Greil Marcus

I am a critic who is pulled toward history. But Bob Dylan himself is a great historian. He is an historian who…

— Greil Marcus

There's been a streak of vengeance and carnage in all of Dylan's records except for the Christmas record, since 2001, since 'Love…

— Greil Marcus

Patriotism in America, as I understand it, is a matter of suffering, when the country fails to live up to its promises,…

— Greil Marcus

I don't think my life itself is very interesting.

— Greil Marcus

Elvis transcends his talent to the point of dispensing with it altogether.

— Greil Marcus

If 'Mystery Train' is my Nixon book and 'Lipstick Traces' my Reagan book, 'Invisible Republic' is my Bill Clinton book. I really…

— Greil Marcus

Every youth movement presents itself as a loan to the future, and tries to call in its lien in advance, but when…

— Greil Marcus

What's the impulse behind art? It's saying in whatever language is the language of your work, “If I could move you as…

— Greil Marcus

When you celebrate somebody's bad work on the terms that define their good work, how can that artist have anything but contempt…

— Greil Marcus

I want another idea, another project, but you can't make them up. They show up.

— Greil Marcus

Sometimes you can listen to a song all your life without hearing it.

— Greil Marcus

I've always known why I do what I do. I didn't need to be psychoanalysed to find that out.

— Greil Marcus

When I listen to Joy Division, it doesn't sound particularly English.

— Greil Marcus

I never find myself even catching lyrics until something in the sound has taken me captive. Thinking about anything else is just…

— Greil Marcus

I was the first records editor at Rolling Stone, and there were no rules. There was nothing to fall back on as…

— Greil Marcus