Forever Young: Bob Dylan turns 70

Dylan's sensitive and provocative music made him the voice of a generation to many post-war American youths.

Over the past decade the 1960s protest singer has reinvented himself, releasing a string of acclaimed albums and the book Chronicles.

He shows no signs of slowing down as he enters his eighth decade.

Fellow musicians have been talking about what makes Dylan so special.

"He's an inspiration, really, to us all, beyond even the songwriting, because he's always trying to go somewhere new. I love the man," said Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards.

U2 frontman Bono said the Hey Mr. Tambourine Man singer was way ahead of his time.

"The tumble of words, images, ire and spleen... shapeshifts easily into music forms 10 or 20 years away, like punk, grunge or hip-hop," he wrote in Rolling Stone magazine.

Last month Dylan was in Asia, playing 17 dates in arenas from Taiwan to New Zealand, and including dates in Beijing and Shanghai.

The tour was clouded by controversy over reports - denied by Dylan - that he was censored by Chinese authorities.