Pitchfork

Were the Democratic electorate comprised solely of singer-songwriters, Senator Barack Obama would have had the hard-fought Democratic primary contest wrapped up way before this week. The newly-minted presumptive Democratic presidential nominee has seen support from a good many in the influential tunesmithing lobby, from the likes of Jeff Tweedy, Conor Oberst, M. Ward, Win Butler, Colin Meloy, Mac McCaughan, Andrew Bird, and others. Until recently, Obama's most valuable ally in the bunch had to be working class hero/potential swing state native Bruce Springsteen. But all the lip service from all the "new Dylans" in the world can't quite match Obama's latest get in the field: Bob Dylan himself.

In a recent interview with London's The Times [via Idolator], Dylan spoke of his fondness for the Senator thusly: "Well, you know right now America is in a state of upheaval. Poverty is demoralising. You can't expect people to have the virtue of purity when they are poor. But we've got this guy out there now who is redefining the nature of politics from the ground up...Barack Obama. He's redefining what a politician is, so we'll have to see how things play out. Am I hopeful? Yes, I'm hopeful that things might change. Some things are going to have to."

Dylan's previously-reported tour shows no signs of slowing up, with a new run of Stateside dates in August and September to follow his currently-in-progress European jaunt.

Bob Dylan:

06-07 Warsaw, Poland - Stodola
06-09 Ostrava, Czech Republic - Cez Arena
06-10 Vienna, Austria - Stadthalle
06-11 Salzburg, Austria - Arena
06-13 Varazdin, Croatia - Radar Festival
06-16 Bergamo, Italy - Lazzaretta
06-18 Aosta, Italy - Castello Borgia
06-19 Grenoble, France - Palaise des Sports
06-20 Toulouse, France - Zenith
06-22 Andorra la Vella, Andorra - Campo de Futbol Muni
06-24 Zaragoza, Spain - Feria de Muestras
06-25 Pamplona, Spain - Plaza de Toros
06-27 Vigo, Spain - Recinto Ferial
06-28 Avila, Spain - Parque Natural de Gredos
07-01 Cuenca, Spain - Complejo Deportivo La Fuensanta
07-02 Alicante, Spain - Centro de Tecnificacion
07-04 Lorca, Spain - Plaza de Toros
07-05 Jaen, Spain - Recinto Ferial
07-06 Madrid, Spain - Rock in Rio
07-08 Jerez, Spain - Campo de Football Muni
07-10 Merida, Spain - Plaza de Toros
07-11 Lisbon, Portugal - Optimus Live
08-09 Pittsburgh, PA - New American Music Union
08-10 Baltimore, MD - Virgin Festival
08-12 Brooklyn, NY - Prospect Park Bandshell
08-15 Mashantucket, CT - MGM Grand Theatre
08-16 Atlantic City, NJ - Borgata Resorta
08-17 Saratoga Springs, NY - Saratoga Music Festival
08-19 Canandaigua, NY - Constellation Performing Arts Center
08-22 Cincinnati, OH - National City Pavilion
08-23 Elizabeth, IN - Caesars Indiana
08-24 Evansville, IN - Mesker Amphiheatre
08-26 Little Rock, AR - Riverfest Amphitheatre
08-27 Tulsa, OK - Brady Theater
08-28 Kansas City, MO - Uptown Theater
08-30 Aspen, CO - Jazz Aspen Festival
09-03 Temecula, CA - Pechanga Resort and Casino