Has Bob Dylan sold out? The answer is blowin' in the wind
It became an anthem of the civil rights movement and is one of the world's best-known protest songs.
So much so that countless causes - including the anti-Iraq War movement - have adopted the song.
But now Bob Dylan's Blowin' in the Wind is being used for slightly less lofty purposes - as the soundtrack in a series of supermarket adverts.
But his record label claim he is not selling out and say the Co-op's adherence to ethical guidelines on environ-mental impact, fair trade and social responsibility, influenced his decision.
Dylan, 67, sparked outrage among some of his fans when he switched from an acoustic to an electric sound in the 1960s.
He was booed at the U.S. Newport Folk Festival in 1965, after the fans felt alienated by his new edgier music.
And at the climax of his 1966 world tour in Manchester, one fan yelled out 'Judas'. So it will come as little surprise if the Co-op ad campaign, a culminationof a two-year rebranding exercise by the group, is met with mixed reaction from Dylan fans.
A spokesman for Sony, the parent company of Columbia Records, added: 'He has a career based on surprising people, on people not being able to second guess him.
'He continues to embrace change and embrace change in music.'
Blowin' in the Wind, from the 1963 album The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, was a favourite among civil rights and anti-Vietnam war protesters in the 1960s and 70s.
The song was inducted into the Grammy 'Hall of Fame' in 1999.
Although this is the first time one of Dylan's songs has been used in a UK advert, his music has previously been used to advertise iTunes and Victoria's Secret lingerie in the United States.
Mike Smith, UK managing director of Columbia Records, said: 'It is rare for Bob Dylan to license his recordings to TV ads.
'The decision to do so with the Cooperative and Blowin' in the Wind shows a willingness to embrace fresh ways of reaching a new audience through an ethical and fair trade organisation.'
The Co-op adverts will begin airing next month.
So much so that countless causes - including the anti-Iraq War movement - have adopted the song.
But now Bob Dylan's Blowin' in the Wind is being used for slightly less lofty purposes - as the soundtrack in a series of supermarket adverts.
Icon: Bob Dylan has given the go ahead for Blowin' In The Wind to be used in the Cooperative Group's commercials
The singer has given the go ahead for the track to be used in the Cooperative Group's commercials. But his record label claim he is not selling out and say the Co-op's adherence to ethical guidelines on environ-mental impact, fair trade and social responsibility, influenced his decision.
Dylan, 67, sparked outrage among some of his fans when he switched from an acoustic to an electric sound in the 1960s.
He was booed at the U.S. Newport Folk Festival in 1965, after the fans felt alienated by his new edgier music.
And at the climax of his 1966 world tour in Manchester, one fan yelled out 'Judas'. So it will come as little surprise if the Co-op ad campaign, a culminationof a two-year rebranding exercise by the group, is met with mixed reaction from Dylan fans.
A spokesman for Sony, the parent company of Columbia Records, added: 'He has a career based on surprising people, on people not being able to second guess him.
'He continues to embrace change and embrace change in music.'
Blowin' in the Wind, from the 1963 album The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, was a favourite among civil rights and anti-Vietnam war protesters in the 1960s and 70s.
The song was inducted into the Grammy 'Hall of Fame' in 1999.
Although this is the first time one of Dylan's songs has been used in a UK advert, his music has previously been used to advertise iTunes and Victoria's Secret lingerie in the United States.
Mike Smith, UK managing director of Columbia Records, said: 'It is rare for Bob Dylan to license his recordings to TV ads.
'The decision to do so with the Cooperative and Blowin' in the Wind shows a willingness to embrace fresh ways of reaching a new audience through an ethical and fair trade organisation.'
The Co-op adverts will begin airing next month.
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