“I don’t have a lot of money but the Blues have made me rich deep down in my heart..” — Sista Sherry Pruitt
It’s not New Orleans. Not Chicago, Memphis or even San Francisco.
This is Los Angeles, and these are the Blues, filling every corner of our city with its mournful longing. The Blues in L.A. originated on South Central Ave. This heartfelt music migrated from the small dive bars and converted garages such as Bell’s Blues Workshop, a fixture for decades, to profoundly influence the music business, breaking down racial barriers along the way.
Here are photos of Franklin Bell and the Blues musicians, Lucky Otis, Ike Willis, Carlos Verde, Johnny Echols, Sister Sherry Pruitt, Louis Leadbetter, Peter Assing, Hylen Burt, Gary James and ‘Lil Pee Wee playing the Blues.
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Jim Storm is a photographer living in Los Angeles. The last four years he’s been traveling and photographing people on the move, riding in Greyhound buses, exploring the northwest states of Montana, S. Dakota and North with a little Nebraska thrown in. “The heart of America is the open road,” Storm declares. Living up to that quote, Jim plans to spend the spring and summer months in Pine Ridge, South Dakota, photographing Lakota artists.
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Dr. Valerie Pronio-Stelluto is a physician with a passion for photography. As a former Director of Medical Student Education and “Humanism in Medicine” award recipient at Harvard Medical School, Valerie was also a photojournalist documenting the clinical journey of her Harvard and MIT students in becoming competent and compassionate doctors. As a member of the Board of Governor’s of the Massachusetts American College of Physicians,Valerie has been lauded for her photo contributions. Valerie looks forward to joining Mr. Storm in continuing to photograph the Lakota people.