Rock's Backpages Library Rock's Backpages
Home Library
Rock's Backpages

Welcome to the Rock's Backpages Library

  • Search all articles using Quick Search or the drop-down menus below, clicking on article titles to read them.
  • Individual subscribers will be asked for username and password (unless already entered). All other articles are then available for reading.
  • All content on the site is the property of Rock's Backpages and protected by copyright laws.

Please ensure that javascript is enabled for this site to allow you to access the library using the drop-down menus.

Quick search

Advanced search

Search by ARTIST

Click for the full A-Z list of artists

Search by WRITER

Click for the full A-Z list of writers

Search by SUBJECT

Click for the full A-Z list of subjects

Search by PUBLICATION

Click for the full A-Z list of publications

Click for list of audio interviews

Detailed Search Of The Library

Click for the advanced search
(using the advanced search you can filter results by artist, subject/genre, writer, publication and date, in addition to your keyword search)

Today's Top 10 Articles

  1. Glenn Branca: "Sometimes I Wished My Fist Was A Sledgehammer"
    Profile and Interview by Mark Dery, High Performance, 1985
  2. Suzi Q: Expatriate Rockerette
    Interview by Toby Mamis, Zoo World, 1974
  3. Millie (2016)
    Interview by Tom Graves, Rock's Backpages Audio, 2016
  4. Beach Boys Hang Ten in Hotel Lobby
    Interview by Toby Mamis, Creem, 1971
  5. Glenn Branca: The Ascension (99 Records 990011p — Import)*****
    Review by Ralph Traitor, Sounds, 1982
  6. Max's Kansas City... Yawn
    Report by Roy Hollingworth, Melody Maker, 1972
  7. Jeffrey Lohn: Thoughts of a Theoretical Girl
    Interview by Tim Page, New York Rocker, 1979
  8. Bob Dylan: the Man Behind the Image
    Interview by David Hancock, Evening News, 1978
  9. Rick Laird: Why Mahavishnu Is Breaking Up
    Interview by Loraine Alterman, Rolling Stone, 1974
  10. Vicki Wickham: The Secretary That Roared
    Interview by Toby Mamis, Phonograph Record, 1971

Free this week

Toby Mamis hears about Brother Records and more from the Beach Boys (Creem, 1971)

Toby Mamis discusses Dusty and Labelle with former Ready, Steady, Go! producer Vicki Wickham, "First Lady of Rock" (Phonograph Record, 1971)

Toby Mamis on the transtlantic blower to "expatriate rockerette" Suzi Quatro (Zoo World, 1974)

Tim Page discusses the Sex Pistols and Johann Sebastian Bach with Theoretical Girls' Jeffrey Lohn (New York Rocker, 1979)

"A blow for truly original modern music": Ralph Traitor reviews Glenn Branca's debut album (Sounds, 1982)

Mark Dery meets downtown avant-rock guitarist/composer Glenn Branca (High Performance, 1985)

See all free articles!

New for Subscribers

Audio:

Tom Graves on the phone to 'My Boy Lollipop' lady Millie (Rock's Backpages Audio, 2016)

Features and interviews:

Ian Dove hears a shaky defence of plagiarism from the Rooftop Singers' Erik Darling (New Musical Express, 1963)

The Maker predicts big things for 'Party' gal Lesley Gore (Melody Maker, 1963)

Norman Jopling meets the scary Screamin' Jay Hawkins (Record Mirror, 1965)

The Beat chews over Cannibal & the Headhunters (KRLA Beat, 1966)

Mike Gormley hears about Canadian audiences from Tommy James (Ottawa Journal, The, 1967)

Alan Smith talks star signs with Temptation Melvin Franklin (New Musical Express, 1970)

Roy Hollingworth casts a jaundiced eye over infamous New York nitespot Max's Kansas City (Melody Maker, 1972)

Bad karma: Loraine Alterman hears the grisly details of the Mahavishnu Orchestra's demise (Rolling Stone, 1974)

Cliff White on the blues roots of "Gangster of Love" Johnny Guitar Watson (Black Music, 1976)

David Hancock elicits the unreconstructed opinions of Bob Dylan (Evening News, 1978)

Don Snowden celebrates Santa Monica landmark McCabe's Guitar Shop (Los Angeles Times, 1980)

Lloyd Bradley hangs out with UK Rasta revolutionaries Steel Pulse (New Musical Express, 1982)

J.D. Considine discusses Miles and more with bass ace Marcus Miller (Musician, 1984)

Adam Sweeting meets the Eurythmics' "leading lady" Annie Lennox (Guardian, The, 1986)

Push is treated to the guiding principles of Savage Republic's Phil Drucker (Melody Maker, 1988)

Adrian Deevoy hangs out at L.A.'s Sunset Marquis with Sinead O'Connor (Q, 1990)

David Nathan discusses drugs and soul music with El DeBarge (Blues & Soul, 1992)

Susan Corrigan befriends a hung-over Blur (i-D, 1994)

Nicholas Jennings solicits recall from Canadian veterans John Kay, , Zal Yanovsky, Denny Doherty, Domenic Troiano and David Clayton-Thomas (Maclean's, 1996)

