Photo Album

I'll take you on a little tour of some of the photos I've taken that represent some aspect of Susan Cross. Yes, I write, but not 24/7. I do other things, like other things and love taking pictures whether they are meaningful or just colorful.

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This picture was taken at the Americana Hotel in NYC on June 6, 1975. Golden Earring (Radar Love) was staying in the hotel and appeared at the Academy of Music on May 31. Lynyrd Skynyrd was in the hotel at the same time preparing for their upcoming concert. After interviewing Barry Hay on May 31, I interviewed Ronnie Van Zant and other members of Skynyrd on the afternoon of their concert. When walking out of the hotel, Ronnie saw Barry in the lobby. Barry is over 6' tall and Ronnie was 5'7". Ronnie grabbed Barry's arm and pulled himself up to plant a big, fat, wet kiss on Barry's cheek. Well, the rest speaks for itself.

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 And now, back to the past. Do you recognize these guys? I'll give you a hint. They all have very long beards now and one of them has an occasional bit part in the TV show Bones. Some people just call them "that Little Ol' Band from Texas"

This picture was taken at the Academy of Music in 1975 (NYC) and if you guessed ZZ Top, you are correct, sir! Cameras back then were not what they are now. Fortunately I had a press seat so I was close enough to get this with my Kodak Instamatic.

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And Leroy Cooper was known for his 20 years as Ray Charles bandleader and baritone sax player. His friends knew him as the man with the biggest heart ever! I was lucky to be one of those friends.





For several years, Leroy played with what he referred to as a 'society band' called the Rhythm Release featuring Paul Stenzler. They played functions at the top of the Citrus Club for special events, social and professional occasions.  During the same period of time he played with a couple of local blues bands. His longest gig was with the well-known Smokin' Torpedoes who won the regional competition of the International Blues Challenge in 2008, giving them the opportunity to travel to Memphis to compete against other national winners. This was Leroy's last major trip on a 'band bus' after all those years of traveling with Ray Charles on buses at first and then in jets, both commercial and private. The professional pictures below were taken by Charles Wells who holds the copyright under the name of Charles Wells Photography. The center photo below was taken by me, Leroy's official memoirist, Susan Cross.