Rock and Roll

I've photographed bands since I was in college and it has always been somewhat of a hoot. I was asked by my business partner in California, Byron, to fly out to LA and photograph a Jackson Browne Concert in the 80's and I took him up on it. I was expecting a huge gathering in a stadium or hall as the event was to raise funds for the Catholic Church to fund the care and education of the homeless children that were sent up to the US from El Salvador during the Iran Contra situation. Their parents thought that even living on the street in LA was safer than being in the country with the "war" going on. The church was known as a sanctuary for the children and they all tried to get there.

Byron picked me up at the airport and we went to his apartment and settled for a while. He then told me that the concert was to be attended by about 400 people and was to be held in the courtyard of the oldest Catholic church in the City. I didn't know what to expect....400 people...how much money could that bring in ? The next day we loaded up and drove to the church. Arriving there walked into the courtyard and the area was ready for the gathering. NOTHING like what I expected. An open area with tables of finger food, a couple of bars and tables for the guests to sit at while they ate and drank. There was a stool and a chair with a microphone sitting alone some distance from the tables. I really didn't know what to expect. The light was good and with only 400 people I should be able to get some great shots. I was standing around talking to Byron and I started noticing faces I recognized from Television and the movies. Byron stepped away from me to speak with someone a a guy came up and said, " My name is Kris, where ya from, ya talk funny." I promptly told him I was from the Ozarks and gave him my name. We shook hands and he turned to Jimmy Smits who was one of the stars of LA Law and said," Hey Jimmy come here and listen to this, he's from the Ozarks. I spent the rest of the night photographing and eating dinner with LA Law and the Hill Blues guys while they listened to me talk. Never knew I had an accent.....