I just wanted to start a fistfight out there! They have been compared and contrasted. They are iconic, ironic and perhaps a little over blown. But everyone has a favorite. I prefer Donovan what about you??

Thank you friends!

I must add a final reply before I close the discussion. I am not a fan of either musician, in fact they both kind of annoy the shit outta me, but I thought it would be a good way to get people to look at our page (insert evil laugh here)! I do like the responses though! Now lets get back to revering the real GARAGE/PUNK artists and say fuck all to the overblown.

KALI MAH...KALI MAH SHUCK DE DAY!

Plus , Dylan comes off incredibly rude in "Don't Look Back" , so you could say , maybe , his contempt for the interviewer , is a proto - Punk stance. Maybe.

The members of Love were often percieved the same way.
 
Alison said:

The lukewarm response towards Dylan surprises me on this website, but contrariness abounds in the world of punk and garage.  Well, Dylan is a master contrarian.

Buffy St. Marie.

Axel Björnsson said:

neil young

neil young

I guess when we think about the Dylan-Donovan comparisons, we tend to forget that Donovan only did folk type material for a year.  We also forget that during that year, Dylan went rock and roll which boarders on a sixties punk type of sound.  A lot of good outtakes from 1965 and 1966 have been released from time to time in his bootleg series.

Yeah, I was wondering when someone was going to present the clip from that Dylan movie. 

Even though either musician may not really "fit" in this garagepunk community, I would think that Dylan totally blows Donovan away. 

The lukewarm response towards Dylan surprises me on this website, but contrariness abounds in the world of punk and garage.  Well, Dylan is a master contrarian.

HA HA HA HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA........Would you like to claim your prize , now , or as you're leaving the studio?
 
sideshow Barty said:

kinda like having to choose between alzheimers and cancer.

kinda like having to choose between alzheimers and cancer.

NO , i DON'T MEAN THEY WERE APING DYLAN'S MUSICAL STYLE ON MOST OF THEIR RECORDS , BUT , RONNIE WEISS (MOUSE) , NINE TIMES OUT OF NINE , STILL HAD THAT DYLANESQUE INFLECTION IN HIS VOCALS.....AT LEAST , UNTIL , AS I SAY , THEY CUT THE BALLSY EARLY HARD ROCKER "WICKER VINE" , AND CONTINUED RECORDING , SPORADICALLY , AT LEAST INTO THE MID - LATE 70'S.

Judging from the one Mouse & the Traps compilation I own, they got off the Dylan jag fairly early. After "Public Execution," just about everything else they did sounds like your typical 1960s garage band. (Which isn't a knock, by the way - I like their stuff a lot. I just never thought that their sole purpose was to emulate Dylan.)
 
John Battles said:

Like Billy Miller said , I like select Dylan soundalikes more than the man himself - (like) Mouse and The Traps' entire back catalogue (Except Wicker Vine , And I Believe Her , The Bottom LINE AND A FEW OTHERS.).

To be truthful, I wouldn't want him to.
 
KK Dirty Money & Las Drogas said:

Someone may argue that Dylan never wrote a song quite as poppy or fun as Sunshine Superman.

Dylan, for damn sure.

He had a rock & roll/blues edge that Donovan did not possess.

I'm probably with everybody else here and have a preference to Donovan thought Dylan has his moments.

BUT , TO BE FAIR , DONOVAN DID'NT WRITE THE REMAINDER OF THE "PAT GARRETT AND BILLY THE KID" SOUNDTRACK  AFTER DYLAN COMPLETED "KNOCKIN' ON HEAVEN'S DOOR".

DYLAN'S ACTING IN THE MOVIE IS DELIGHTFULLY BAD , TOO.
 
Grazianohmygod said:

"Quite right slick!"

Erik said:

Dylan wins simply because he never wrote somthing as awful as mello yellow!

 

Like Billy Miller said , I like select Dylan soundalikes more than the man himself - "Same Lines" by The Trashmen , "Christmas Spirit" by The Wailers , "Food" by Nick Lowe , Mouse and The Traps' entire back catalogue (Except Wicker Vine , And I Believe Her , The Bottom LINE AND A FEW OTHERS.).

"Quite right slick!"

Erik said:

Dylan wins simply because he never wrote somthing as awful as mello yellow!

 

Dylan wins simply because he never wrote somthing as awful as mello yellow!

I grew up in a Podunk town. The radio stations there were top 40 for the most part. So I heard Dylan more than Donovan. If you hear someones music enough times it eventually starts to grow on you. At least for me that is what happened. The only Donovan song I think I heard for the longest time was Sunshine Superman.

Oh Dylan for certain. If only for Highway 61 Revisited. But I like stuff from throughout his career. His last 3 or 4 albums aren't his best, but they're better than most the stuff her did in the 80s. He wrote some great gospel songs too.

But Donovan did some fine stuff too. Others have mentioned "Hurdy Gurdy Man." There are a couple of cool rockers on the Sunshine Superman album,  "The Trip" and "The Fat Angel."

My favorite Donovan covers:

"Sunshine Superman" by Husker Du

"Hurdy Gurdy Man" by Butthole Surfers

"The Fat Angel" by The Jefferson Airplane (Live versions available on a couple of albums."

I agree, Donovan is "groovier" and fun. 

But Dylan, whose voice is a bit more of an acquired taste, blows most people away in pure persona and stature, songwriting ability and lyricism, legacy, etc.

He is way more of an icon around the world. He never really faded too terribly much. Now, he is making yet another comeback. 

Again, I don't prefer to sit around listening to his music all day, but he really is a fascinating musical figure as well as musician.

I feel like if a sort of quality vs. quantity argument comes in to play, Dylan wins on both counts. Donovan's output is absolutely miniscule compared to Dylan's. I also think Dylan has aged better and I love how he will play older songs in a fashion that make them unrecognizable from their original versions. In terms of output and songwriting, Dylan's got it wrapped up.

Another thing is that Dylan could never really sing, but his writing and persona make up for that.  The tragedy about Donovan is that he really can't sing anymore. Seeing him on Conan earlier this year, I was downright embarrassed for him.

That said, I think Donovan might have a wider emotional range in his songs. His tracks run the gamut from elation to downright frightening.

 People forget , before Donovan REALLY started having hits in The U.S. , he was regarded as one of the first "Answer To Bob Dylan" artists.....I'm not a huge fan of either one. I like other people's versions of Dylan's songs better than most of his originals. But , I like Donovan more , if only because he can actually sing (It's hard to be Welsh and unable to sing , unless you're somebody like Jon Langford.), and , yeah , he had some catchy Psych/Pop flavored hits.

When people ask me what my favorite Led Zeppelin song is , I tell 'em "Hurdy Gurdy Man". 

Donovan definitely had his moments, and is possibly a slightly better singer but in terms of a catalogue of songs he can't really compete with Dylan. Not a huge fan of either but Donovan is groovier!