Cultural critic Greil Marcus will be on campus as Regents' Lecturer during the first three weeks in February. An insightful and influential cultural critic, Marcus has strong ties to Berkeley. He earned his undergraduate and master's degrees here in the 1960s and taught on campus in 1971-72.

Marcus is the author of numerous articles and of five books, among them his 1975 classic on American popular music and culture, "Mystery Train: Images of American Rock 'n' Roll Music."

His interdisciplinary approach to American culture weaves together history, political theory, literary criticism, film studies and music criticism. He is also internationally appreciated for his unique ability to situate American experience within larger developments in global culture.

"The Dustbin of History," published by Harvard University Press in 1995, is his most recent book. He is currently working on a study of Bob Dylan's 1967 "basement tape" recordings as a laboratory for the reinvention of American cultural language.

Greil Marcus will visit classes on campus and hold office hours, as well as offering the following discussion and lectures:

February 4, 4 p.m., lecture, "The Old Weird America: Harry Smith's 1952 Anthology of American Folk Music": Maude Fife Room, third floor of Wheeler Hall.

February 12, 8 p.m., lecture, "Prophesy in the American Voice: Winthrop, Lincoln, King and Ginsberg": Maude Fife Room, third floor of Wheeler Hall.

February 21, 4 p.m., informal meeting with graduate students, Women's Faculty Club Lounge.