Los Lobos

Chris Morris is a music journalist and disc jockey. He was music editor of the Hollywood Reporter (2004–2007) and senior writer for Billboard (1986–2004). His writing has appeared in the Los Angeles Times, Rolling Stone, Spin, Musician, Mojo, LA Weekly, the Chicago Reader, Variety, and other publications.

• Prologue: Cinco de Mayo1. The Neighborhood: Life and Music in East L.A.2. Homeboys: Growing Up and Garfield3. A Beginning: The Founding of Los Lobos del Este de Los Angeles4. Recording por La Raza: The Making of Si Se Puede! and Just Another Band from East L.A.5. Happy Hour: Going Electric at Las Lomas and a Baptism of Fire at the Olympic6. Wolves of Hollywood: Los Lobos’ Arrival on the Punk Scene and at the Whisky7. Arrivals: Steve Berlin, Slash Records, T Bone Burnett, and the Grammys8. Quantum Leap: How Will the Wolf Survive?9. Breakdowns: The Graceland Session and By the Light of the Moon10. Numero Uno with a Bullet: La Bamba11. Rooted and Rocked: La Pistola y El Corazon and The Neighborhood12. Let’s Try This: Kiko, Latin Playboys, and Colossal Head13. Side Tracks: Papa’s Dream, Soul Disguise, Houndog, Dose14. In the Mouse’s House: Disney, Hollywood Records, This Time, and Good Morning AztlÁn15. Homecomings: The Ride, The Town and the City, Tin Can TrustEpilogue. 40: Back at the WhiskyGracias Very MuchListening, Reading, and Viewing

"A useful cultural history that is sure to please fans and musicologists. " (Kirkus Reviews) "Morris is the ideal teller of this tale, drawing on decades of his own fandom and reportage and a wealth of experience in both consumer and trade journalism (including long, distinguished runs at the Reader, the Hollywood Reporter and Billboard). . . . Morris writes with care and insight about each Los Lobos record, providing rich geographical, cultural, and historical context along the way." (The Huffington Post) "How Los Lobos navigated the move to performing electric in front of the Mohawk-hair generation, enjoyed success with the soundtrack from La Bamba, dealt with music business missteps and never stopped experimenting and collaborating is a fascinating tale. The book was a fast read for me; I was unable to put it down. Morris excels at keeping the storyline moving with equal measures of factlets and anecdotes. . . . Dream in Blue brings into sharper focus a truer narrative of what growing up and being successful in America looks like." (No Depression) "Writer Chris Morris’ new biography, Los Lobos: Dream in Blue, offers overwhelming evidence that the band deserves to glide its way into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame." (Los Angeles Times) "Both informative and engrossing . . . Chris Morris is to be commended for putting the story of this most American of bands to paper, and Dream In Blue will satisfy the most ardent of fans. Highly recommended." (The Big Takeover) "The best books about music and musicians are a direct reflection of their subjects and Chris Morris' chronicle on Los Lobos, Dream in Blue, is just such a book." (All About Jazz) "Few musical acts have been as well served by their chronicler as Lobos are with Dream In Blue by Morris, a veteran Los Angeles music journalist who has seen the Wolves perform and followed their music since their first gig . . . Dream In Blue may be a short and quick read, but in its tight, fact-based richness, Morris gives Los Lobos the smart and insightful book this distinctive and distinguished musical act merits." (Best Classic Bands) "Morris writes in such a way that you can almost smell and taste the smells and tastes of East L.A. in the boom of the psychedelic era and its aftermath." (PopMatters) "[An] insightful and affectionate history."(Austin Chronicle) "A dream of a read for fans of the Lobos." (AllMusicBooks.com) "Chris Morris’s Los Lobos: Dream in Blue gives both fans and critics a satisfying chronicle of Los Lobos’ journey through critical and popular successes, failures, and artistic responses to the challenges faced by the ever-evolving, genre-defying group." (Southwestern American Literature)