A Rhode Island man has stunned Bob Dylan fans by insisting he is the music legend's illegitimate son.

William DeVogue, who bears a striking resemblance to the singer/songwriter, claims he was the product of an alleged romance between Dylan and his mother Anita Grace DeVogue in the early 1960s.

The 48 year old's mother gave her son up for adoption as she battled a serious drug addiction - and then disappeared from his life.

DeVogue spent years tracking down his mother, who finally told him that she was convinced Dylan was his dad.

He tells City Pages he reached out to Dylan's manager, Jeff Rosen, in 2010 and even asked for a non-legal paternity test, but Dylan refused.

He says, "I told Jeff Rosen that I would have to resort to plan B (and) he was very inquisitive to what plan B was, and my answer was that since I didn't have the money to legally seek a paternity test that I would have to bring it out creatively."

So DeVogue has gone public with his paternity claim, adding, "If this ends up in court everything will come out... I respect Bob and want no money from him, just the truth. And I will get it!"

Spinner.com reports DeVogue is currently working on a book and a short film about his story.