Interview with Blues Legend Nat Dove

Bluesman/educator Nathaniel “Nat” Dove is a man on a mission. If you’ve ever met or talked to him, chances are you’ve been affected by the passion that’s fueled his every step since he emerged from Mumford, Texas in the early 1950’s to take his place as a proud torch bearer of the blues/boogie-woogie/barrelhouse piano tradition. His impressive resume as a musician includes membership in the West Coast Blues Hall of Fame, several world tours with his own band, performing and recording turns with Mama Thornton, Big Joe Turner, T-Bone Walker and Robert Cray (to name but a few) and writer of the original score for the Rudy Ray Moore classic 70’s film, “Petey Wheatstraw.”

Educator

His credentials as an entertainer might be enough to last some of his peers a lifetime, but Nat Dove views his calling “to promote blues and jazz through education…” as sacred—and he’s devoted more than three decades to it. He’s authored books on the genre, lectured at universities around the world on topics ranging from blues’ true origins to the role of Duke Ellington in the Harlem Renaissance of the 20’s and founded the Bakersfield Blues Preservation Society. The Blues Foundation Presented Dove with their highest award (lifetime Achievement for Keeping the Blues Alive (KBA) for Blues Education.http://natdove.com/                     http://www.boogiebluesconnection.com/home.html