With this album Freewheelin', Bob Dylan emerged from the cloak of Woody Guthrie and proclaimed his own unique talent. No longer detached - the set was originally entitled Bob Dylan's Blues - he personalized his songs, famously rejecting four from the final draft in favor of others reflecting his newer muse.

Protest songs were given a wider resonance - the text of "Masters of War" remains sadly relevant decades later - while his love songs are haunting but universal statements. Dylan injected black humor into the talking blues and railed against injustice in all forms, with a perception encompassing the anger of a generation. Freewheelin' is a landmark in the development of folk and pop music.