Dylan's 'Theme Time Radio Hour' at an end?

Just my luck to get into something just as it comes to a close. Those who have been paying attention fear that Bob Dylan’s Theme Time Radio Hour program on Sirius satellite radio will end its run now that the third season is complete. Given the title of the final program — “Goodbye” — I’d say that’s a safe assumption.

If he does bow out, he leaves behind an impressive 100 hours of radio programming unlike anything on the airwaves now or at any point in my lifetime. “Take a trip to the land of radio magic,” reads the introductory text on the show’s web site. “With music hand-selected from his personal collection, Bob Dylan takes you to places only he can. Listen as he weaves his own brand of radio with dreams, schemes and themes.” That’s as accurate a description as any.

I’ve long heard of but not actually heard Dylan’s program. I don’t have satellite radio and wasn’t intrigued enough to seek out the torrents that pop up immediately after each program. But the deluxe version of Together Through Life includes a CD with one show (“Friends and Neighbors” from the first season in 2006), and I was immediately hooked. Yes, the music is great, but what captivated me was Dylan himself, sharing stories and opinions, all in a strangely arresting tone that teeters on the edge of self-parody.

The shows are available all over the place online; CROZ.fm seems to have the best archive (Croz, that’s been me sucking your bandwidth the past few days). So it’s easy to catch up with what is truly an invaluable archive of music history. Dylan not only unearths some gems, but offers contextualizing stories, quotes and anecdotes that bring the songs to life.

The last episode of season three, his 100th, aired in mid-April, and some speculate that either Sirius or Dylan plans to bring things to a close. If so, it’s a shame, but at least we neophytes have 100 hours of great radio to wade through until something else comes along.