Rob Stoner's Guide to Guam

1975-11-09, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH

Flagging Down the Double E’s is an email newsletter exploring Dylan shows of yesteryear. I’m currently writing about every show on the Rolling Thunder Revue. If you found this article online or someone forwarded you the email, subscribe here to get a new entry delivered to your inbox every week:

L-R: Roger McGuinn, Joni Mitchell, Ramblin’ Jack Elliott, Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, Rob Stoner, Steve Soles, Bob Neuwirth, Ronee Blakley. Ken Regan via Netflix.

Update June 2023: This interview is included along with 40+ others in my new book ‘Pledging My Time: Conversations with Bob Dylan Band Members.’ Buy it in hardcover, paperback, or ebook here!

Listening to all these Rolling Thunder shows, it struck me just how good the backing band is. Even if you took Dylan himself out of the equation, these would have been great shows. Whether backing Baez, Ramblin’ Jack, Joni, or each other, this large and ramshackle group delivers. Bob Neuwirth christened them Guam, since he thought it evoked a tropical paradise.

So I wanted to give Guam their due, and who better to offer inside scoop than the bandleader himself, bassist Rob Stoner? I called him up to get his thoughts on every band member, as well as a few of the other tour principles: Joan, Joni, Jack, etc. (If you missed our conversation from earlier this year with more of the basics - how he met Bob, etc - catch up here).

Here’s what I’m calling Rob Stoner’s Guide to Guam: