In the same format as Heart of Rock and Soul, this book covers the 264 greatest songs from Columbia Records beginning with the 1890 performance of John Philip Sousa's "Washington Post March" and working its way chronologically up to Adele's "Rolling in the Deep" (2011).

"[7] Marsh has been characterised as a "grumpy rock and roll journalist" due to his acerbic comments on popular musicians whom he dislikes.

[citation needed] In 1977, Marsh described Queen frontman Freddie Mercury – who is regarded as one of the best rock singers of all time[10] – as possessing a "passable pop voice".

[14]: 454 [15] In the 1983 Rolling Stone Record Guide, Marsh called Journey "a dead end for San Francisco area rock", and their music "calculated".

Lead singer Paul Stanley described Marsh as "pompous", and pointed to his derision of Led Zeppelin and Queen as evidence that he had "no clue" about music.

[19] In the March 13, 1975 edition of Rolling Stone, Marsh was one of a number of critics asked about Bob Dylan's Blood on the Tracks.

Marsh wrote: "The long songs, particularly, suffer from flat, tangled imagery, and the music, with all its hints at the old glory, is often incompetently performed.

Marsh is a co-founder and trustee of the Kristen Ann Carr Fund,[21] created in memory of his step-daughter who died in 1993 from sarcoma, a form of cancer.

[22] The fund is dedicated to supporting research in the treatment and cure of sarcoma, as well as improving the lives of young adult cancer patients and their families.

Through his marriage to Barbara Carr, a co-manager of Bruce Springsteen, Marsh is stepfather to her two daughters, Kristen Ann and Dr. Sasha J.