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Opening for Dylan is a thrill for Dawes
By John Benson
Taylor Goldsmith grew up like so many songwriters, worshiping at the Bob Dylan altar.
This explains why the singer for Dawes was speechless when his band recently was offered a slot opening Dylan’s spring tour, which comes to Akron tonight.
“We don’t really even understand how it all came together,” said Goldsmith, calling from a tour stop in Delaware. “We just heard that Bob Dylan wanted us to open. I don’t know if it was his idea or a manager’s, but, obviously, it was a high honor.”
So far, Goldsmith said the closest he’s come to meeting Dylan was seeing him right after his show had ended hurrying through a backstage hallway to leave the venue.
“He’s kind of a private person. I wouldn’t be surprised if we don’t meet at all,” Goldsmith said.
The reality is Goldsmith and his bandmates already have a relationship with Dylan through his vast catalog that spans decades. Dawes — which is decidedly influenced by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young — brings a breezy ’70s California singer-songwriter sound to the folk genre that is the antithesis of the zeitgeist, banjo-loving Mumford & Sons scene.
Formed in 2009, the quartet, which features Goldsmith’s brother Griffin on drums, has slowly risen through the ranks with critically acclaimed albums. The act’s 2009 debut, “North Hills,” garnered a cult audience, and 2011 follow-up “Nothing is Wrong” expanded the outfit into the mainstream and late-night television (“The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson”).
Now the band is poised to break out with its recently released third effort, “Stories Don’t End,” which Goldsmith said found the group exploring new musical ventures with different arrangements, treatments, chord structures and lyrical ideas.
The foursome creates a feel that — for good or bad — boasts a heavy Jackson Browne motif.
“Oh yeah, he’s definitely an influence and a hero and also a friend,” Goldsmith said. “I was actually just his bass player and keyboard player for a month on tour with him. I know he’s a lot older than us, but he’s really taken us under his wing and been really kind to us.”
Therein lies the current world of Dawes, a small fish swimming in large and iconic ponds. What’s next, a Crosby, Stills, Nash and Dawes tour?
“We never sought out these legendary relationships,” Goldsmith said. “We’re honored to have them for the fans in us and also just as musicians to have relationships you respect with people you have admired so long. There is no greater reward in that, no matter how many people want to say you suck.”