Posts From Jeff Tamarkin

Jeff Tamarkin

Best Classic Bands Editor Jeff Tamarkin has been a prolific music journalist for nearly five decades. He is formerly the editor of Goldmine, CMJ and Relix magazines, has written for dozens of other publications and has authored liner notes for more than 80 CDs. Jeff has also served on the Nominating Committee of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and as a consultant to the Grammys. His first book was 'Got a Revolution! The Turbulent Flight of Jefferson Airplane.' He is also the co-author of 'Shell Shocked: My Life with the Turtles, Flo and Eddie, and Frank Zappa, etc.,' with Howard Kaylan, and 'Carlos Santana: Love, Devotion, Surrender: The Illustrated Story of Santana's Musical Journey.'

74 From 1974: The Albums We Listened To

A vast variety of sounds appealed to rock fans at that time, and still does.

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Remembering Joe Cocker: Rock’s Soulful Interpreter

His gift was that among all the British R&B belters, he may have been the most ballsy and uninhibited of them all and an outstanding interpreter of songs.

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The Yardbirds, with Both Beck and Page, in ‘Blow-Up’

It’s a classic scene from a landmark ’60s film, and a rare look at that brief moment when Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page were in the same band.

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‘Their Satanic Majesties Request’—The Rolling Stones’ Worst, or An Unfairly Maligned Gem?

Some say it was little more than a ‘Sgt. Pepper’ ripoff. Others consider it one of their most original LPs. We gave a fresh listen.

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The Last Waltz: An Audience Member Revisits

The 1976 farewell performance by The Band is the stuff of rock lore. BCB’s editor was there that night and remembers it well.

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The Cowsills: ‘The Rain, the Park…’—Happy, Happy, Happy!

The feel-good song was as emblematic of its time as any of the psychedelic records that were starting to dominate rock in 1967.

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Reggae Pioneer Jimmy Cliff, of ‘The Harder They Come’ Fame, Dies

HIs recordings of “The Harder They Come” and “Many Rivers to Cross” are cornerstones of the genre.

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The Beatles’ White Album: Facts and Trivia

At the same time they were maturing, they were leaving behind the Beatles. Here are some fascinating details on all 30 tracks on their ’68 masterpiece.

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When Jefferson Airplane Sang From a NYC Rooftop

When the French filmmaker Godard needed a band for his new film on radical culture in 1968, he invited San Francisco’s finest. They responded by waking up New York City.

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17 #1 Hits Worse Than ‘We Built This City’

That mid-’80s Starship hit perennially tops lists of the worst chart-toppers ever. It’s bad, we agree, but we’ve found others that are even worse.

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