JAM: Photographs by Jay Blakesberg

JAM is an exhilarating photographic journey thru the contemporary landscape of improvisational rock and roll. Starting with the forefathers of psychedelic rock The Grateful Dead, it features over 300 photos of artists, tracing the family tree to artists like Phish, The Dave Matthews Band, Widespread Panic, and many others. Additionally, this journey illustrates the deep-rooted relationship of the jam world with the folk and bluegrass communities, including artists such as Gillian Welch, Del McCoury, and Emmylou Harris. Featuring pioneers Sonic Youth, Pavement, Radiohead, and others, JAM touches on the parallels and similarities with the indie rock world. Large scale multi-day festivals in the US have taken all these genres of music and blended them together in to a space where Bruce Springsteen can jam with Phish, and the fans don't even question how or why, but just bask in the uniqueness and glory of 'the jam.'

This show of rock photography offers a glimpse into those intimate moments in which we feel a personal and almost spiritual connection with the musicians who bare their souls for us. Seeing a live show can be a direct way to share a profound moment with the musicians, one that we do not get to experience by listening to a recording. There is a certain magical element to sharing a specific moment and the physical space of the artists themselves as they are creating. But these moments aren't always during a performance. There are intimate moments in the process of creating that the general public does not see, but has been captured by an observant photographer. These images aim to illustrate the musicians' artistry and individual personalities through a single still photograph, and share the intimacy of artistic creation with the public.

Jay Blakesberg is a music industry insider, creating images made in dressing rooms, recording studios, and artist's homes. He has earned unprecedented onstage access while the artist performs in front of large and small audiences. For most of his career as a commercial music photographer, he has had the great honor of working with so many great artists who engage in not just creating amazing original music, but also contribute to a larger genre, making some of the most unique, original, and exploratory music in the world of rock and roll.