Bob Dylan essay collection celebrating art of songwriting to be published

Publisher Simon & Schuster says The Philosophy of Modern Song resembles an epic poem'

Bob Dylan will publish a new essay collection celebrating songs by peers such as Elvis Costello, Hank Williams and Nina Simone.

Dylan began work on The Philosophy of Modern Song in 2010, according to a press release. His first book of new writing since 2004's Chronicles: Volume One, it contains 60 essays in which the 80-year-old musician analyses what he calls the trap of easy rhymes, breaks down how the addition of a single syllable can diminish a song, and even explains how bluegrass relates to heavy metal".