Dylan's Jesus Years - Christianity Today

“I had no idea it was going to be wall-to-wall Jesus!” laughs legendary record producer Jerry Wexler in a new documentary, Inside Bob Dylan’s Jesus Years.

Wexler was discussing Slow Train Coming, Dylan’s 1979 album that was both revered and reviled. Dylan’s conversion to Christianity—and the three evangelically minded albums that followed—shocked the music world so completely that it remains one of the most provocative and disputed periods in the icon’s storied history. Last year’s artsy biopic I’m Not There glossed over that period, but this film pieces together interviews with Dylan’s former pastor, fellow musicians from the Slow Train era, and even some of the music critics who initially derided his “Jesus music.” It offers a rare glimpse into an oft-misunderstood era. (Dylan was not interviewed for this film, but archived conversations with him are included.)

Director Joel Gilbert coaxes some great reminiscences out of his interview subjects. He captures the mood and tension of the Jesus years in striking detail and digs for rare personal insights into Dylan’s personality. Perhaps the documentary’s most rewarding segment is its re-creation of the notorious Slow Train-era concerts, in which Dylan’s newfound faith was celebrated by a few and criticized by many. One of Dylan’s backup singers tells how Dylan had his entire band and crew spend time in prayer before each show. And Dylan himself sums it up in one archival interview snippet from the era: “You heard it here: Jesus is Lord.”

If there is anything disappointing about this film, it’s that the final few moments seem to cast Dylan’s born-again years as just another phase in his artistic development, something he quickly discarded. Many students of Dylan might argue that his religious convictions never went away—they just became subtler. This documentary may not convince anybody of the artistic greatness of Dylan’s Jesus music, but it helps one understand and appreciate it as a sincere outgrowth of Dylan’s own spiritual seeking.

Josh Hurst, film critic, ChristianityTodayMovies.com

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Inside Bob Dylan’s Jesus Years can be purchased at Amazon.com and other retailers.

Hurst also reviewed the album for ChristianityTodayMovies.com.

Previous Christianity Today articles on Dylan include:

Parsing Pop Lyrics | Tangled Up in The Bible translates Dylan’s use of scripture. (November 1, 2004)

Watered-Down Love | Bob Dylan encountered Jesus in 1978, and that light has not entirely faded as he turns 60. By Steve Turner (May 24, 2001)

Not Buying into the Subculture | Slow Train Coming reveals that Bob Dylan’s quest for answers has been satisfied. By David Singer (Jan. 4, 1980)

Bob Dylan Finds His Source | “A call into the bars, into the streets, into the world, to repentance.”
By Noel Paul Stookey | (February 4, 1980)

Has Born-again Bob Dylan Returned to Judaism? | The singer’s response to an Olympics ministry opportunity might settle the matter once for all. (Jan. 13, 1984)

Bob Dylan: Still Blowin’ in the Wind | Christianity Today reviews Dylan’s work before the singer’s conversion to Christianity. By Daniel J. Evearitt (Dec. 3, 1976)

University of Chicago professor Jean Bethke Elshtain and Wheaton College professor Alan Jacobs have written on Bob Dylan for Christianity Today‘s sister publication Books & Culture.