Springsteen mourns his biographer, rock critic Dave Marsh

Bruce Springsteen has paid tribute to legendary rock critic, journalist and author Dave Marsh, who passed away Friday at the age of 76.

“Here on E Street, the irreplaceable loss of Dave Marsh has us heartbroken,” Springsteen wrote on Instagram. “My great friend Dave, with his straight out of Detroit attitude, was a true Rock ‘n’ Roll lifer. He was soulful, intelligent, heartfelt, opinionated, bruising and often fantastically argumentative.”

Marsh, who throughout his career wrote numerous books on music and musicians, was the author of the 1979 Springsteen biography Born to Run, as well as other books on The Boss. Springsteen noted in his tribute that Marsh “always had my back.”

“He deeply believed in what I was trying to accomplish and his lifetime of support meant the world to me,” Springsteen added. “More than anything else, I admired Dave as a man of conscience and commitment. He lived and stuck by his values come hell or high water.”

Springsteen concluded the post, writing, “Wherever he is, I hope he’s receiving some of the grace, happiness and reward he’s brought into my life. God bless you Dave.”

E Street Band member Nils Lofgren also paid tribute to Marsh, as did his bandmate Stevie Van Zandt, who wrote, “He was fearless, relentless, arrogant, everything you’d want in a RocknRoll troublemaker,” adding, “And by the way, a tremendous writer.”

In addition to Born to Run, Marsh wrote The Who biography Before I Get Old: The Story of the Who, which was published in 1983; 1980’s The Book of Rock Lists; and 1989’s The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made.