James Joseph Marshall (February 3, 1936 – March 24, 2010)[1] was an American photographer and photojournalist who photographed musicians of the 1960s and 1970s.[2][3][4] Earning the trust of his subjects, he had extended access to them both on and off-stage. Marshall was the official photographer for the Beatles' final concert in San Francisco's Candlestick Park, and he was head photographer at Woodstock.[5]
Early life
Marshall was born on February 3, 1936, in Chicago, Illinois, to Assyrian parents from Iran.[6][7] His family moved to San Francisco, California, when he was two years old, but soon after that, his father left Marshall and his mother.[7] While still in high school, Marshall purchased his first camera and began documenting musicians and artists in San Francisco.
After serving several years in the United States Air Force, he returned and moved to New York for two years.
"When I'm photographing people, I don't like to give any direction. There are no hair people fussing around, no make-up artists. I'm like a reporter, only with a camera; I react to my subject in their environment, and if it's going well, I get so immersed in it that I become one with the camera."[1]
An exhibition of Jim Marshall's photographs went on show at the Rebecca Hossack Gallery in London in January 2020, continuing at the Royal Albert Hall in February and March that year.[11][12]
Personal life
Marshall's forceful personality became something of a celebrity of its own.[1] Not having any children, he used to say "I have no kids, My photographs are my children."[9]
Marshall lived in San Francisco, but he died in New York City while on a trip during which he was scheduled to speak in SoHo. He was 74 at the time of his death.[14][15]
Publications
Monterey Pop (1992)
Not Fade away: The Rock and Roll Photography of Jim Marshall (1997)
^Marshall, Jim (2004). Jim Marshall: Proof. San Francisco, California: Chronicle Books. ISBN9780811843188.
^ abRosen, Miss (August 27, 2019). "The Photographer Who Defined the look of rock and roll: Show Me the Picture". Huck (magazine). Archived from the original on November 30, 2020. Retrieved May 15, 2022. Born in Chicago to immigrant parents who identified as Assyrian, Marshall's family moved to San Francisco when he was a baby. Soon after, his father left and Marshall began to fend for himself.