Dixie Farthing has loved rock 'n roll as far back as her earliest memories of listening to her dad's rock records on her portable plastic record player. A standout early memory is listening to the 45rpm single of Bo Diddley's "Say Man" over and over again; she didn't know then, nor did anyone, that this song would become known decades later as the first rap record. A highlight of her childhood was the advent of the "British Invasion" of rock in the winter of 1964, led by the Beatles, the band she considers to be the Greatest Rock Band of All Time. (And no, they were not a "boy band"—they were a "bar band.") She is also a fan of 21st century artists such as Jack White, Lana Del Rey, Billie Eilish, Tame Impala, Radiohead, The War on Drugs, Beck, and Amy Winehouse. She loves to be introduced to new artists by her students.
Dixie Farthing has been an editorial assistant at a newspaper; a bookseller in Chicago; an editor at a publishing company; and a disc jockey for AM and FM radio stations. She earned her BA in English at ASU where she received the Graydon and Daisy Eggers Award. She graduated summa cum laude with an MA in English, has taught in the ASU English Dept. for 30 years, and loves teaching First Year Seminar.