RICKIE LEE JONES
2016. Gail Harvey directed a fantastic documentary about Rickie Lee Jones. I’ve always loved Rickie’s music and having experienced the music industry, empathized with her struggle as a female artist— how diminished she allowed herself to feel for a while in a business that only seems to value very young, beautiful women who don’t question the corporate status quo. The film documents Ricki creating her first new collection of songs in a decade. There are scenes that'll make you wince, where you see her struggle with a male producer who refuses to even look her in the eyes when he speaks with her. She's trusting him AND paying him out of her own pocket to provide the technical skill to produce her music and get the sound SHE likes. And although she trusted him with shepherding the sublime gifts written in her blood into being, even though she is one of America’s greatest musical treasures, to him, she’s not even worthy of eye contact. Male producers being patronizing and/or condescending to female artists. What a shock. We desperately need more women and LGBTQ music engineers and producers to even the scale. Rickie pulled through it because women artists have to be as tough as they are vulnerable in song. She brought in another producer (a gentleman this time) and finished her album, The Other Side of Desire. It’s a must-listen.
Rickie lived in LA for a very long and lonely time, and she's up front about the fact that she was ill, I'd guess rather soul-sick while living here. LA can be such an isolating experience. It’s a city of masks, and female artist/warriors who won’t play into the system or opt for cosmetic injections/surgery often suffer terribly here. Rickie moved to New Orleans a few years ago and her life changed; everything lifted, turned around. Yes, sometimes doing a 'geographic' actually can work out for the best. Surrounded by music – in the streets, leaking from doorways, on every corner – she healed and found her safe place in the world. I’m so happy for her. And she's dancing again! She’s come back to bring us her phenomenal gifts as songwriter, singer, artist and beautiful woman, a woman over sixty, a woman who is finally saying ‘fuck you’ to those who would try and diminish her. I honor and salute Rickie, am profoundly moved by her story and her ability to translate her feelings into songs that reach into our wounds with a caress. She made it through the storm with her sweet soul intact, her head held high. Rickie Lee Jones is the real thing. And these are the days we need authentic, genuine beauty to touch our lives more than ever.
This year, the noise from the haters in our culture is deafening and we have mainstream media and their utter lack of moral fiber to blame for it. The impending election has kicked up a hornet’s nest of misogyny – brother to the racism exposed by Obama’s election – yet this misogyny and racism is backfiring, inciting women, black and brown people and the LGBTQ community to stand up to the unspoken laws, the social engineering that continues to try and push us down, keep us quiet, make us fearful for our very lives. Lie us into invisibility.
Let’s face it, it's time for women to lead. Of all colors, on all fronts.
Supported by the media and the fears of working-class white Americans, a beast has been created. And together this clan are rampaging over our consciousness, stoking a seemingly-uncontrollable hatred that eats at our very core. We are being broadcast internationally as an ugly people, a nation of compulsive liars, ignorant bullies and racists, misogynists, gun-toting killers and xenophobes. Who are we really? Isn’t it time for a seismic change? How do we walk toward our American future free of fear, into our own safe place? How do we regain our self-respect and unite as a people? How do we begin to mend the damage done?
To recognize the beauty of this country and its broken people and to begin the process of healing, away from the noise of hatred and divisiveness, it’s time we all start looking women in the eyes. Really looking. It just may be our only hope.
Rickie lived in LA for a very long and lonely time, and she's up front about the fact that she was ill, I'd guess rather soul-sick while living here. LA can be such an isolating experience. It’s a city of masks, and female artist/warriors who won’t play into the system or opt for cosmetic injections/surgery often suffer terribly here. Rickie moved to New Orleans a few years ago and her life changed; everything lifted, turned around. Yes, sometimes doing a 'geographic' actually can work out for the best. Surrounded by music – in the streets, leaking from doorways, on every corner – she healed and found her safe place in the world. I’m so happy for her. And she's dancing again! She’s come back to bring us her phenomenal gifts as songwriter, singer, artist and beautiful woman, a woman over sixty, a woman who is finally saying ‘fuck you’ to those who would try and diminish her. I honor and salute Rickie, am profoundly moved by her story and her ability to translate her feelings into songs that reach into our wounds with a caress. She made it through the storm with her sweet soul intact, her head held high. Rickie Lee Jones is the real thing. And these are the days we need authentic, genuine beauty to touch our lives more than ever.
This year, the noise from the haters in our culture is deafening and we have mainstream media and their utter lack of moral fiber to blame for it. The impending election has kicked up a hornet’s nest of misogyny – brother to the racism exposed by Obama’s election – yet this misogyny and racism is backfiring, inciting women, black and brown people and the LGBTQ community to stand up to the unspoken laws, the social engineering that continues to try and push us down, keep us quiet, make us fearful for our very lives. Lie us into invisibility.
Let’s face it, it's time for women to lead. Of all colors, on all fronts.
Supported by the media and the fears of working-class white Americans, a beast has been created. And together this clan are rampaging over our consciousness, stoking a seemingly-uncontrollable hatred that eats at our very core. We are being broadcast internationally as an ugly people, a nation of compulsive liars, ignorant bullies and racists, misogynists, gun-toting killers and xenophobes. Who are we really? Isn’t it time for a seismic change? How do we walk toward our American future free of fear, into our own safe place? How do we regain our self-respect and unite as a people? How do we begin to mend the damage done?
To recognize the beauty of this country and its broken people and to begin the process of healing, away from the noise of hatred and divisiveness, it’s time we all start looking women in the eyes. Really looking. It just may be our only hope.
