Dave Marsh, a pioneering rock critic and biographer who served as an early editor of Creem, wrote for Rolling Stone, The Village Voice, and Newsday, and penned over 25 books, including Born to Run: The Bruce Springsteen Story, Before I Get Old: The Story of the Who, and The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made, died Aug. 14 of unknown causes at his home in Norwalk, Connecticut. He was 76.
His longtime co-host Jim Rotolo announced the news on social media. “Some sad news today, E Street Nation. Bruce Springsteen biographer, SiriusXM host, and my friend Dave Marsh passed away late yesterday at his home in Connecticut,” Rotolo wrote. “Dave wrote several books about Bruce as part of a remarkable body of work spanning some 25 titles … he was also one of the creators of E Street Radio and hosted Kick Out the Jams on SiriusXM for 19 years. Rest easy, Dave. Thank you for everything, my friend. You will be missed.”
Marsh was a very early advocate of Springsteen. He not only raved about him in the pages of Creem before the rest of the critical establishment caught on, but he escorted his longtime friend Jon Landau to his first Springsteen concert in 1974, and encouraged him to write his famous “I Saw Rock and Roll Future” column in Boston’s Real Paper. Marsh wrote Rolling Stone’s first Springsteen cover story in 1978, and the first significant biography, Born to Run: The Bruce Springsteen Story, in 1979.
He updated the book many times over the years, most recently in 2003 as Bruce Springsteen: Two Hearts: The Definitive Biography, 1972-2003, and co-hosted many shows for the E Street Nation SirusXM channel. His wife, Barbara Carr, served as Springsteen’s co-manager for several decades.
Books, articles, and radio shows about Springsteen represented only a tiny percent of Marsh’s output over the past six decades. During his time at Rolling Stone, Marsh spearheaded the first edition of the Rolling Stone Record Guide in 1979. The book was updated many times over the years, serving as an essential resource for music aficionados long before the internet.
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Shortly after the Who broke up in 1982, he sat down with Pete Townshend for a series of extensive interviews that formed the basis of his definitive biography Before I Get Old: The Story of the Who.
The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made, The First Rock and Roll Confidential Report: Inside the Real World of Rock and Roll, The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made, and Louie Louie: The History and Mythology of the World’s Most Famous Rock ‘n’ Roll Song were all showcases of his near encyclopedic knowledge of music history.
Marsh was a fearless critic, rarely holding back even with his most caustic and controversial views. “Whatever its claims, Queen isn’t here just to entertain,” he wrote in a notorious Rolling Stone review of Queens’ 1979 LP Jazz. “This group has come to make it clear exactly who is superior and who is inferior. Its anthem, ‘We Will Rock You,’ is a marching order: you will not rock us, we will rock you. Indeed, Queen may be the first truly fascist rock band. The whole thing makes me wonder why anyone would indulge these creeps and their polluting ideas.”
He had similar disdain for Journey, Air Supply, and Kiss, once bragging that he did his “share to keep [Kiss] off the ballot” during his 26-year tenure on the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nominating committee.
Yet, he was equally enthusiastic in his praise for artists and records that he adored. “Easter makes good on Patti Smith’s biggest boast — that she is one of the great figures of Seventies rock & roll,” he wrote in a Rolling Stone review of Patti Smith’s 1978 album Easter. “More importantly perhaps, it focuses her mystical and musical visions in a way that makes her the most profoundly religious American popular performer since Jim Morrison.”
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Marsh helped launch Creem, where he worked closely with legendary rock critic Lester Bangs, after dropping out of Wayne State University in 1969. In 1973, he left Creem to become the music editor at Newsday, ultimately winding up at Rolling Stone where he served as the associate editor. In 1983, he launched the influential Rock & Roll Confidential newsletter, which was later renamed Rock & Rap Confidential.
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On Aug. 21, 1979, Marsh married Barbara Carr at a ceremony attended by Springsteen, Steve Van Zandt, Southside Johnny, and Landau. When Carr’s daughter from an earlier relationship, Kristen Ann Carr, died from cancer in 1991 at the age of 21, Marsh and Carr established the Kristen Ann Carr Fund, and organized a Bruce Springsteen concert on June 26, 1993 at Madison Square Garden to raise funds for it. Many other Kristen Ann Carr benefit shows were held over the years, often featuring performances by Springsteen.
In his later years, Marsh was a regular presence on E Street Radio, often hosting shows alongside Rotolo. He stepped away from hosting duties in 2022. “It’s been one of the highlights of my career to be a part of this channel,” he told fans.
