This week (Wednesday, 18 March) sees the release of Rachel Baiman’s new solo song ‘Wrong Way Round’, recorded with Philippe Bronchtein (Hip Hatchet), which was written in tribute to her late paternal grandmother. Rachel tells us:
“‘Wrong Way Round’ is about a woman who never quite found what she was looking for. My Grandma was the black sheep of her family, and was always trying to find a place to fit in. As a result, she had a lot of adventure in her life. She dove headfirst into every situation without questioning the consequences, and often suffered for it. She lived in New York, Chicago, Mexico, Cyprus, England and Israel over the course of her ninety-two years, was a committed environmental activist and student of language and culture. One of the biggest lessons she taught me was how to give ZERO F*cks about what others think of you. I hope this song honors her memory and all of the misfits out there!”
Pre-Order via Bandcamp: https://rachelbaimanmerch.bandcamp.com/album/wrong-way-round
In February, I lost my last living Grandparent, and the only one I’ve ever really known, my paternal Grandmother Sydney Irwin Quance Baiman (many husbands yields many names!)
Grandma Sydney was truly indescribable. She was such a unique and fiery character. Throughout her life she was arrested for everything from righteous activism, to stealing foodstamps from her boyfriend (when they were both in their 80s), to appearing streaking stark naked through a public park. One of my last fond memories of her is walking through her nursing home (on which she was placed on the Alzheimers floor despite not having Alzheimer’s) yelling very loudly “Look at these people they put me with Rachel! They can’t even talk!” while the other patients stared at her blankly. My grandma was mean, rude, demanding, politically incorrect, selfish, narcissistic and irrational. And I will miss her so much!
A couple years before her death, when I could see that she was aging rapidly, I sat down with her and my siblings and asked her to tell me the story of her life. The interview which I recorded inspired a song about her called “Wrong Way Round”. When I was contacted about contributing a song for an International Women’s Day campaign by frtyfve.com, I felt that this song would be a perfect fit. I sometimes think that my grandma and I are the same person raised at very different times and under very different circumstances.
At the beginning of February, mom let me know that my Grandma seemed to be declining, so i made plans to head home that weekend for a final visit. I had booked a studio on Thursday and spent all day with my friend Phillippe Bronchtein working on the recording of “Wrong Way Round”. That evening, my mom called to tell me that my grandmother had passed. I had been singing about her all day long and I like to think that she could hear me.
That song will be available March 18th, as part of frtyfve’s #turnherup campaign for International Women’s Day.
https://rachelbaimanmerch.bandcamp.com/album/wrong-way-round
For details of Rachel’s upcoming planned tour dates please visit: http://www.rachelbaiman.com/tour
Photo Credit: Natia Cinco