Welcome to (Re)!
I am very excited to present a curated “journal of ideas” that is a meeting place of visual art, prose, science, and more.
The idea for this endeavor came about from my love of vintage clothing and found objects and the way in which one ‘re’cycles these objects, et al. to make them their own. This concept then grew from that which we acquire in this vein, to that which we create through our various art forms (and yes, science and math are considered here, to be ‘the application of creative skill and imagination’, as art is formally defined). All of the material presented incorporates a re-root word, such as relive, reinvent, reuse…into its framework in whatever way the artist chooses. And so, (Re) is a product of this expanded idea.
The journal, available monthly online, features the work of artists/creators/thinkers in various categories and I am honored to present their work within this forum.
Thank you so much for taking the time to explore this new and evolving (re)source.
I hope you enjoy the ride!
— Felice Neals
Writer, reader, photographer, dance devotee, film citizen, language-a-phile…
Then Came the White Sisters After Derek Walcott & Pigeons in the Square
Poetry
(Re)named
Heather Archibald
Waterborne
Hybrid Essay
(Re)surface
Lori A. May
Blooms and Bakes
Essay
(Re)cipe
Pooja Makhijani
(Re)flections
The Web
Digital Photo. Canon Powershot sx 100. 11×14. 2018
Cut Loose
Digital Photo. Canon Powershot sx 100. 11×14. 2020
The Mix
Digital Photo. Canon Powershot sx 100. 14×30. 2017
ANTIBALAS is a band that I have admired since hearing them perform their brilliant musical arrangement for the hit show, Fela, on Broadway in 2008.
When I approached bandmember Jordan McLean about including their music in this current issue, it was an honor to be given access to their wonderful catalog of tunes.
The featured songs presented here are Gold Rush and Fight Am Finish/Say Their Names, with lyrics by Amayo.
Thank you to lead singer and composer, Amayo for our virtual “interview” and for providing us with your thoughtful words and powerful music.
Please check out Jordan’s wonderful (re)mix on the Other Stuff page. — FN
https://antibalas.com/
GOLD RUSH
Gold Rush musically came together with contributions from old and new members of Antibalas in 2016/2017. I believe Marcos “Chico Man” played a big part in introducing this song.
However, I wrote the lyrics to make the song fit the concept of the Trilogy I was illustrating. While I was writing scripts for my feature film, and developing characters for it, the process led me to do some research into the connection and missing truths of slavery and Gold Rush. So I can shine some light on some of the legends of Indigenous resistance in the American Gold Rush of the 1800’s.
As a Kung Fu practitioner, it is important to express truthfully; the urgency of this subject as it relates to the chronic imbalances in the world, called for a need to draw from the fighting spirit of a true Legend like a Sun Dancer.
So I started the lyrics by paying homage to the great Sioux Warrior and Sun Dancer, known as Black Hawk, (aka Ma-ka-tai-me-she-kia-kiak, to some of the tribes of the First Nations.)
Incidentally his aka Ma-ka-tai-me-she-kia-kiak sounded like a Yoruba warrior name, which was synchronistic to the spirit and mode of the music. I then lyrically took the listener through a list of some facts of history, as a reminder of where it all started from, why we are where we are today, and tried to make a case for fair Reparations as a solution.
I believe we must first admit our role in the World’s Systematic Displacement Campaigns, and realize how wrong we’ve been. If we start thinking from the heart, we will see that in order to truly make things right, we must commit to Paying Back fair Reparations to the Natives and all Indigenous peoples of the world.
Until we are paying back and paying forward the Indigenous, we will never be able to renew our broken System, so rooted in slavery.
GOLD RUSH LYRICS
EXTRA EXTRA
TRUTH IS GOLDEN, SHINES FOR EVER
IN THE 1800’S
THERE WAS A COWBOY NAMED COLOMA,
FROM A TOWN CALLED GOLD TOWN
NOW GHOST TOWN
COLOMA ASKS CHIEF 2 EAGLES
“WHERE DID WE GO WRONG?”
