it for the afternoon so the musicians can perform at night elsewhere, and hopefully people will come out and enjoy this event and have their evenings open as well."

Hanick last experienced Dylan live in 1990 in Madison, Wisconsin.

"He was bad," Hanick said. "When he played ‘Like a Rolling Stone,’ I didn't know what song it was. But I heard he's been good lately."

Hanick doesn't have any plans to see Dylan again, but he always enjoys playing the Bard's songs.

"It's always fun," Hanick said. "There's nobody like Dylan. I just hope we can expose more people to Dylan and have a good time at the Englert."