Death of British historian of the blues, 90
mainAn architectural historian by profession, Paul Oliver wrote his first article for Jazz News in 1951 and his biography of Bessie Smith in 1959. He was regarded ever after as one of the foremost authorities on American blues and gospel music.
Paul died at Shipton-under-Wychwood in Oxfordshire, the most English of settings on August 15.
I owe this man a great debt because it was through him that I developed an awareness and understanding of American “Blues music” back in the early / mid 1960s. He will be sadly missed by music enthusiasts worldwide.