When Bob Dylan (b. 1941), the most influential folk singer-songwriter of the early 1960s, began to turn away from the “finger-pointing songs” (his term) that had won him acclaim, the folk revival community split in reaction. While some, like Phil Ochs (1940–1976), delighted in his eclectic new directions and called Dylan’s songs “as brilliant as ever,” many disapproved. Irwin Silber (1925–2010), a pioneer folk music magazine editor, expressed dismay in this letter, at which Dylan took umbrage.