Died On This Date (April 30, 1982) Lester Bangs / Music Journalist
themusicsover Leslie “Lester” Bangs
December 13, 1948 – April 30, 1982
As a writer for Cream and Rolling Stone magazines, Lester Bangs was a highly influential rock music journalist. Bangs’ first review to be published came in 1969 when he answered a Rolling Stone ad looking for readers’ reviews. He sent in a negative critique of the MC5’s Kick Out The Jams, and never looked back. Bangs wrote for the magazine until 1973 when he was fired for allegedly being too critical and disrespectful toward the musicians he wrote about. Bangs relocated to Detroit where he edited and wrote for Cream. It was Cream that Bangs began to build his reputation as a brilliant if not confrontational music journalist. In the ensuing years, he contributed to Playboy, the Village Voice and NME. Bangs died of an accidental overdose at the age of 33. Drugs he had been taking to treat a cold adversely interacted with each other.