Jam Session

So I was reading in our local Memphis Flyer about a jazz photography exhibit entitled Jam Session that was coming to town. It also just so happened to open the night the kids left for camp. Oh, and it was free. (I sell HiFi gear, remember?)


So Lisa and I stroll down to the main library and walk right in. Except for the small detail that it was by invitation only. Whoops. Luckily, Memphis is a very small town, and Lisa knew a woman working for one of the Memphis music organizations sponsoring the event. She was sitting at the check-in table. Perfect. So we acted like we belonged there. Nice. Not quite an Obama dinner, but I'll take it. I guess crashing a party with congressmen in attendance won't make us famous, will it? (I know. pretty sad.)


The pictures were very good, unlike my sneaky snapshots. Basically the exhibit highlighted the Jazz Ambassadors tours from the 50's through the 70's. At some point back in the day, they decided that Jazz was the perfect uniquely American thing to send around the world. So this will explain the large crowds for incredible musicians who were having a hard time here in the US. It also explains the crazy backgrounds and settings.


There were some really cool combinations in this group of photos. The stories were great as well. I especially loved Louis Armstrong backing out of the first and highly politicized trip to the Soviet Union because Eisenhower wouldn't walk the "Little Rock Nine" into school. (But I am glad the event inspired Mingus to compose Fables of Faubus)