Bob Dylan, at 85, Feels Like an ‘Old King From Some Vanished Country’

With prose so good that it infuriates us even more that he’s become an enthusiast of AI-generated fiction, Bob Dylan has stepped in front of the piano and removed his hoodie to write about something he’s had a few years to experience: being an octogenarian. In an increasingly rare public comment of sorts, Dylan — who’s still on the road touring, even if some people are unsure which songs he’s performing — told the New York Times about the best and worst aspects of reaching the age milestone as an 85-year-old. “The best thing about being 80 is that you outlive the clocks that have been chasing you,” he wrote, in part. “It’s freedom from that lie that anything was ever under control. You don’t chase the parade anymore. You’re an old king from some vanished country. You’re harder to program.” A downside of being in this club, Dylan admitted, is the urge to say yes to everything. “The old fire in your heart still tells you to do this and that,” he noted, “but your body says we already did it.” But the “really worst part” is a deeper understanding of the butterfly effect. “When you’re young you think that time moves forward. At 80 you know that it doesn’t, it stands still,” Dylan added. “We’re the ones that move.” His short essay was part of a larger Times “Opinion” piece of other octogenarians giving advice to Donald Trump on his birthday; while Dylan did not address the president, other artists (including Liza Minnelli and Art Garfunkel) did. In the jingle-jangle morning, he won’t come followin’ them.