Written By: Jordannah Elizabeth

Unwanted is a new column for writings that were rejected by publications they were  submitted to. This is a rejected piece for Aquarium Drunkard written in 2013.

“To attempt to logically fathom the lyrics of this vague and nonsensical contemporary adult psych ballad without the aid of a powerful psychedelic would be a lost expenditure of time.”

A short time after Lee Hazlewood wrote and produced the massive hit, “These Boots of Made For Walking” for Nancy Sinatra in 1966, the producer and singer continued to record songs together, and released a plethora of tracks as an uncomfortably sexy (the age difference between Sinatra and Hazlewood was strikingly apparent) psychedelic pop musical duo.

This eerie emotionally tongue twisting track, Some Velvet Morning was released in 1968, and came no where near the success of “Boots”. Nonetheless, the song is a psychedelic classic that is as mythical and logically off putting as it is darkly sexy and creatively presented.

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Written By: Jordannah Elizabeth

Take a moment. Let your guard down. Open your heart to the reality of a constant massive loss of souls.

Acknowledge that somewhere, right now people are being brutally raped, beaten,

tortured, maimed, burned and beheaded. Imagine the screaming, the fear and the unspeakable pain.

Know it, understand it, let the visualizations run quickly through your mind.

Stay open, don’t shut it off for five minutes.

Awaken. Be grateful.

Stop and understand what you saw in your mind and what you felt in your consciousness,

body and spirit. Remember, and remind yourself when you begin to complain of experiencing

lack, a small illness or a social slight.

And when you see a human being in danger, remember your understanding,

acknowledge that they are in danger, sit with it for a second, then react and protect.

You will learn to love and protect a stranger that is not your kin.

Accept that. Know that will make you respect a fuller spectrum of the human experience.

You will be more fully realized. And will have a greater capacity of love.

Written By: Jeff Schaller

Our Band Could Be Your Life, Michael Azerrad’s famous survey of the American underground scene in the 1980’s, came out 15 years ago. I didn’t get around to reading it until 2006 or so but, since its release, there seems to’ve been an outgrowth of nonfiction on semi-obscure, late 20th century post/punk/noise/rock. Some of this is entirely nostalgic—inane anecdotes and famous names, existing only to remind that “you weren’t there” (see: American Hardcore). Others, like I Live Inside, the new memoir by former Babes in Toyland bassist Michelle Leon, are actually good. This Minnesota native is a talented writer with an extensive resume and here, it shows.

Structurally, I Live Inside is a series of vignettes. Chronological, but in a recollective sense, the order happens more like memories than dates. For example, after a chapter on journalists asking Babes in Toyland shrewd and insightful (not really) questions about gender, there’s a scene of teenage Leon and a friend drinking in the woods with local stoner boys—Pink Floyd fans with “long hair, hint of a mustache, line from a chew tin worn into the back pockets of their Levi’s.” Most of these flashbacks are written in second-person, a stylistic choice I really enjoyed. It’s intimate and impressionistic, lending her memories the feel of your own. Most importantly, she doesn’t over-do it. Continue reading →

By: Jordannah Elizabeth

I was lucky enough to be able to share my favorite underground bands in my friend, Sjimon Gomper‘s weekly column, Week in Pop for Impose Magazine.

JORDANNAH ELIZABETH’S WEEK IN POP

Artist, writer, journalist, and musician extraordinaire Jordannah Elizabeth releases her new bookDon’t Lose Track Vol. 1: 40 Selected Articles, Essays and Q&As January 29 (pre-order available here.), has launched an Indiegogo for her upcoming book tour, and took the time to share her own exclusive Week in Pop guest selections with the following:

I find it all too rare now that I sit comfortably in the pillow-y depths of my writing career that I am able to write about bands I actually follow. I love writing about and interviewing accomplished indie bands, rappers who explore brave new rhythmic territory and the occasional super famous artist but personally, I love super underground music. I always have and I always will. You’ll find me at a warehouse, loft or gallery show many more times than you’ll see me at a 2,000 seater venue where I’d most likely sit tucked away in the green room, completely nervous from being crammed in a room with 2,000 people…it’s not the people, it’s me. I’m pretty shy. Continue reading →

Written by: Mark Fritz

Foreword by: Jordannah Elizabeth

I have a great life, but I meet a number of people who genuinely don´t like me. I think I essentially step on people´s toes just by showing up. Some people don´t like it when other people ¨show up¨. It shakes the status quo and forces people to make emotional and sometimes physical adjustments in order to create a safe space for others. Without love, people are not willing to make changes for others.

