Hats have been characteristic accessories in Bob Dylan's look for years, but what we now know as a trademark of the musician began not because the American liked to wear something on his head, but because it served him well for his work. Before being a global star of the fourth art, the native of Duluth, Minnesota, had other jobs, one of which was in a nightclub, as he commented in an interview with Martha Quinn.
Bob Dylan. Source: Bob Dylan's Facebook.
As Far Out Magazine recalls, in the talk Robert Allen Zimmerman was asked about his opinion regarding Van Halen singer David Lee Roth, to which he surprisingly replied: “I don't know who he is, but I know his uncle, Manny Roth. I used to work for him. In fact, your uncle gave me my first job. I have very good memories of him."
Roth Sr., who was a nightclub owner and entertainment entrepreneur, was described by Dylan as "a fantastic guy" who was responsible for giving "a lot of people their first jobs, as I recall." “I'm sure there are a lot of people on the street who worked for Manny. Jimi Hendrix, Gordon Lightfoot," the legendary singer-songwriter said of his former boss, who helped a number of young artists early in their careers.
Bob Dylan. Source: Bob Dylan's Facebook.
As part of the same interview, the Oscar, Grammy and Nobel Prize winner for literature recounted: “I worked for Manny every afternoon from 12:00 to 20:00. Back then I did it on the day shift. He had a cafe that was open from 11:00 a.m. to 4:00 a.m. the next day and something was constantly happening on the stage.”
However, while Roth Sr. offered an opportunity for youngsters to showcase their talents, the scene was a bit more complex when it came to pay. “You never really got popular there because nobody was advertised abroad,” Dylan said. "To tell you the truth, he didn't pay after that. So, after you played, you had a hat or a basket or whatever you wanted to bring to pass through the audience."
It was from his experience in that place that the musician began to wear hats, an accessory that he "never used to wear." “My hat was quite big, because when you took it off, you could use it as a bag,” he explained. “There were people who would come in and they used to wonder why people were playing in big ten gallon cowboy hats and it was because you used to pass them by [to get paid]. The bigger the hat, the more money you earned.”