Turnbull pays tribute to Bob Dylan

Bob Dylan may have written his famous anthem to prompt societal change, but Malcolm Turnbull has used it to push some senators to change.

Or so it seemed when the prime minister weighed into the US singer-songwriter's award for the Nobel prize for literature, breaking into the lyrics of The Times They Are a-Changin'.

Australians should all recollect what an extraordinary contribution Dylan has made to literature, Mr Turnbull mused.

"As ... we stand here in the parliament of Australia, we reflect on the significance, the lyrics for that great song he wrote so long ago," he told reporters in Canberra.

"Come senators, congressmen please heed the call.

"Don't stand in the doorway don't block up the hall."

It appeared an apt message for a prime minister struggling with an often defiant Senate.

"It's a good message to senators everywhere," he finished.