Obama hails Nobel winner Dylan as one of 'favorite poets'

The shock Nobel victory for the 75-year-old Dylan – the first songwriter to take the prize -- stunned prize watchers.

Washington

: US President Barack Obama congratulated Bob Dylan on what he called his \"well-deserved\" Nobel literature prize, calling the music legend \"one of my favorite poets.\"

Obama's message on Twitter contained a link to a Spotify playlist of Dylan's greatest hits including \"Knockin' on Heaven's Door\" and \"Like A Rolling Stone.\"

\"Congratulations to one of my favorite poets, Bob Dylan, on a well-deserved Nobel,\" Obama tweeted -- a message retweeted nearly 3,000 times in 30 minutes.

The shock Nobel victory for the 75-year-old Dylan – the first songwriter to take the prize -- stunned prize watchers.

He was honored \"for having created new poetic expressions within the great American song tradition,\" the Swedish Academy said.