A dirt-poor local musician has been told that he owes Bob Dylan $1,800. Actually, Jolts guitarist Dylan Thomas owes the money to the Society of Composers, Authors, and Music Publishers of Canada, after the copyright collective sent Dylan’s royalties to him by mistake. Which he then spent. “I legitimately thought it was mine,” Thomas said, laughing, in a call to the Straight. “In June, I checked my bank balance and saw that SOCAN made a deposit, so I just thought the Jolts were doing really well. I started spending the money here and there and then a little ways later I found out it was Bob Dylan’s.”

The similarity of names aside, the confusion stemmed from the fact that Thomas wrote a song called “Working Man’s Blues” for his last solo record, while the big Zim performed his own “Workingman’s Blues #2” on his most recent swing through Canada. “I definitely needed it,” Thomas said of the funds. “I had just been laid off, I recorded an album, went on two tours, and basically lived off that money for a little while. It couldn’t have come at a better time, really.”

Thomas eventually came clean to SOCAN and figured he’d “gotten away with it” until a letter recently arrived telling him he hadn’t. Asked what he plans to do, Thomas replied, “Nothing. I’m broke.” You can hear “Working Man’s Blues” at www.myspace.com/dylanthomasmusic.