Dylan, Newport `65 & the Search for the Green Polka-Dot Shirt

After successfully discovering the Dylan Silver Elvis photo, I was commissioned by the same party to find the photographer and locate the original of this photo of Bob Dylan.

The photograph was used as the cover for an EP — CBS EP 6270 (France) — released in March, 1966. A larger, digitally edited, version of the photo with titling removed was also included as an insert for a 1993 Dylan bootleg titled “Squaring the Circle.”

Connecting the Dots

What could be learned from the photo? Based on contemporary images, I thought it was likely taken on July 25, 1965 at the Newport Folk Festival, the day when Dylan “went electric.” There are several black-and-white photos of Dylan wearing a polka-dot shirt that day, one taken of him chatting with his manager, Albert Grossman, others shot of him at the Sunday afternoon sound check. Interestingly, Al Kooper wore the same (or a very similar) shirt during the evening concert.