Chance, I'm recommending Love & Theft to anyone who will listen. Rock, Swing, Jazzy Crooning, Highway 61 style blues, It's one of his best. It is a tribute to the past, yet is absolutely viable and current. Start there, if you like it PM me and I'll suggest some others.

Jack the Sailor, I'm a Woody fan myself and I'm well aware of his influence on the young Mr. Dylan. However, I think that what has made Bob so superior to anyone else I've heard is that he had many other influences. He listened to Traditional folk, Delta Blues, Chicago Blues, Hank Williams, Jimmy Rogers, Bluegrass, Little Richard, Elvis etc. He has incorporated all of these influnces into his own sound. Incredibly, it worked and continues to do so.