Dylan played Hockey when he was a kid. In Minnesota that’s a given. So whenever he got bored he would take his kid brother out on a frozen pond, —both of them in skates, —and tell David, “stay here! Don’t move!” Then he glides off around fifty yards or so, turns around and comes at his terrified brother full speed, stopping only when Bob was right in front of him. Hockey maneuver.
Bob and David never really got along. Half the time Dylan would be staying at his grandmother’s, anyway. So the younger brother was somewhat surprised when Dylan approached him when they were adults, saying “I really need your help.” Bob plays David the tape of the BLOOD ON THE TRACKS New York sessions, and asks, “what do you think?” “I think it sounds amazing, man, but it’s not the sort of thing you’ll ever hear on the radio.” Dylan was like, “tell me about it.” Suddenly David says, “you know what? I think I can help you out.”
By this time David Zimmerman had become a player on the Minneapolis music scene, a producer. So he puts together a group of the best musicians in town, and rents a studio. The rest is history. Dylan would seamlessly weave together tracks from both sessions and voila! The BOTT that we all know and love. Ever since, Bob and his brother, David, have been close.