jacob blickenstaff

I met

jacob blickenstaff

at the 2006 ponderosa stomp. the st louis native blew in from brooklyn to shatter me - and everyone else who's seen his work - with his performance shots. jacob and his fiancee, the fabulous emma, came back to memphis for new year's eve, and then I caught up with him again in new orleans earlier this month for the sixth annual ponderosa stomp. contrary to my every instinct, jacob largely avoided the crush at the front of the stage and instead set up a portrait booth, guiding artists over before and after their performances. those pictures - not yet on his site - are phenomenal, like road maps to guide you through the lives of these great musicians, every moment lived etched on their faces. I know some day I'll tell my grandkids that I knew this guy when he was just starting out - his shots are that incredible. just gaze at this one, of syl johnson in 2006.

bill steber

I've been lucky enough to have photos by bill steber illustrate some of my work in the past, in mojo and living blues. his work is brilliant - whether it appears on a glossy magazine page,as a CD cover or even on a flyer for my friend highway 7, who DJs in portland, oregon. bill's also a great writer, and he further documents the blues tradition with audio interviews and field recordings. go get lost on his site, then join me in begging him to publish the first of many books.

justin fox burks

justin burks

and I have done a lot of work together over the last few years, including tons of stuff for the memphis flyer. this image of 8ball & mjg came from a photoshoot he did for the cover of the february 2007 issue of wax poetics. this year, we've also collaborated on stories on arthur lee and the black keys for mojo, and pieces on stax records for the summer 2007 issue of stop smiling and paste (june 2007). right now, we're working on two major photo-heavy pieces - a photo essay on orange mound sign painter brick, and a feature on memphis-based graffiti collective UH. I've worked more closely with justin than I have any other photographer - he makes the work fun, and he intuitively knows what I'm looking for. plus, even though he's a vegetarian, he shoots barbecue uncomplainingly, and he's super-sweet about listening to me bitch about my freelance situation - most likely, because he's in the same boat! editors should know that his wife amy lawrence is a rising star on the fiction scene. remember that name! anyways, major props to justin. go to his site.

rock and roll, turned inside out

I just got a copy of tom wright's rock'n'roll photography book, roadwork, from my friend jenna at hal leonard. due for release in july 2007, it's a nice, weighty coffee table book - although it's printed (per wright's request) on non-glossy stock. think the '70s, lots of shots of the faces, the james gang, and even the who, standing in a field in jackson, mississippi. plenty of memories alongside the images, which live up to the book's subtitle, "rock and roll turned inside out." wright's stuff is fantastic, but it makes me think about the music photographers I've worked with, who really need to have books out. so I'm gonna post a short list of folks, which I know will grow.