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Jon Pareles

Jon Pareles
Pareles in 2008
Born1953 (age 71–72)
Connecticut, U.S.
Alma materYale University
OccupationJournalist

Jon Pareles (born 1953[1]) is an American journalist. He was chief popular music critic in the arts section of The New York Times from 1988 to 2025.

Early life and education

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Pareles was born in Connecticut.[1] He played jazz flute and piano, and graduated from Yale University in 1974[2] with a degree in music.[3] While at Yale, he wrote on music for the newspaper, played the Harkness Tower carillon, and DJed for the radio station.[2]

Career

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Pareles began working as a music critic in 1977.[3] In the 1970s, he was an associate editor of Crawdaddy!, where he published his first works (outside school publications);[4] and in the 1980s, an associate editor at Rolling Stone and the music editor at The Village Voice. He started contributing to The Times in 1982.[3] He reviews popular music in the arts section of The Times,[4] where from 1988 to 2025, he was chief pop music critic.[5] In 2025, The Hollywood Reporter described him as "one of the most influential reviewers of the music business."[6]

Personal life

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In 1994, Pareles married Mary Anne Cartelli, a lecturer in Chinese at Hunter College.[7]

Publications

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  • Pareles, Jon; Romanowski, Patricia, eds. (1983). The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll. London: Rolling Stone. ISBN 978-0-718-12400-7.

References

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  1. ^ a b J. E. P. (November 2008). "Pareles, Jon". Current Biography. 69 (11). H. W. Wilson Company: 75–78. ISSN 0011-3344. EBSCOhost 35487780. Retrieved October 7, 2014.
  2. ^ a b "A Wealth of Musical Knowledge: Jon Pareles". Yale Daily News. November 14, 2014. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
  3. ^ a b c Hay, Carla (March 20, 2004). "Meet the Critics". Billboard. Vol. 116, no. 12. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. pp. 1, 88. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved October 6, 2014.
  4. ^ a b Ward, Steven (July 2001). "The Grey Lady's Pop Music Man: Jon Pareles in Conversation". rockcritics.com. Retrieved August 8, 2014.
  5. ^ Spangler, Todd (July 15, 2025). "New York Times Culture Desk Shake-Up: Critics Margaret Lyons, Jon Pareles, Jesse Green, Zach Woolfe Reassigned to 'New Roles'". Variety. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
  6. ^ Weprin, Alex (July 15, 2025). "New York Times Reassigns Longtime Music, Theater and TV Critics in Surprise Move". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
  7. ^ "WEDDINGS; Ms. Cartelli, Mr. Pareles". The New York Times. January 9, 1994. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 16, 2025.
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