James Patterson | Alternative Mississippi
Like many, I hate having my photograph taken. But, as a gift to my mother I decided to have one done to mark my fiftieth birthday. I contacted James Patterson soon after I made my decision, asking if he would do the honors. Thankfully, he ignored my multiple emails apologizing for my anxiety in front of a camera. He chuckled when I asked what the price would be so that I might budget accordingly. He told me I really needed to relax. We set a date: April 6, 2018.
It was a rainy afternoon, and James was standing outside saving the parking space in front of his Fondren studio for me. I was humming Glen Campbell’s ‘Witchia Lineman’ when I walked through the door. “That’s a good one,” he said while adjusting a light. I chatted away with his childhood friend Bobby, as James walked and clicked, clicked and walked. Shifted the lighting again. Reached forward to adjust my earring.
On this shot he smiled and said, “That’s the one.”
In his craft, James was always right.
If CAET had been open, I would have bought him a martini that day. But, it was before 4:00p and the weather continued not in our favor. There’d be another time. Soon, we both promised. Cancer had other plans.
I had begun outlining and conducting interviews for a James biography just weeks before he was diagnosed.* Time went fast. His pain stopped on October 21, 2018.
Friends of James introduced me to a Jackson I could not have imagined before moving here. The project found a title in 2019, Alternative Mississippi. It has grown from simply telling the story of a beloved and talented man, to one of the larger community that surrounded him and a cultural economy which he had a significant role in creating.
You are missed, my friend.
*Overview
Cultural snapshot of a contemporary Mississippi not traditionally considered -- 1980s, 1990s, 2000s -- applying the life of James Patterson as the focal point. His world, his friends, his work, etc. to tell an unexpected history of Jackson and Mississippi. [UPDATE 2021: The project remains grounded in the life, work, and community of James; however, culture + economic development during this era is now driving the project — Chapter 5. Be Bop Records is central to the thesis.]
Friends, Family, & Oral Histories
I came late to the James Patterson party, but he was generous enough to invite me in. His family and friends, too, have been not only kind but accessible as they begin to recount their tales of their relationship with James over the years and help flesh out the spirit and vibe of late 20th Century Jackson. Not all of the stories will make it into this compact volume, in fact I have not truly begun listing the individuals I need to interview. With each conversation, a new name pops up. Regardless of if/what is published, I still want to collect what I can. My recorder is ready. And of course, the book would include the list of people interviewed in its bibliography.
Anticipated length of the manuscript (in words)
There are chapters (see below) that will be lengthier than others, particularly when considering images, but I’d argue an average of 5 to 15 pages would cover each topic suggested. 150 pages, MAX.
Illustrations (if any)
I know of at least one watercolor I’ve asked Wyatt Waters to contribute (which would be a perfect cover, given what he and I discussed). And of course there will be photographs. I need to go through (not comprehensively -- that is another project for another time, most likely by another researcher) James’s professional portfolio as well as sort through personal snapshots that have been offered for me to see.
Preliminary Bibliography
Again, will look to others to advise me on possible 1980/90s Mississippi music culture for secondary sources. Might need to stick with primary sources for local flavor; not that I would mind scouring newspapers and magazine articles of the era. In the short time I’ve been asking friends to recommend secondary sources, I’ve come up empty. A recent article (11/21/2018) in L.A.Taco “We Had to Hang Out in Person ~ An Oral History of the Heyday in Nineties Hollywood” speaks to what I am looking to capture in this project. Also, 9:30: A Time and Place showcases a similar vibe in Washington DC as James Patterson’s Mississippi. [UPDATE: Since writing this bit, Tim Lee’s I Saw a Dozen Faces … And I Rocked Them All: The Diary of a New Was, published in 2021, “chronicles the journey of a rock ‘n roll lifer who was part of the national independent music scene of the 1980s.” Tim and his wife Susan Bauer Lee are the band Bark. His Jackson-based band, the Windbreakers reunited to play a concert to raise funds for James’s medical treatment.]
The interviewees listed are those to whom I have mentioned this project and were receptive. I know that the list will evolve as the work begins.
Chapter 1 -- Who Are Your People?
James’s parents, T.A. (Talmadge Alvin) and Christine (née Laird) were both teachers who met in Kosciusko, Mississippi. Not long after they married, the Pattersons moved to Phoenix, Arizona where their first son was born -- James was the third of seven children, two sisters preceded him. T.A. had followed his parents, who were also educators, to the Grand Canyon State as participants in a teacher recruitment program. When James was about ten, the expanding family returned south to Panama City, Florida. And then on to Jackson, where he spent his adolescence.
Chapter 2 -- Young James
By the time James reached sixteen, his older sisters had married and moved away. The rest of the family returned to Panama City. James stayed in Jackson and lived with his paternal grandmother (a history teacher) to finish high school and work at Be Bop Records.
Interview: Marilyn Patterson Fuselier (cousin and whose home served as hospice during James’s final months)
To Interview: Bruce Gordon (musician; he and James worked the latenight shift at Be Bop)
To Interview: Benjie Horn (lifelong friend)
To Interview: Bobby Montgomery (lifelong friend)
To Interview: Kathy Morrison (owner of Be Bop Records)
Working construction at his uncle’s company -- Patterson Enterprises
Hinds Community College
Southern Mississippi University
Chapter 3 -- Music Makes All Things Better
His studio in Fondren was a mecca for not only independent visual artists, but musical performers too. I recently attended an evening in the space, an intimate gathering where Negro Spirituals were sung to recognize the soul of James Patterson. Where a former colleague -- raw, emotional and focused as sin -- belted out a few rock tunes accompanied by a bad-assed bassist and two guitarists. Where the audience made welcome an orchestral harp tearing up an Iggy Pop classic. As was in the beginning, Patterson Studio provided a stage for local songwriters to showcase their talent. Talent, because as in all things, James’s interest was to quality. One of the night’s performers, a friend, Tim Lee, lamented his absence at the December gig “[James] probably would've loved it (and told us everything that was wrong).” Eclectic, witty, honest, authentic, Mississippi.
