Olof Björner (1942–2023)
The Tireless Chronicler in memoriam
One of the great men in the Dylan world has passed away.
Casual fans may not have been fully aware of his work and the impact it has had, but I think it’s fair to say that without Olof Björner, the little section of the Internet which is devoted to Bob Dylan, would have looked quite different.
It’s strange with the Internet and all the people there: I’ve known Olof since the beginning of time, but I only met him once or twice, even though we lived in the same country for many years.
“Since the beginning of time” here of course means “since c. 1996”. That’s when I got on the Internet. A little later, I started Dylanchords, and it was at about that time that somebody secretly gave me the address to this hidden treasure, a Pandora’s box of Dylan knowledge: bjorner.com.
As I remember it, initially only the Yearly Chronicles were open to the public; the rest of the site, the Still on the Road section, with the full details of every recording session and concert, was a members-only resource for the Stockholm Dylan Society. In any case, that day, when I got the secret link, I was in heaven. I printed out every one of the Yearly Chronicles and read them religiously, studied the setlist statistics with almost obscene delight, and – most importantly – vacuumed the files for references to obscure songs that I could include on Dylanchords. My fate was sealed.
When eventually I decided to take Dylanchords from a hobby effort to a serious undertaking, it was thanks to Björner, in two ways.
First, the encyclopedic scope. If he could do it, so could I. I decided to be as meticulous as I could with details right from the start, even though it seemed silly at first.
Secondly, the details themselves. Recording dates. Band members. Tour legs. The complete list of songs. The meticulous details with regard to arrangements. The transcriptions of the Bob talk. All of this I have used extensively. Some of it I admit to having used without credits, but I excuse myself with the fact that it is so obvious where the information comes from. Quoting from «Olof’s Files» is like quoting from the Bible: no reference is needed.
So for all the hours I’ve spent on bjorner.com through the years: thank you, Olof!
My Dear Olof - as usually would open an email to the man -
it's very sad for me to get to know about Olof's passing away... I've been in touch with him for years, more than 15 years now, and I provided my contribution to his INVALUABLE website. He had confided in me, letting me know about his health problems, I was hoping this wouldn't happen this fast. Along with my friend Daniele Filosi we were almost to meet the great Olof in Stockholm, about a year ago, it would have been the first time meeting in person, but because of his health being already unsteady he didn't make it, eventually. It's now a huge regret for me.
Being a bit of an archivist myself, I know what kind of deep love hides behins a work that can be seen as very rational, and it is, but the force at the source is a love effort, for people to be able to navigate such a huge output as Bob's, for posterity. His website has proven INVALUABLE again and again. Also, it brings me back to more personal memories, when I would ask my Dad to print Olof's files so I could always have that resource at hand, physically, in my folders. My dad passed away 4 years ago, way before he has helped me greatly archiving info and making lists of Bob's material, even though he didn't really appreciate our man, but he would joke with my "in Bob family fellas and relatives", despising horribly Bob's masterpieces. My Dad, used to print Olof's files at work and bring them back home to me. More than 20 years ago. Because of the many edits and corrections I sent Olof, once he asked my for my physical address, and I provided but I didn't ask why, I wondered but didn't ask, and one day I received huge bags by her Majesty Postal Service, inside there were Olof's files, printed in books form by Hardinge Simpole. I found my name in most of the volumes' acknowledgments. It was surprising and moving. Lately, after Stockhom, I kept sending him ticket scans and some corrections. He didn't reply no more after letting me know he was really sorry that he didn't make it to the show in Stockhom. I was silently hoping this would be a temporary first stage, finding out about his own condition, and that then he would have found a way to adjust and carry on working on his website, maybe just slower than before.
But no replies whatsover left me with not much meaningful hope. Olof Bjorner will always be remembered. He was a GIANT. Others had done what he did before him, but NOBODY so diffusely, so precisely, so well organized and available for the world. Nobody did it so long as he did. He brought this knowledge to everybody and to the next level.
Ciao, my friend, you happened to be a Swede yourself, the kindest I ever (virtually, but that's irrelevant) met.
Hail Olof.
May he roam the highways, byways, and causeways of the world like itinerant bards of yore and the superstars of today, with travails and tribulations and a warm place to sleep every night, a lover in every harbor, and friends at every fork in the road.
For me, my a-ha, hallelujah, Come to Jesus moment occurred when I discovered that the transcriptions on Dylan Chords were very accurate.
For many years, I’d been stymied by the sounds of Bob’s guitar on his early albums, and many years ago when I found the transcription for -It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue-, with the drop C tuning and the capo, on Eyolf’s site, I felt ecstatic like a Knight finding the Holy Grail. I never did find that Grail but I sure learned how to play Bobby’s songs just the way Bobby did!
I’ve been a constant traveler to those sites ever since. My all-time favorite resource on the World Wide Web.
I’ve been a huge follower of Bob, since I was 12: that was 63 years ago.
Glad is my heart to see that Bob is getting his due as an all time great artist. It used to infuriate me to see articles in the media, that treated him as an afterthought or worse, a clown.
Thank you Olof, and also to you, Eyolf, for helping to set the record straight.
The contributions you two gave the world are truly invaluable, which means more value than can be calculated.
That’s a pretty big gift.