The Infamous Bob Dylan Comment

[sodascouts]

I obviously love them both but I thought Stevie's reaction came off as ridiculously over-the-top. What Lindsey was doing was giving constructive feedback. He was right in that her inconsistent use of pronouns was confusing, although he phrased it more gently than that.

Her reaction came across to me like this: "I can't handle even the slightest implication that what I've written isn't absolutely perfect in every way. Anyone who presumes to suggest such a thing will feel my fury!"

As someone who teaches creative writing, I can say that the refusal to listen to feedback is toxic. You don't have to change things if you don't want to, but you should at least be open to listening to other perspectives on your work.

YEARS later, when I was sitting at a premiere showing of In Your Dreams that I had flown to New York to see, I was cringing in my seat when I saw the way she was using that moment as an example of how terrible he was to work with, and the way she was contrasting it with how magnificent it was to work with Dave Stewart, who is shown constantly telling her how great she is. It was hard to watch, honestly, because I went to that movie hoping to see Stevie shine, and that segment made her look petty and childish.

What that movie and other interviews have told me is that Stevie has reached the point where Lindsey is not allowed to give her any kind of feedback (unless, of course, he is praising her)... and I don't think it's just Lindsey that receives this treatment.

I think she has this attitude towards just about everyone now, and I don't think it's a good thing. Even geniuses can benefit from feedback. Look at "Lady." Someone should have told her repeating the song's lyrics in their entirety twice with only one small musical change at the end was boring. She could have pushed herself to think of some new lyrics, and the song would have been better.

However, no one did so... because they knew Stevie didn't want to hear it. Suggestions were not wanted and would be ignored (she even bragged about ignoring feedback in some interviews). Now, she seems to want to be surrounded by sycophants and yes-people.

She was at her best when she had people challenging her, pushing her to go further, to go outside of her comfort zone - whether it was Lindsey, Tom Petty, Don Henley (in the case of "Leather and Lace"), or Jimmy Iovine. She doesn't realize that by shutting down any and all constructive criticism, she is actually hurting the quality of her work.

It's a shame.