Sara Dylan

Sara Dylan (born Wilmington, Delaware, USA, October 28, 1939), born as Shirley Marlin Noznisky and later known as Sara Lownds, was the first wife of singer-songwriter Bob Dylan. She was married to Bob Dylan from November 1965 until June 1977.

Biography

Sara Dylan's early career was as a fashion model and Playboy bunny. She changed her first name from Shirley to Sara at the request of her first husband, magazine photographer Hans Lownds. Lownds almost ordered her to do this, stating: "I can't be married to a woman named Shirley." According to Peter Lownds, her then-stepson, Sara met Dylan in Greenwich Village in late 1962 while driving around the Village in her MG sports car. "Her meeting with Bob was the reason (Sara left Hans) — he was famous, and she was very beautiful," says Lownds.

Sara Lownds and Bob Dylan were wed in a secret ceremony on November 22 1965, during a break in his tour. The marriage took place under an oak tree on a judge's lawn on Long Island. The only other participants were Albert Grossman and a maid of honor for Sara.

During her marriage to Bob Dylan, Sara Dylan bore three sons and a daughter: Jesse, Anna, Samuel, and Jakob. Jakob, the youngest, would later become well-known as the lead singer of the band The Wallflowers. Bob adopted Sara's daughter Maria from her first marriage, affording her the Dylan surname, although she is the only member of the Dylan family not to have retained it.

Friends and family have described Sara as a good, loving mother who shunned the limelight. Her only public endeavor after marrying Dylan was to play the role of Clara in Bob Dylan's film Renaldo and Clara (released 1978).

The couple divorced on 29 June 1977. Despite some biographical accounts to the contrary, after the divorce they were not close, although they made sure their children were amply provided for. The Trust Fund they established meant that none of their children would ever have to work, unless they wanted to.

Common biographical errors

Sara Dylan is often referred to as "Sara Lownds, wife of Bob Dylan", which is inaccurate; "Dylan" is not a stage name but the former Robert Allen Zimmerman's legal surname. Sara Lownds changed her surname to Dylan on her marriage and retained the Dylan surname after they divorced.

Sara Dylan is also sometimes incorrectly identified as "Sara Lowndes"; the error apparently comes from a long-debunked but often-repeated report that her first husband was one-time Playboy executive Victor Lowndes.

The maid of honor at the Dylan wedding was not Sally Grossman, as is sometimes stated; her identity is unknown.

Sara Dylan in Bob Dylan's songs

Sara Dylan has inspired several of Bob Dylan's songs, at least two directly. The first was "Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands" (from Blonde on Blonde), and the second the eponymous "Sara" (from 1976's Desire). This song was an attempt to reconcile with Sara after their estrangement around 1975:

I can still hear the sound of the Methodist bells

I had taken the cure and had just gotten through

staying up for days in the Chelsea Hotel

writing "Sad Eyed Lady Of The Lowlands" for you

Bob Dylan's 1975 album Blood on the Tracks is widely viewed as the most potent of Sara's inspirations, as many fans assume the songs refer to her. The album was recorded soon after the couple's initial separation. Bob Dylan biographer Clinton Heylin has argued that Sara Dylan's influence on the lyrical content of the album is often exaggerated. Bob Dylan himself denied at the time of the album's release that Blood on the Tracks was autobiographical. However, the couple's son Jakob says: "The songs are my parents talking"

Other Bob Dylan songs believed to be inspired by Sara Dylan include "Abandoned Love," "Down Along The Cove", "Wedding Song", "On A Night Like This", "I'll Be Your Baby Tonight", "To Be Alone With You", "If Not For You", "Where Are You Tonight? (Journey Through Dark Heat)" and "Love Minus Zero/No Limit'".

References

• Howard Sounes. Down The Highway, The Life Of Bob Dylan. Doubleday 2001. ISBN 0-552-99929-6
• Clinton Heylin. Bob Dylan Behind The Shades- A Biography. Penguin Books Ltd. ISBN 0-14-028146-0