JANE SCOTT, 92, legendary Cleveland Plain Dealer music writer, whose assignment to cover the Beatles in 1964 led to an almost four-decade-long career as a pop scribe, died yesterday after a long illness. The University of Michigan grad and Cleveland native was a code breaker for the Navy during World War II, then joined the hometown Plain Dealer as a society and youth writer before becoming one of the first journalists to write about the Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, Janis Joplin, the Doors, the Who, the Beach Boys, Lou Reed, Bruce Springsteen and every other major and minor group that played her town. When she retired in 2002, Scott was, at 82, the oldest rock critic in the country. Calling herself "the world's oldest teenager," Scott, a matronly woman with a dyed satin-blond pageboy and big, red trifocals, famously found something to love about every act she saw, endearing her to many of her subjects. She carried a big purse, which included earplugs and a peanut butter sandwich. Jim Morrison invited her backstage for a beer. Jimi Hendrix took her along when he shopped for a blue Corvette. She sang "California Girls" with Brian Wilson at a hotel piano bar during an interview. When Springsteen played Cleveland, he dedicated "Dancing in the Dark" to her. Lyle Lovett paid tribute to Scott in a Twitter message, writing that the rock music world had lost “one of the dearest members of its family.” (7/5p)