So, maybe I shouldn´t say I meet a number of people who don´t like me. Maybe I should say I meet people who don´t love…not just me, but the sacrifice of kindness that creates longevity and healthy relationships.

~

Anyway, Mark Fritz has a great bond with Publik / Private. His previous submissions inspired me to reach out to him and ask him to write the foreword for my upcoming book, Don’t Lose Track Vol. 1: 40 Selected Articles, Essays and Q&As, and now, he´s back at P / P to submit a raw, rushed, charming, romp of a story that I enjoy. I have no desire to change what he does. Mark, for better or for worse is best, perfect and polished just the way he is. He comes here to get things off this chest and to write what he wants. I completely encourage that…I should probably mention that Fritz is a Pulitzer Prize winning journalist, which is another reason why he can do what he wants…at least here.

I was working on a freelance story about Baby Boomers getting stoned at retirement communities when I came across a woman who suggested her father for the project. He was a hard ­ass welder who got old, scored a pension, then decided a joint every night made his life a bit better. He was a denizen of central Florida, only thirty minutes away from Disney World, a place he never could bother to visit. He had recently returned to weed, like a lot of retirees.

He was a resident of Seminole County, the southern-­fried seat of which is called Sanford, where old money and old poverty collide on a daily basis. This is the place where the criminal justice system exonerated George Zimmerman for murdering Trayvon Martin for being black in the wrong neighborhood.

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Written By: Jordannah Elizabeth

I wrote about naivety in my introduction for Derek See´s mixtape, and the many facets that can be explored in life and expressed on a platform like Publik / Private. Well this time, when conducting this interview with the jazz artist, Gideon King from Gideon King & City Blog, I thought about spontaneity and inquisitiveness. Being someone who people think has a vast knowledge on subjects of art and music, I always, in my own mind, remember that I can never truly know an individual…who makes the art and music I seem to know so much about.

Therefore, I asked musician, Gideon King some questions about his music what it is about jazz that keeps him recording and creating over and over again.

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Curated and Written By: Derek See

Foreword By: Jordannah Elizabeth

There´s a level of naivete I try to maintain with everything I am involved in. Publik / Private is about self discovery, allowing new things to surface from the old and experiencing a level of artistic vulnerability (in a safe environment) that hopefully allows a creative envelope to open and unfold new possibilities without tearing. Publik / Private is about a lot of things, but the only thing I think about in regards to this mixtape is that you never know what you´re going to learn day to day.

I´ve run into Derek See a number of times. We run in the same circles in San Francisco and of course, I knew of his influence, but it wasn´t until a few days ago when I was surfing discogs.com (as many insanely devoted music nerds do) that I found an online discography of Derek See´s record collection…all 1,400 pages of it. The Gentle Cycle is See´s current and main music project. He also plays occasional guitar with Myron & E, The Rain Parade and Chocolate Watchband. You never know who you´re standing next to at a party.

So, without further ado, Mr. See made a mixtape for Publik / Private. It is as appreciated as much as all of the amazing artists and writers who have contributed music and words before him. Check out what Derek See is into:

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Written By: Jordannah Elizabeth

I really believe that if Harriet Tubman could come through those tunnels again, she’d beat the shit out of them. Debbi Blackwell-Cook on Beyonce, Rihanna and female R&B Pop stars of today

When you listen to actress and singer/songwriter, Debbi Blackwell-Cook sing, you hear an ease in her voice that denotes a natural confidence and an effortlessness.  Blackwell- Cook has sang backup for major artists like Michael Buble and the late, great dancer and entertainer, Gregory Hines.

At the beautiful and wise age of 61 years old, she is experiencing another career peak with a musical collaboration with Phil Collen (guitarist of the larger than life 80s British rock band, Def Leppard) called DELTA DEEP. The band also features a former member of Stone Temple Pilots and India Arie.

As extraordinary as Debbi Blackwell-Cook’s life seems to be on the surface, she wades through life holding the burden of a great loss in her life. She lost her son due to a violent robbery in 2013. This tragedy was a catalyst that brought DELTA DEEP together as songwriters, as Collen, his wife, Helen Simmons and Cook worked to write songs to commemorate the memory of her son and to bring hope to people who survive intensely painful experiences like hers. Continue reading →