To Interview: Jane Tucker (widow)
To Interview: Will Fuselier (nephew)
To Interview: Bruce Golden (musician)
To Interview: Sherry Cothern (musician)
To Interview: Mark Rhuemer (musician)
To Interview: Wyatt Waters (musician)
To Interview: Chris Goodwin (musician)
To Interview: Gregory Preston (music industry professional)
To Interview: Rhonda Richmond (musician)
To Interview: Bobby Rush (musician)
To Interview: Arden Barnett (music industry professional)
To Interview: Tim Lee (musician)
To Interview: Lee Barber (musician)
To Interview: Eric Stancer (musician)
Chapter 4 -- Patterson’s 4th Estate (Will require the most contextual research for me. Have yet to see/read an actual issue, nor find exact years of its publication.)
Planet Weekly http://writersnewsroom.blogspot.com/p/planet-weekly.html
1990s to 2000s
Politics and culture.
Jackson independent weekly newspaper
Challenging the investment in what is Establishment.
To Interview: John Hicks, former Planet Weekly staff writer, then editor (2003-2004).
To Interview: Mary Margaret White
To Interview: Sherry Lucas
Also, James was a go-to photographer for the New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/22/us/volunteers-offer-salamanders-a-chance-to-mate.html?fbclid=IwAR1aXk8rDdrf8KNEZIC8l4TY6KVGlD-rE-X2eCoqbVez4p_OKz5X9AKSZJs
Might pull this into its own chapter particularly as it pertains to “Landscapes and Other Things Mississippi.” Consider an interview with Alan Huffman whose photo of a magnolia tree at Holly Grove in Bolton is exquisite. Too, possible inclusion of logos/brands James developed.
Chapter 5 -- Art/Work and a True Creative Class
I’m not a fan of The Rise of the Creative Class and am going to situate this chapter, using James’s world to demonstrate the speciciousness of Richard Florida’s thesis. It will not be as academic as the previous sentence suggests, nor will it be a soapbox for me; rather, the realness of what pocket economies can arise out of art and work. Not a trend, nor jargon. “Florida’s message was so quickly and enthusiastically adopted by cities because he argued that any city had the potential to become a vibrant, creative city with the right infrastructure investments, policies, and consulting advice.” Well, duh. Sans the “consulting advice,” to which James would have said “fuck that.” James Patterson not only understood the importance of a creative class, he was an established member.
Downtown Jackson / Fondren
New Stage Theater
To Interview: Marcy Fischer (Owner, Fischer Galleries)
To Interview: Laurin Stennis
To Interview: Wyatt Waters (Artist, Wyatt Waters Gallery)
To Interview: Ron Blaylock (Former business partner, Ron Blaylock Photography)
To Interview: Kathy Morrison (Owner, Be Bop Records)
To Interview: Francine Thomas Reynolds (New Stage Theater)
To Interview: Malcolm White (Owner, Hal & Mal’s)
Live music venues, restaurants, hospitality. Safe and underground spaces. Youth employment.
Chapter 6 -- The Gentleman Who Lunched
‘Hey, you want to grab some lunch?’ a phrase many heard when at the Studio or working a shoot with James. I intend to gather staff from some of his favorite Jackson spots (the ones of which I am aware he frequented as I type this -- CAET, Walker’s Drive-in, Surin of Thailand) and capture stories they might have to tell. Also will include history of the Blue Cafe, of which James was a co-owner. [UPDATE: Symbiotic relationship between the hospitality industry and a sustainable cultural economy — impact of Covid. Interview Jeff Good. Bravo! was a favorite of James’s for happy hour.]
Chapter 7 -- Some of These People Might Look Familiar
James was never one to drop names, but looking through his portfolio, celebrities are thick on the floor -- album covers, book jackets, head shots. In this chapter, I will focus on stories of the ‘Day of the Shoot,’ if the subject is willing/able to talk with me. Stories James recounted to friends re said photo. How he was selected to take said photo. The story of this chapter is not about the celebrity, but the man behind the camera.
Also, including James as a celebrity.
Interview: Tom Roster (who took the iconic photo of him on the Patterson street tiles in Algier’s Point, New Orleans.)
Might pull Eudora Welty out for a separate chapter. One that would connect James’s Mississippi with that of the Optimist’s Daughter. Will let the research decide.
Chapter 8 -- Other “I Nevers…” (Might change to a different phrase if one pops-out/repeats as the interviews continue.)
“I’ve never seen a bad James Patterson photograph...”
“Never met a person James considered a friend who was an asshole...”
“James and I never talked about sports, we covered almost everything else…”
“I never hung a poster for a gig at the studio that James did not adjust the angle…”
Chapter 9 -- Shutter Speed
Speed of the camera shutter changes the composition of a shot. To freeze movement in an image, a photographer wants to choose a faster shutter speed. To let the movement blur, he or she chooses one that is slower. It is the photographer’s control. From his diagnosis in May 2018 to his final rest in Greenwood Cemetery less than five months later, friends and family would say the shutter speed was unpredictable at the end.
James’s frustration in not being able to work; Mississippi Museum of Art exhibition; Duling Hall Reunion concert.
“One of the last times we had before he began to decline. We had lunch at the Thai place and pondered the future. It will take the creative community some time to get through this. Now, time is all we have.” Greg Preston
Epilogue
Memorial at Hal & Mal’s