Warren Lehrer

Brother Blue: A Narrative Portrait of Brother Blue, a.k.a. Dr. Hugh Morgan Hill
Written and designed by Warren Lehrer.
Published 1995 by Bay Press
6.5” x 9.75” x 267 pages. Paperback. Four color cover. One interior (black).
Part of the Portrait Series. 

This expressionist portrait gives voice to the stories behind the stories of Dr. Hugh Morgan Hill, a.k.a. Brother Blue, the official storyteller of Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts. The great grandson of a slave owner and his slave, Blue rises through the white dominated spheres of the military, the ministry and academia, then sheds institutional life to become a roaming town crier, street poet and raconteur — fueled by a transformative power of sacred service. Renowned for spinning parables of struggle and hope on street corners and in prisons, schools, subways, and churches — Brother Blue entrusted me with writing this portrait based on his seldom heard accounts of growing up during the depression under the spell of mythically heroic parents; serving as a black lieutenant during World War II in the segregated US Army; and riotous attempts at turning the hallowed traditions of the Ivy League and the church on its head!

ISBN 0-941920-36-4
BUY NOW Suggested Retail Price: $12.99 + $3 shipping and handling
BUY NOW Portrait Series: 4 book set, Special Sale: $25 + shipping and handling
[includes: Brother Blue: A Narrative Portrait of Brother Blue; Nicky D. from L.I.C.: A Narrative Portrait of Nicholas Detommaso; Claude: A Narrative Portrait of Claude Debs; Charlie: A Narrative Portrait of Charles Lang]


sample spreads








In 1998, Shambhala Lion Editions produced an audio book of Brother Blue reading excerpts from Lehrer’s Brother Blue portrait book. [Out of print. Copies can be found online.]

The cut “You and Me” on Harvey Goldman and Warren Lehrer’s 1991 New Music CD The Search for IT and Other Pronouns features the powerful voice of Brother Blue. The text of You and Me is culled from several pieces in the book.

Listen to an excerpt of YOU & ME