Bob Dylan motorcycle crash is A Complete Unknown

Bob Dylan is the subject of arguably the most famous motorcycle crash in history.

The revolutionary singer-songwriter was an icon of counterculture in the 1960s and changed the landscape of folk music with his complex and politically charged lyrics. He arrived in Greenwich Village in the early 60s as an unknown musician, and quickly rose through the ranks to superstardom, thanks largely in part to his controversial "electric" set at the 1965 Newport Folk Festival.

And with Dylan’s self-mythologizing and conflicting stories about his life, the man born as Robert Allen Zimmerman has become one of the most influential cultural figures of the 20th century.

So, it’s no wonder that Timothee Chalamet’s portrayal of Dylan in the new film, A Complete Unknown, has drawn the intense attention of punters and critics alike. 

If you’ve seen any of the promotional material for A Complete Unknown, you’ll have noticed a striking co-star gracing the screen alongside Chalamet. And we’re not talking about Elle Fanning.  

A beautiful 1964 Triumph T100 Bonneville features prominently in the film as Dylan’s motorcycle of choice. Chalamet pilots the iconic British twin several times throughout the movie, representing the music icon’s passion for two wheels. 

Some might argue that Dylan’s Triumph was as much a part of his legendary style as his Ray-Ban sunglasses, messy hair, harmonica, or acoustic guitar.  

But Bob Dylan’s two-wheel story is a lot deeper and more complex than a simple fashion statement. It is an integral part of the star’s mythical life.

In July 1966, not long after the release of his seventh studio album, Blonde on Blonde, Dylan crashed a Triumph Tiger 100 at his home in New York. Details of the crash have been speculated on, twisted, fabricated, and mythologized over the years – sometimes by Dylan himself – to the point that no one really knows what happened. 

But it is assumed that no ambulance was called, he was not hospitalised, and he broke several vertebrae in his neck. He also disappeared from the public eye and stopped touring for almost eight years, prompting speculation that the effects of the crash were more profound and long-lasting that he was letting on.

He returned to the studio in 1967, but many have noted that his voice on later albums had changed significantly. There are also rumours that he was exhausted and drug-addicted in the months leading up to the crash, and that the down time gave him a chance to get clean. Other more wild conspiracy theories even suggest he died and was replaced with a lookalike.

In his 2004 memoir, Chronicles: Vol.1, Dylan wrote: “I was injured in a motorcycle accident, and I’d been hurt, but I recovered. Truth was that I wanted to get out of the rat race”. This correlates with a popular theory that Dylan used the crash as an excuse to get out of the chaotic and exhausting cycle of touring. That said, Chronicles has been criticised by some as a work of fiction. 

Another story fuelling the Dylan myth comes more recently, courtesy of a 2012 interview with Rolling Stone. In the interview, Dylan pulls out a copy of Hell’s Angel: The Life and Times of Sonny Barger by Keith and Kent Zimmerman. If sharing the author’s surname wasn’t enough of a coincidence, Dylan points to a passage in the book that speaks of the motorcycle death of Hells Angel chapter president, Bobby Zimmerman, in 1961 – around the time Dylan got his big break. Dylan goes on to suggest that he is somehow intrinsically connected to Bobby, possibly through transfiguration.  

All very mysterious, but Dylan’s motorcycle history is not just restricted to his years of fame. He is reported to have acquired his first bike – a Harley-Davidson – as a 16-year-old. Another article reported that Dylan’s father, Abram Zimmerman, also rode and was a member of a motorcycle club in his hometown of Duluth, Minnesota. And while it’s not 100 per cent clear how much riding Dylan did after his 1966 accident, there is at least one photo of him in later years sitting on a bike. 

Perhaps the most interesting thing about Bob Dylan is that he has helped fuel the rumours and speculation that have made his life and career the stuff of legend. He apparently told Time magazine in 2001 that he’ll “take some of the stuff that people think is true and build a story around that”. 

Put simply, only Bob Dylan knows the real Bob Dylan story. And that makes the title of this latest biopic very apt. Regardless of what actually happened, the alleged Dylan motorcycle crash marked a significant moment in the legendary artist's career.

A Complete Unknown will hit Australian cinemas on January 23.