Dave Simpson on the trials and tribulations of A&R men (Guardian, The, 1998)

Lulu LeVay investigates "genre-defying DJs" Stanton Warriors (Face, The, 2000)

Perfect Sound Forever founder/editor Jason Gross interviews Rolling Stone's reviews editor Nathan Brackett (rockcritics.com, 2002)

Sylvie Simmons on the "spectral Americana" of Jolie Holland (MOJO, 2004)

Johnny Black meets the "brothers bizarre": Ron and Russell Mael of Sparks (MOJO, 2006)

Bob Ruggerio looks back on post-Fudge hard-rockers Cactus (Houston Press, 2008)

Dave Simpson considers the history of inane novelty records by the likes of Black Lace and Jive Bunny (Guardian, The, 2010)

Steven R. Rosen looks back on Detroit days with "Motor City Titan" Mitch Ryder (Blurt, 2012)

Kirk Silsbee remembers Ravi Shankar's sojourn in Los Angeles ('It Was Fifty Years Ago Today', 2014)

Geoffrey Himes previews a "classic soul night" headlined by the James Brown Experience (Washington Post, The, 2015)

Tom Graves meets 'Lollipop' lady Millie (Small) (Goldmine, 2016)

Album & Live Reviews:

Eeh by gum! The NME catches Gene Pitney at the Batley Variety Club (New Musical Express, 1968)

Richard Williams endures a series of interminably boring films by John Lennon and Yoko Ono at London's ICA (Melody Maker, 1969)

Richard Green hears the live debut of 'Highway Star' during a Deep Purple gig in Portsmouth (New Musical Express, 1971)

Wayne Robins is enthralled by Jimmy Cliff flick The Harder They Come (Creem, 1973)

Metal man Geoff Barton is puzzled by Kraftwerk, live in Newcastle (Sounds, 1975)

John Morthland mulls over albums by erstwhile country couple Dolly Parton and Porter Wagoner (Village Voice, The, 1977)

Jon Savage sees Iggy Pop, live at Manchester's Factory club (Melody Maker, 1979)

Richard Cromelin tries on the Plimsouls' debut album (Los Angeles Times, 1981)

Chas de Whalley praises Pat Benatar, live at the Hammersmith Odeon (Kerrang!, 1983)

J.D. Considine is wowed by Womack & Womack and (Bobby) Womack (Musician, 1985)

Hugh Fielder likes Cyndi Lauper, live in London (Sounds, 1987)

Michael Azerrad greets R.E.M.'s Green (Rolling Stone, 1989)

Dele Fadele wallows in Mudhoney, live at London's Astoria (New Musical Express, 1991)

Jeff Lorez considers the Greatest Hits of rapper Kool Moe Dee (Blues & Soul, 1993)

Don Snowden is greatly entertained by Shaggy, live at L.A.'s Palace Theater (Los Angeles Times, 1995)

Paul Moody explores Pavement's Brighten The Corners (New Musical Express, 1997)

Caroline Sullivan thoroughly enjoys Robbie Williams, live at Sheffield Arena (Guardian, The, 1999)

Marc Weingarten takes issue with the blanket praise heaped upon Bob Dylan's Love and Theft (Slate, 2001)

Edwin Pouncey applauds a biography of radical Akron "art-rockers" Devo (Wire, The, 2003)

Scotty Almany revels in the debut album by Eagles of Death Metal (ARC magazine, 2004)

Andrew Mueller revisits Prefab Sprout's beloved 1995 album Steve McQueen (Uncut, 2007)

James Medd effusively praises the fourth album by cool French dudes Phoenix (Word, The, 2009)

Rob Young raves about a four-CD compendium of unsung classics by Nashville (singer-)songwriter Mickey Newbury (Word, The, 2011)

Juliette Jagger catches Queens of the Stone Age, live in Toronto (Anchor Shop, 2013)

Caroline Sullivan loves Canadian songstress Feist, live in London (Guardian, The, 2017)

Today's Top 10 Articles

  1. Glenn Branca: "Sometimes I Wished My Fist Was A Sledgehammer"
    Profile and Interview by Mark Dery, High Performance, 1985
  2. Suzi Q: Expatriate Rockerette
    Interview by Toby Mamis, Zoo World, 1974
  3. Millie (2016)
    Interview by Tom Graves, Rock's Backpages Audio, 2016
  4. Beach Boys Hang Ten in Hotel Lobby
    Interview by Toby Mamis, Creem, 1971
  5. Glenn Branca: The Ascension (99 Records 990011p — Import)*****
    Review by Ralph Traitor, Sounds, 1982
  6. Max's Kansas City... Yawn
    Report by Roy Hollingworth, Melody Maker, 1972
  7. Jeffrey Lohn: Thoughts of a Theoretical Girl
    Interview by Tim Page, New York Rocker, 1979
  8. Bob Dylan: the Man Behind the Image
    Interview by David Hancock, Evening News, 1978
  9. Rick Laird: Why Mahavishnu Is Breaking Up
    Interview by Loraine Alterman, Rolling Stone, 1974
  10. Vicki Wickham: The Secretary That Roared
    Interview by Toby Mamis, Phonograph Record, 1971

RSS