Irwin Stambler, "an aeronautical engineer whose love of music inspired him to write some of the earliest and most flavorful encyclopedias on pop music," died February 10, the Los Angeles Times reported. He was 92. Although Stambler wrote dozens of books on a variety of topics, he "took a particular interest in the roots of rock 'n' roll, the blues, and country and Western music." His work includes The Encyclopedia of Pop, Rock and Soul; The Encyclopedia of Popular Music; and The Encyclopedia of Folk, Country and Western (with the late Grelun Landon);
"He really wanted to give people a flavor of these artists.... He was very much a product of his times. He was there at the beginning in rock 'n roll," said his son Lyndon Stambler, adding that the elder Stambler would often do his own research, interviewing musicians and attending concerts, a process that gave his encyclopedia entries a folksy you-were-there quality. Father and son eventually teamed up to co-write Folk & Blues: The Encyclopedia.