Photographer Jim Marshall wasn't one of those kids who hopped a VW van and made an interstate pilgrimage to San Francisco's Summer of Love; he had already grown up in the Fillmore and honed his technique taking natural-light shots of resident artists in the North Beach coffeehouses where he loved to hang out. By the time the acid-rock revolution did hit, he'd already developed a rapport with some of its main players, and it shows in his candid shots of Carlos Santana and Jimi Hendrix, and in the lone shot of Grace Slick and Janis Joplin together, although he's also taken pictures of jazz giants like Miles Davis and John Coltrane. He was the principal photographer at the Monterey Pop Festival and Woodstock, and the only photographer granted backstage access at the Beatles' last concert. His duo-tone photos of musicians ranging from the Red Hot Chili Peppers to Muddy Waters appear in the forthcoming book Not Fade Away; an exhibit of photos from the book opens with a reception at 6 p.m. (and is up through Dec. 31) at the Serge Sorokko Gallery, 231 Grant (at Post), S.F. Admission is free; call 421-7770.
Marshall Stacks
SF Weekly, Décembre 16, 1997