Derek Barker founded the international Bob Dylan magazine ISIS in September 1985 and has edited the journal without interruption for the past 38 years. Run by Dylan fans for Dylan fans, ISIS is a family run business owned by husband and wife team Derek and Tracy Barker. Although our magazine is no longer available in print format, moving with the times, we now offer an e-journal. You can subscribe to the e-journal HERE. As well as publishing ISIS magazine, our Internet store sells all manner of Dylan related items including books, CDs, vinyl albums, DVDs and lots more. Our store also has a comprehensive section for rare Pre-Loved / Second Hand Dylan items.
About the Editor:
A renowned authority on the life and works of Bob Dylan, ISIS magazine editor Derek Barker regularly contributes to BBC Radio programmes about Bob Dylan and has been featured on the BBC World Service, BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio Northern Ireland, BBC Radio Scotland as well as dozens of local radio stations. He has appeared in seven DVD films and has also been featured on the BBC 2 television programme “The Culture Show” and Channel 4’s Breakfast News talking about Bob Dylan.
Derek has had five books about Bob Dylan published; the first, a collection of writings from the back pages of ISIS. “ISIS: A Bob Dylan Anthology” (Helter Skelter Publishing, 2001) sold out a hardback edition, two paperback printings and a 2004 revised edition. The second collection of writings from ISIS, “20 Years of ISIS” (Chrome Dreams, 2005) sold out hard and paperback editions. Published by Red Planet Books, a third Anthology, celebrating 200 editions of the ISIS magazine, was published in 2019 and remains in print.
Derek’s book “The Songs He Didn’t Write – Bob Dylan Under The Influence” (Chrome Dreams 2008) received rave reviews from Dylan fans and the monthlies alike. The book was voted as one of the ten best music books of 2009 by UNCUT and was chosen as the third-best music book of the year by Record Collector magazine. In 2018, Red Planet Books published “Bob Dylan: Too Much of Nothing.” A revised and updated paperback edition will be available in spring 2020.
In 2014, ISIS published “As the Island Slowly Sank”, a limited edition booklet written by Derek about Bob Dylan and the Isle of Wight festivals. This was followed in 2015 by “A Picnic Surprise”, a booklet about Bob Dylan’s “Road to Blackbushe” and in 2016 by “Humdinger Folk Singer: The Story of Judas and the Communists,” a booklet examining the folk revivals in the United States and Britain.
As a freelance writer, Derek has written over 60 sets of CD liner notes for independent record labels on a wide range of artists. His status as an expert on all things Dylan is such that he has advised premier auction house Christie’s (both in London and New York) on the authenticity of items of Dylan memorabilia.