KIA-KIA
SHE KIA-KIA X3
MA KA TAI ME SHE KIA KIA
Verse 1
WHEN I THINK OF GOLD
SUN DANCER INVOKED IN MY HEART
HOMAGE TO SIOUX SUN DANCER
AND ALL THE NATIONS
RUSH TAKE OVER LAND
– RUSH
LAND THAT FEEDS US ALL
– RUSH RUSH RUSH
RUSH TURNS TO WEAPON
– RUSH
OF DISPLACEMENT
– RUSH RUSH RUSH
OF CONTROLLING
– RUSH
OF OUR RESOURCES
– RUSH RUSH RUSH
RUSH TAKE OVER LAND
– RUSH
LAND THAT FEEDS US ALL
– RUSH RUSH RUSH
WHEN I THINK OF GOLD, SUN DANCERS
INVOKED IN MY HEART
– GOLD RUSH DEY
HOMAGE TO SIOUX SUN DANCER
AND ALL THE NATIONS
– GOLD RUSH DEY
Verse 2
BACK WHEN
1804
MA-KA-TAI-ME-SHE-KIA-KIAK
SAUKENUK WARRIOR
– BACK WHEN
HE RESIST THE BIG GUN
– BACK WHEN
WHO GET BIG GUN BACK THEN
– BACK WHEN
GENERAL EDMUND P. GAINES
– BACK WHEN
HIM GET BIG GUN THEN, BACK WHEN…
Verse 3
1832
BLOODY BLACK HAWK WAR
– BACK WHEN
WHO BENEFIT FROM THIS WAR
– BACK WHEN
ONE WITH THE BIG BIG GUN
– BACK WHEN
WHO GET BIG GUN BACK THEN
– BACK WHEN
1849NER COLOMA, HAH
– GOLD RUSH RUSH RUSH
COLOMA GOLD RUSH
– GOLD RUSH RUSH RUSH
COLOMA DIG OR DIE
– GOLD RUSH RUSH RUSH
COLOMA O O O
– GOLD RUSH DEY
Verse 4
BRING BACK
– BRING BACK
1853
– BRING BACK
– BRING BACK
REINCAR-NATIONS
– BRING BACK
– BRING BACK
ARAPAHO
– BRING BACK
BLACKFOOT
– BRING BACK
CHEYENNE, CROW
– BRING BACK
FOX, SAUK
– BRING BACK
SHOSHONE, UTE
– BRING BACK
OTTAWA…CHIPPEWA…
COLOMA
– GOLD RUSH RUSH RUSH
COLOMA GOLD RUSH
– GOLD RUSH RUSH RUSH
BREEDIN GREEDY SYSTEM
– GOLD RUSH RUSH RUSH
SLAVE TRADE SCALPING
-GOLD RUSH RUSH RUSH
TRAIL OF TEARS
– GOLD RUSH RUSH RUSH
MANIFEST DESTINY
– GOLD RUSH RUSH RUSH
BLACK GOLD
BLACK STONE
– GOLD RUSH RUSH RUSH
GOLD COAST
BLOOD DIAMOND
– GOLD RUSH RUSH RUSH
FRACKING
WATER
EL DORADO
– GOLD RUSH RUSH RUSH
FRACKING
WURA MI DAA
– GOLD RUSH
WURA MI DA
– GOLD RUSH…
WHERE IS MY GOLD
– GOLD RUSH…
BUFFALO SOLDIER ASKING
– GOLD RUSH…
INDIGENOUS WARRIOR WURA
WOUNDED KNEE, WANNA KNOW
– GOLD RUSH…
SITTING BULLS, WANNA KNOW
– GOLD RUSH…
WHERE IS MY GOLD
– GOLD RUSH…
MOTHER-LAND TOGETHER-LAND
– GOLD RUSH…
RE-CYCLE LIFE NATURE
– GOLD RUSH…
INDIGENOUS REPARATION
– GOLD RUSH…
HEAL OUR BROKEN SYSTEMS
– GOLD RUSH…
BRING BACK SUN DANCER HEALER
INDIGENOUS REPARATION
– GOLD RUSH…
HEAL OUR BROKEN SYSTEMS
– GOLD RUSH…
BACK THEN, BLEEDING 4 HUMANITY
– GOLD RUSH…
RIGHT NOW, PAYBACK X3
– GOLD RUSH…
AYINBA AYIN, AYINBA AYINBA (An Igbo Chant symbolizing strength of a Nation: The Elephant Returns)
FIGHT AM FINISH/ SAY THEIR NAMES
After I received the track from Tim and everyone had done their part, it invoked an extension of a prayer that aligns with the home of their Ancestors in Africa.
So I proceeded to my bathroom, my new Covid-19 vocal studio, to lay down vocal tracks to align with the names.
I started the intro by paying homage and asking the gatekeeper for the safe return of the dead, to where their Ancestors were first taken as Slaves.
OTHER STUFF
Here is where I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the (Re) contributors, the friends and family who support this adventure with their encouragement and guidance, Lori and Jim, the web consultants who are holding my hand as I build this site with no previous experience in the web tech arena, and the wonderful readers, who I hope will continue to follow our monthly content. Thank you! Merci! Gracias! Shukriya! Grazie! Obrigado! Xiexie! Amsegenallo! Asante! Shukraan!
COVER photograph by Felice Neals: Sunglasses lying in the middle of a city street. (Re)arranged by oncoming traffic.
ART photographs by Michael Kunzinger.
TEXT photographs of notebook covers by Felice Neals.
THANK YOU to our Editor H.E. Fisher for her sharp eye and invaluable contribution. I could not have gotten this project off and running without her support and editorial expertise.
A heartfelt thank you to Amayo and ANTIBALAS for allowing me to share their incredible music.
And merci, merci beaucoup to Jordan McLean, musician extraordinaire for bringing me into the sacred Antibalas fold. And for providing us with a (re)mix from his McLean’s Digital Notebook series, to close out this month’s issue: 8 Minutes. Written and performed by Yuika Abe. https://soundcloud.com/jmcleanarts/sets
www.jordanmcleannyc.com/
Our hearts are with the people of Lebanon during this devastating time. If you are interested in donating to local organizations that are assisting those who have been affected by the explosion, here is a link: https://lebanoncrisis.carrd.co/#donate
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