I had a blast hanging out in Memphis this weekend, attending the opening for the Art of the South exhibition at L Ross Gallery where my photograph “New and Used Glory” was hanging on the wall in a really impressive display of Southern contemporary art. Thanks again to Number Inc. for organizing the exhibition and to curator Mark Scala for including my work. Of course hanging out in Memphis also gave me a chance to touch base with the city’s musical history, and our visit to the Stax Museum of American Soul was a highlight — I found myself tearing up in the record store feeling a little overwhelmed with the history of that studio and the amazing cultural experiment that it represents.
Stax started out as a would be country music label before becoming home to a Southern soul revolution that provided the soundtrack to the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960′s. During that time Stax was actively involved in the cause and this summer we’ll remember the 45th anniversary of Wattstax — the Black Woodstock concert that celebrated the Watts community in Los Angeles 7 years after their tragic 1965 riots against racial injustice.
Here’s the whole concert. All power to the people…
Please subscribe to my YouTube channel where I archive all of the videos I curate at Insomnia. Click here to check out more Music posts
