just listening to Dylan on the replay, and it occurs to me that in 1964, I'm not sure what radio station where one would've heard this song. I imagine somewhere, but unlike all the other songs, which I did hear on the radio, this was something shared via vinyl, and historically pumped up after the fact. Great song.
I asked my mother about this, and the answer was somewhat obvious in retrospect.
She said that some of Dylan's less incendiary songs from earlier albums, like
"Blowin' In the Wind," were occasionally played on the radio. As for herself,
she was a regular reader of the New York Times, particularly the Arts section,
and thus read the album reviews. As a follower of the folk scene, this would
have been a primary source of information about new music. At that point, I
offered that there may have been record stores that still allowed one to listen
to albums before purchase. "Who had time for that?," she replied. "I was busy
raising three kids. It was easier just to buy the record."
She also related that she and my father went to see Dylan when he played at "The
Barn" -- a fairly intimate 3,000+ seat arena on the Rutgers University campus in
New Brunswick. During his performance of "Talkin' John Birch Paranoid Blues," one
couple near them was offended and walked out of the show.
I had forgotten about that, but yes indeed, they used to have these little listening rooms where you could preview vinyl. I also used to go to Foothill Junior College when my mom was taking a night class there, and listen to albums on headphones.
