 Bob Dylan ( / <unk> / ; born Robert Allen Zimmerman , May 24 , 1941 ) is an American singer @-@ songwriter , artist and writer . He has been influential in popular music and culture for more than five decades . Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when his songs chronicled social unrest , although Dylan repudiated suggestions from journalists that he was a spokesman for his generation . Nevertheless , early songs such as " Blowin ' in the Wind " and " The Times They Are a @-@ <unk> ' " became anthems for the American civil rights and anti @-@ war movements . After he left his initial base in the American folk music revival , his six @-@ minute single " Like a Rolling Stone " altered the range of popular music in 1965 . His mid @-@ 1960s recordings , backed by rock musicians , reached the top end of the United States music charts while also attracting <unk> and criticism from others in the folk movement . 
