Dave Marsh, the film critic and biographer who documented the early days of Bruce Springsteen in his influential 1979 book “Born to Run,” died Friday in his Connecticut home. He was 76.
Jim Rotolo, who hosts the Springsteen-fan cast “The Wild & The Innocent” on SiriusXM, confirmed Marsh’s death in a Facebook post on Saturday morning.
“Dave wrote several books about Bruce as part of a remarkable body of work spanning some 25 titles,” Rotolo wrote, along with a picture of himself, Springsteen and Marsh. “A longtime rock critic for Creem and Rolling Stone, 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.”
“Born to Run: The Bruce Springsteen Story” was one of the first extensive biographies written about The Boss, who was still rising through his young career when it was published in 1979. “Born to Run” followed Springsteen’s journey from local New Jersey rocker to budding global phenomenon and shared a name with Springsteen’s 1975 breakout album.
Marsh, who penned several works about Springsteen, also published texts on The Who, Sly & the Family Stone, The Beatles, Creedence Clearwater Revival and Black Sabbath. He was also one of the earliest editors of Creem magazine and was a frequent contributor to Rolling Stone.
In 2004, Marsh launched the “Kick Out the James” radio show, which he hosted for almost two decades. He also co-created “E Street Radio” for the broadcaster.
Marsh’s daughter, Kristen Ann Carr, died in 1993 at 21 years old from sarcoma, a rare form of cancer that affects bones and muscle tissue. In his daughter’s honor, Marsh founded the Kristen Ann Carr Fund to help families of cancer patients and to advance research for sarcoma treatment.
Marsh is survived by his wife, Barbara Carr.