Episode 62: How Rolling Stone, CREEM, and Tiger Beat Shaped 70s Music

SHOW NOTES

If you listened to music in the 70s, chances are that you also read at least one of the music magazines such as Rolling Stone, CREEM, or, dare I say it, Tiger Beat? As rock music began to be considered as a true art form, print media jumped in to cover it with photos, in-depth interviews, and album reviews. Of course, their target markets were not the same. Rolling Stone famously did a cover story on Charles Manson, which would never be seen in Tiger Beat, but could Rolling Stone actually create a star, the way Tiger Beat created the phenomenon of Tony DeFranco? This episode examines the influence of music magazines in a pre-internet world.

PLAY LIST

  1. Your Song by Elton John (1970)

  2. Sugar Mama by Bonnie Raitt (1975)

  3. Changes by David Bowie (1971)

  4. Bad Reputation by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts (1979)

  5. We’re an American Band by Grand Funk Railroad (1973)

  6. Heartbeat, It’s a Love Beat by The DeFranco Family (1973)

  7. Hey Deanie by Shaun Cassidy (1977)

SOURCES

animor1988. 2013. “Joan Jett Tomorrow Show 1977.” YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RWU8Y7aj_DU.

“Bad Reputation by Joan Jett.” n.d. Songfacts. Accessed July 16, 2026. https://www.songfacts.com/facts/joan-jett/bad-reputation.

Beato, Rick. 2025. “An Evening With Shaun Cassidy.” YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=peJGqZe5NwI.

Cobb, David. n.d. “Heartbeat -- It's a Love Beat.”

Felton, David. 1971. “Elton John: One Year On.” Rolling Stone, June 10, 1971.

Fernbacher, Joe. 1978. “Runaways: Waitin' for the Night (Mercury).” Creem, March, 1978.

Ferris, Tim. 1971. “Is This Band Terrible?” Rolling Stone, August 19, 1971.

Fong-Torres, Ben. 1975. “Bonnie Raitt Ain't Gonna Be Your Sugar Mama No More.” Rolling Stone, December 18, 1975.

Jett, Joan. 1977. “Love and Kisses.” CREEM, May, 1977. https://www.creem.com/archive/article/1977/05/01/mail.

Kaye, Lenny. 1971. “To Live Outside the Law You Must Be Honest.” Creem, November, 1971.

Kellogg, Mary Alice. 1979. “The Boy Next Door is a Millionaire.” The State Journal-Register (Springfield), July 8, 1979.

Marsh, Dave. 1971. “Loony Toons.” Creem, March 1, 1971.

Martin, Robert. 1973. “It's Marketing that Helps Make the Defrancos.” Globe and Mail (Toronto), February 16, 1973.

Martoccio, Angie. 2021. “Connie Hamzy, Immortalized in Grand Funk Railroad Song, Dead at 66.” Rolling Stone, August 24, 2021. https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/sweet-sweet-connie-hamzy-grand-funk-railroad-dead-obituary-1216117/.

Mendelsshon, John. 1971. “David Bowie: Pantomime Rock?” Rolling Stone, April 1, 1971.

Saunders, Dick. 1976. “Rock's Top Magazine.” Arizona Daily Star (Tucson), August 22, 1976.

Stingley, Jim. 1974. “Starmaker to Bubble Gum Set.” Los Angeles Times, February 14, 1974.

Watts, Michael. 1972. “Oh You Pretty Thing.” Melody Maker, January 22, 1972.

Watts, Michael. 1978. “Confession of an Elitist.” Melody Maker, February 18, 1978.

Williams, Paul. 1966. “Crawdaddy: Get Off of My Cloud!” Crawdaddy, February 7, 1966.

Wingis, Chuck. 1980. “This Empire Has a Tiger by the Tail.” Chicago Tribune, May 10, 1980.


Amy Lively