Dylan to play at IU tonight

Since he emerged from Greenwich Village in the 1960s his voice has been as craggy as his appearance disheveled.\nHe's never been the conventional rock star.\n"I always needed a song to get by," he said in a 1987 interview with Rolling Stone. "There's a lot of singers who don't need songs to get by. A lot of 'em are tall, good-lookin', you know? They don't need to say anything to grab people."\nBut Bob Dylan keeps on the road, spreading the good word, going all the way until the wheels fall off and burn.\nNow touring college campuses, he'll make a stop at 7:30 p.m. tonight at the IU Auditorium.\nWith tickets priced at $31.50 with student discount, the show has long been sold out.\n"You are going to be up close and personal with Bob Dylan, and you can't get that at a large amphitheater," said senior Jeff Zuckerman, Union Board concerts director. "He's going to be in his element."\nUnion Board booked the rock and roll hall of famer, who had played regularly at the Auditorium before its recent renovation. \n"It was the obvious choice for us, and the obvious choice for him," Zuckerman said.\nWell-known for his intelligent yet often cryptic lyrics, the folk singer ended up having a profound influence on rock and roll. With trailblazing albums like Highway 61 Revisited and Blood on the Tracks, Dylan captured the spirit of the era. He spoke out against the Vietnam War and the establishment, taking a stand for personal freedom.\n"He, Elvis and the Beatles are the most important figures in rock history," said associate music professor Glenn Gass, who teaches a course on the history of rock and roll. "They really opened up the ground for what rock could be as art and what rock could say, the level you could express yourself in a pop song." \nAfter paying his dues for nearly four decades, Dylan finally received a Grammy for the release of his last album of original music, Time Out of Mind. A gloomy reminiscence on life, it looks back at failed relationships and the magic of youth. Billboard heralded it as "a brilliant album from an artist with an endless store of genius." \nAnother album is not yet in the works, as Dylan continues to barnstorm the country, strumming his guitar. But with previously released music, it's been another story.\nColumbia Records released The Essential Bob Dylan, a two-disc collection of his classics, yesterday. It features remastered hits like "Mr. Tambourine Man," "Rainy Day Women #12 & 35" and "Blowin' in the Wind," songs that have long lingered in the public imagination.\nAfter his show at the Auditorium, he'll pack up for West Lafayette, where he'll be playing Thursday. Before he heads northeast, he'll hit campuses in Ohio and Michigan.\nThe times, they might be a changin', but all the evidence suggests Dylan will remain a constant as long as he holds out.