Wall of Flame up at JJ's Blues

This New Year's Eve will be my one year anniversary as the club photographer for JJ's Blues in San Jose, CA. I photograph the main acts there on Fridays and Saturdays, often after having spent the day and part of the evening photographing a wedding or other special event.

I've heard some wonderful music, and photographed musicians including Chris Cain, Tommy Castro, John Lee Hooker, Jr., Sugar Pie Desanto, Jason Ricci and many other artists of great talent.

One of the musicans, Alvin Draper, a blues legend who had been playing there every Sunday, was recently hospitalized with blood clots. Though he has been moved from ICU, a very good sign, he still has a long way to go in his recovery.

Alvin has been a great friend to the club and I (always giving out hugs, and asking people how they are and geniunely caring about them), and I wish him a speedy recovery.

Alvin is a huge fan of black and white, so I'll convert this one for him:

Alvin playing at the club with legendary "proove-it-was-really-at-JJ's" exit sign behind him.

This has been an exciting month for me as the back room has been finished. (I keep trying to get people to call it the Blueseum, but so far that isn't catching on.) If you follow the length of the bar all the way down to the left is a little room with a few tables, a large screen showing the action onstage, and walls filled with photos I shot at the club.

The room has lots of red lights up (and now strings of blue Christmas lights), so the photos (which also have lots of red in them as the club uses a lot of red stage lights) look almost black and white. The musicians have nicknamed it the Wall of Flame.




The musicians who come in are used to signing promotional posters for us. Some of them started spontaneously signing their photos also, and now club owner Johnnie Perkins encourages them all to sign.

Last nights musicians Gary G. and Sammy Varela signing: