Bob Dylan is one of the most influential songwriters in modern music, but he’s never been one to sugarcoat his opinions. Over the decades, the Nobel Prize–winning troubadour has praised many artists, but he’s also had moments where he’s been unusually blunt about music he didn’t like—sometimes even if it was his own.
While Dylan rarely engages in open feuds, a handful of comments and interviews over the years give us a glimpse into his more critical side. Here are five notable examples of bands and songs that have been on the receiving end of Dylan’s disdain.
1. The Beatles
It’s no secret that Dylan and The Beatles influenced each other deeply during the 1960s. Yet, for all his admiration of their innovation, Dylan had strong reservations about some of their biggest hits. He called Yesterday “too smooth” and overly sentimental, suggesting it lacked the raw emotional grit he valued in songwriting.
He was equally unimpressed with Michelle, hinting that it felt derivative of his own style—almost like the band was “doing me” rather than breaking new ground. For Dylan, music needed to feel authentic and urgent, and these polished ballads didn’t pass the test.
Interestingly, his critiques didn’t sever their mutual respect. Paul McCartney has repeatedly expressed admiration for Dylan, and Dylan has acknowledged The Beatles’ cultural impact. But it’s clear he preferred their more adventurous, hard-edged material.
2. Led Zeppelin
Dylan’s disdain for Led Zeppelin wasn’t exactly shouted from the rooftops—but one sharp backstage exchange in 1974 told the story. When introduced to the band’s manager, Peter Grant, Dylan supposedly quipped:
“Do I come to you with my problems?”
It was a cutting, cryptic remark that suggested he wasn’t particularly impressed by the heavy rock juggernaut. Whether his issue was their musical style, their swagger, or the excesses of the era, Dylan clearly didn’t see himself in their world.
That said, Jimmy Page and Robert Plant have often spoken highly of Dylan, citing him as a lyrical influence. Dylan, however, seemed unmoved by Zeppelin’s bombastic blues-rock approach.
3. Guns N’ Roses
Dylan’s 1973 original Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door is a haunting, stripped-down ballad. When Guns N’ Roses covered it in the early 1990s, they transformed it into a hard-rock anthem complete with wailing guitars and Axl Rose’s dramatic delivery.
While Dylan didn’t outright condemn the band, he described their version as feeling like Invasion of the Body Snatchers—an eerie comment that implied it was alien to him, perhaps too far removed from the song’s original spirit.
Fans remain divided: some see the GNR version as a rock masterpiece, while purists side with Dylan’s minimalist original.
4. Neil Young
While Dylan generally admired Neil Young’s artistry, Heart of Gold rubbed him the wrong way. Dylan once remarked, “I used to hate it when it came on the radio,” explaining the frustration stemmed from the song sounding so much like his own work that he felt it should have been him singing it instead
5. Kiss
Following a powerful spiritual awakening in 1979—complete with a vision he described as “Jesus… knocked me down and picked me up.”—Dylan underwent a religious conversion that significantly altered his worldview.
During this period, rock music came under his religious scrutiny, and he directed a scathing remark at Kiss during a concert in Tempe, Arizona (November 29, 1979):
“If you want rock ’n’ roll, you can go see Kiss, and you can rock ’n’ roll all the way down to the pit.”
This line wasn’t just dismissive—it implied that he viewed Kiss (and rock music in general) as spiritually dangerous, embodying everything he now denounced in his Christian phase.