Ralph J. Gleason

Ralph Joseph Gleason (March 1, 1917 - June 3, 1975) was an influential American jazz and pop music critic. He contributed for many years to the San Francisco Chronicle, was a founding editor of Rolling Stone magazine, and cofounder of the Monterey Jazz Festival.

Life and career

Gleason was born in New York City and attended Columbia University. During World War II he worked for the Office of War Information. In 1947, he moved to San Francisco and began contributing to the San Francisco Chronicle in 1950, initiating the first regular coverage of jazz and pop music in the mainstream US media. Gleason was the first critic to review folk, pop, and jazz concerts with the same attention and space as was given to classical music. He interviewed such luminaries as Frank Sinatra, Hank Williams, Elvis Presley, and Fats Domino. Gleason was one of the first critics to perceive the importance of Lenny Bruce, Bob Dylan, and Miles Davis. His liner notes for the 1959 Sinatra album No One Cares and later for the 1970 Davis album Bitches Brew set the standard for the form.