Atlantic City Weekly

Bob Dylan
Where: Bogata Event Center
When: June 22 & 23, 8pm
Tickets: $97-$137

Bob Dylan, who kicks off the latest leg of his Never Ending Tour this weekend with two shows at the Borgata (June 22 & 23), once sang: "Atlantic City, by the cold gray sea -- there's a voice crying daddy, I always think it's for me." An odd line in a cryptic Dylan song ("Caribbean Wind," an outtake from the 1981 Shot of Love album, which turned up on the 1986 Biograph retrospective), yes, but also perhaps another example of the 66-year-old music man's many Atlantic City-area connections. Here are some others.

Patty Blee: Local singer-songwriter performs weekly at area venues; recorded her debut -- Disguise -- for Scullville's Treasure Records in 2002, which featured Tony Garnier, Dylan's long-time bass player, as well as other notable musicians. Disguise features guest appearance by Augie Meyers -- longtime keyboardist for John Hammond -- who Dylan requested to play accordion and organ on his 1997 album Time Out of Mind.

Janis Joplin: Had same manager as Dylan for a while (Albert Grossman) and performed at the Atlantic City Pop Festival a few weeks before Woodstock in summer of 1969. One of Grossman's other clients -- aside from the Band -- was Todd Rundgren, who has family in Ocean City.

Martin Scorsese: The Oscar-winning film director made the Band's famous rock doc The Last Waltz -- which Dylan appeared in -- and directed 2006's PBS Dylan special No Direction Home. Has been reportedly working on an HBO series on Atlantic City, based on Nelson Johnson's book Boardwalk Empire: The Birth, High Times, and Corruption of Atlantic City.

John Hammond: His father (John Hammond Sr.) "discovered" Dylan in 1961 and later signed him to Columbia Records. Junior, a veteran blues player, lent some harp work to Patty Blee's album, Disguise. Has been spotted eating at the Point Diner in Somers Point.

LL Cool J: Dylan rapped with Kurtis Blow on the 1986 song "Street Rock." The year before, Blow appeared in Krush Groove with LL Cool J, who performed at A.C.'s Club Harlem in the 1980s and shot the video for "I Need Love" at the Golden Nugget. Performs in A.C. in July.

Twyla Tharp: Choreographed Movin' Out, the musical based on songs of Billy Joel, currently running at Harrah's. Tharp did same treatment to Dylan's songs with last fall's critically panned The Times They Are A-Changin.

Tony Mart's: The Somers Point club was the rock 'n' roll epicenter of the Jersey Shore for many years, especially during the mid-'60s, when Dylan found his new electric band -- Levon and the Hawks -- playing there. The Hawks became Dylan's backing group for his pivotal and tumultuous 1966 world tour and later changed their name to the Band. Tony Mart's closed in the early 1980s.

Levon Helm: Member of the Hawks and later the Band. Has appeared in our area numerous times over the years (see below) performing and recording. Lent talents to the Dixie Hummingbirds Diamond Jubilation album, which was recorded at Scullville Studios (with other members of Dylan's touring band as well as Band member Garth Hudson) in Egg Harbor Twp. back in 2003.