Table of contents for November 2, 2017 in Rolling Stone

Trump Mania! ANOTHER MASTERPIECE BY Matt Taibbi [“The Madness of Donald Trump,” RS 1297]. What he says about America is more disturbing than what he says about Trump. Taibbi peels back the facade of “American exceptionalism” to reveal the ugly truth that few Americans can or will admit about us. Mary Anne Doty, Phoenix ONCE AGAIN TAIBBI HITS A home run on the Trump White House and how this country must look to the rest of the world: deplorable. Doug Shearer, Gouldsboro, PA TAIBBI’S ARTICLE SHOULD BE required reading for all of us who need to be reminded about the hard work ahead to really “make America great.” There is no “again.” We need to be better than what we have been. Suzy Filbert, Baltimore I ALWAYS ENJOY TAIBBI! BUT just one thing…

ON SEPTEMBER 25TH, TOM PETTY AND THE HEARTBREAKERS performed the final concert of a three-night run at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. It was also the climax of their 40th Anniversary Tour, a 53-show celebration of the singer-guitarist’s unbroken lifetime with his band as one of rock & roll’s biggest, best and most committed live acts. ¶ Thirty minutes before he walked onstage, Petty welcomed singer-songwriter Lucinda Williams into his dressing room. “He had a big smile, and he was putting a cough drop in his mouth,” says Williams, an old friend who had just finished her opening set. “I didn’t want to stay too long. It was getting close to showtime. I said, ‘Tom, the audience is rockin’. They’re good to go. I’ve warmed them up for you.’…

1. Eminem “The Storm” Slim Shady’s raging anti-Trump freestyle from the BET Hip-Hop Awards was the kind of unhinged classic only he can deliver, calling out the president on everything from racism to his Twitter distractions to having a cheap tan. The result is the best pop-music op-ed we’re likely to get all year. 2. Foo Fighters “Soldier” This somberly resilient rocker is a highlight of 7-Inches for Planned Parenthood, a great new all-star benefit compilation. It’s a song about hard private struggles, delivered with a powerful, unguarded urgency. 3. Steven Van Zandt “Even the Losers” Our favorite Tom Petty tribute. Little Steven turns his friend’s classic underdog anthem into a soul-kissed reverie that’ll bring tears to your eyes. 4. Bermuda Triangle “Suzanne” Brittany Howard of Alabama Shakes is best…

Yoko Ono and John Lennon By Annie Leibovitz | RS 335, January 22, 1981 Taken hours before John Lennon was assassinated outside his New York apartment building, this image is the best-known photograph in ROLLING STONE’s history – and perhaps the most famous magazine cover ever. Lennon and Yoko Ono rarely let photographers into their home, but as Ono said, “[Annie] was one of us.” Leibovitz spent two afternoons shooting the couple; on the second day, she asked for a photo of them nude. Lennon agreed, but Ono declined. The result was a picture with even greater depth and vulnerability. When Leibovitz showed Lennon the Polaroid, he said, “You’ve captured our relationship exactly.” Jerry Garcia By BARON WOLMAN RS 40, August 23, 1969 “He’s showing his finger,” says Baron Wolman,…

Bob Marley’s youngest son is on the road this fall in support of his new LP, Stony Hill. Bounty Killer “Look Into My Eyes” This is very poetic and powerful. He talks about all the details in the life of a gangster in Jamaica that make you feel everything. It’s very real. Capleton “Jah Jah City” The lyrics to this are blazing a fire on all the corruption in Jamaica, and speaking to violence that so often happens in such a blessed place. Cham “Ghetto Story” I just love all the little details, how the boy’s hair is never combed and he refuses to take a bath. It brings you into the story. You can feel it. Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers “Problems” My brother is such an underrated…

What advice do you wish you could give your younger self? I don’t think I could give advice to my younger self because she probably wouldn’t listen. How did you get involved with ROLLING STONE? Between my second and third years at the San Francisco Art Institute, I went to Israel to work on a kibbutz, not knowing for sure that I would come back. My boyfriend at the time got me a subscription to ROLLING STONE, and I read every issue from cover to cover. It was the only news I had of the U.S. Then, I did go back to school and went into the ROLLING STONE offices with some pictures of a demonstration against the war in Vietnam and some photographs I had taken in Israel. San…