Biographical Overview & Key Facts

Subject:

Ralph J. Gleason

Role / Field:

Pioneering American jazz and rock critic, columnist, and cultural figure.

Born:

1917-03-01

Died:

1975-06-03

Century / Era:

1917s Historical Era

Database Source:

2Day Chrono-Wiki & Wikipedia CC BY-SA 4.0

Origins & Early Life

Ralph Joseph Gleason (March 1, 1917 – June 3, 1975) was an American music critic and columnist. 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. A pioneering jazz and rock critic, he helped the San Francisco Chronicle transition into the rock era. Ralph Joseph Gleason was born in New York City on March 1, 1917.

Pivotal Works & Achievements

Gleason discovered jazz when, during a siege of measles while a student at Horace Greeley High School in Chappaqua, New York, he heard Louis Armstrong, Earl Hines and Fletcher Henderson on the radio. He graduated from Columbia University (where he was news editor of the Columbia Daily Spectator) in 1938. In 1939, Gleason co-founded Jazz Information with Eugene Williams, Ralph de Toledano, and Jean Rayburn, who Gleason would marry in 1940 and have three children. During World War II, he worked for the Office of War Information. After the war, Gleason settled in San Francisco, which he considered a better town for hearing jazz than New York, and began writing for the San Francisco Chronicle.

Enduring Legacy & Impact

Gleason wrote a syndicated column on jazz, hosted radio programs...

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Frequently Asked Questions about Ralph J. Gleason