Bob Dylan Revealed the Types of TV Shows He Avoids at All Costs: ‘Nothing Disgusting’
After six decades of releasing music, Bob Dylan has earned time to relax in front of the TV. He said that he does have a lot of comfort shows he enjoys watching, particularly while he’s on tour. While there are many shows he enjoys, Dylan said he avoids certain types of programs at all costs. He shared the type of show that will make him turn the TV off.
Bob Dylan revealed the TV show he watches nonstop on tour
Dylan has been on tour practically nonstop since the 1980s. While traveling between cities or relaxing during downtime, he said he has one program that is always on the television.
“[I watch] I Love Lucy, all the time, nonstop,” he said in a 2017 interview on his official website.
The show was on the air when Dylan’s family first purchased a TV.
“I was about 14 or 15 when we got [a TV], my dad put it in the basement,” he said. “It came on at 3:00 and went off at 9, most of the other time it showed a test pattern, some kind of weird circular symbol. The reception wasn’t that good, there was a lot of snow on the screen and you always had to adjust the antenna to get anything to come in. I liked everything I saw — Milton Berle, Sid Caesar, Highway Patrol, Father Knows Best.”
Bob Dylan shared what he avoids while watching TV
Dylan’s tastes in television tend to be shows that aired decades ago because he finds them comforting.
“I recently binged: Coronation Street, Father Brown, and some early Twilight Zones,” he told The Wall Street Journal in 2022. “I know they’re old-fashioned, but they make me feel at home.”
Dylan’s not likely to turn on the news anytime soon, though.
“I’m no fan of packaged programs or news shows,” he said. “I never watch anything foul-smelling or evil. Nothing disgusting, nothing dog a**.”
Much of his media consumption is music
As might be expected, much of Dylan’s media consumption comes in the form of music.
“Nowadays I listen to music: on CDs, satellite radio and streaming,” he said. “I do love the sound of old vinyl, especially on a tube record player from back in the day. I bought three in an antique store in Oregon about 30 years ago. The tone quality is so powerful and miraculous, has so much depth. It always takes me back to the days when life was different and unpredictable.”
Though he isn’t the biggest fan of streaming services, he uses them as a way to stumble across new music, and ideas for his own songwriting.
“I discover new music: mostly by accident, by chance,” he said. “If I go looking for something, I usually don’t find it. In fact, I never find it. I walk into things intuitively when I’m most likely not looking for anything. Performers and songwriters recommend things to me. Others, I just wake up and they’re there.”
