Robert Hilburn

• 1. Cotton Fields And Blues

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  Robert Hilburn was born on the 25th of September, 1939 in Natchitoches, Louisiana. He spent his first five years living on a cotton farm near Campti with his grandfather. Those early summers were filled with sounds that would shape his entire career. The blues and country music styles played around him during those childhood visits to his grandparents' home. This exposure gave birth to rock 'n' roll within his own mind before he ever wrote a review. After moving through Dallas, Texas, his family settled in Southern California. He attended Reseda High School and later graduated from California State University, Northridge in 1961. His degree was in journalism but his heart had already been captured by music.

• 2. From News To Rock

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  Hilburn worked as a news reporter for The Valley Times in suburban Los Angeles during the early 1960s. He also served as a public information officer for the Los Angeles Unified School District. Eager to write about music instead of local politics, he began writing for the Los Angeles Times as a freelancer in 1966. A series of articles about artists like Johnny Cash and Janis Joplin appeared in the paper before he was hired full-time. In 1970 he replaced Pete Johnson as the newspaper's rock critic. While at the Times, Hilburn accompanied several artists on landmark tours throughout his thirty-five year tenure. He covered Elton John's inaugural visit to Russia and Paul Simon's Graceland tour stop in Zimbabwe. Bob Dylan's first concerts in Israel were also part of his extensive reporting duties. He spent a week on the road with the Sex Pistols during their first U.S. tour. Hilburn was present when Johnny Cash performed at Folsom Prison in 1968.

• 3. Championing New Voices

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  Although credited with taking rock journalism to a new frontier, Hilburn approached criticism as a fan. In a 2009 interview with the Washington Post he stated that the message of the artist mattered more than the writing style. He tried to be clear so everyone would feel welcome to his pages. His early support helped launch careers for diverse artists ranging from John Prine to Rage Against the Machine. The list includes Patti Smith, The Eagles, Tom Petty, Prince, Elvis Costello, Guns N' Roses, Nine Inch Nails, Ice Cube, Public Enemy, Eminem, The White Stripes, Arcade Fire, and X. John Prine credited Hilburn for helping to launch his own career. Bruce Springsteen and Dr. Dre made similar comments about his influence. Hilburn retired from his staff position at the Times in 2005 after accepting a buy-out package. He continued to write features for the paper even after leaving his full-time role.

• 4. Global Music Correspondent

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  Hilburn's international reporting covered landmark tours across multiple continents during his time at the Los Angeles Times. Elton John's inaugural visit to Russia was one of the most significant stories he covered. Paul Simon's Graceland tour included a stop in Zimbabwe that required extensive travel and reporting. Bob Dylan's first concerts in Israel were another major assignment for the critic. These trips took him far beyond the usual rock journalism scope of the era. He spent a week on the road with the Sex Pistols during their first U.S. tour. This experience gave him unique access to bands that often faced hostility from American audiences. His global perspective allowed him to document music as it traveled through different political landscapes. The work demonstrated how rock could cross borders where politics tried to keep them apart.

• 5. The Memoir Era

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  In 2010 Hilburn published his memoir titled Corn Flakes with John Lennon. It focused on the work and influence of artists like John Lennon, Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, Bruce Springsteen, Stevie Wonder, Phil Spector, Michael Jackson, U2, Kurt Cobain, and N.W.A. A review in The Austin Chronicle by Margaret Moser noted that Hilburn had been there and gotten the tour T-shirt. She called him the real thing writing about the real thing. The book reflected a lifetime of music industry encounters spanning decades of change. Hilburn continued to host a weekly Wednesday evening music program called Rock 'n' Roll Times. The show airs on 885 The SoCal Sound, a public broadcasting radio station in Southern California. His memoir served as a bridge between his reporting career and his later biographical works.

• 6. Biographies Of Icons

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  Hilburn published a biography of Cash titled Johnny Cash: The Life in January 2013. Michiko Kakutani named the biography one of her ten favorite books of the year for The New York Times. Kirkus described it as an instant-classic music biography with something to offer all generations of listeners. After reading the Cash book, Paul Simon sat for more than 100 hours of interviews with Hilburn. Previously Simon had declined multiple offers to tell his own story. Published by Simon & Schuster in May 2019, Hilburn's biography Paul Simon: The Life was described as epic in Rolling Stone. A four-star review in USA Today called the book a straight-shooting tour de force. It noted Hilburn's reportorial skill and nuanced attention to the dynamics of Simon's artistry. Friends since meeting at Newman's 1970 debut concert at the Troubadour, Hilburn wrote that Randy Newman would become a creative master. Despite their relationship, it took time to convince Newman to support the biography. Shy and introverted, Newman described songwriting as torture. His final work A Few Words in Defense of Our Country explored Newman's catalog of socially conscious songs.