You can call the music she makes folk if you want, but there’s jazz in it, too, and blues, and a soulful something or other that you can’t quite put into words. Whether onstage or on record, she presents herself just as she is—no gimmicks, no flashy pyrotechnics, only the solid musicianship of someone who knows and loves her craft.
Natalia's bio from her website (July 2010):
Natalia Zukerman’s Weasel Records debut Brand New Frame introduces listeners to her rich layers of top notch guitar playing, contemporary beats and dark, sweet, provocative vocals. Musically sophisticated, intimate and irreverent all at once, this record highlights what’s best about Americana music and offers it a Brand New Frame.
It is an album about change. In Brand New Frame, Zukerman challenges listeners to break out of patterns and rhythms that hold them back from reaching the truth. The title track, “Brand New Frame” is a wake up call to those who tell the same stories over and over again to anyone who will listen. “Better Me” presents the idea that the people we are striving to be are there all along, waiting for us to catch up to what we already know we are capable of. “Only Trees” is a metaphor for what Zukerman’s album is all about – that things change: landscapes, ideas, music. In the song she recognizes the way we live our modern lives at breakneck speed, and invites us to slow down.
Produced by Willy Porter (www.willyporter.com), Brand New Frame features Zukerman on vocals and guitars, with Dave Schoepke on drums, Dave Adler on keys, Leroy Deuster on Pedal Steel, Bryan Mir on electric bass, Todd Sickafoose (Ani Difranco) and Marty Ballou (John Hammond) on upright bass. The album is also sprinkled with notable guest appearances by fellow songwriters Willy Porter, Melissa Ferrick and Edie Carey.
Warning: You may not be able to get over the mesmerizing guitar chops of the talented Natalia Zukerman, but if you can, you will discover layers. Country roads that lead to red barns, antique shops, glass bottles, resonators, lap steels, finger-picking and trembling slides. And alongside these winding roads are back alleys, flagging cabs, and the buzz of a streetlight clicking with kick drums, pleading organs, and speeding electric guitars behind lyrics that delve boldly into work, love, temptation and the journey to personal reinvention. Brand New Frame tells the story of valuing the past while growing new skin; the unraveling of a relationship with realism, humor and tenderness.
Zukerman didn’t have to look far as a child to find musical influence. She attributes her rigorous work ethic, discipline and instrumental predisposition to her parents. The daughter of violinist/conductor Pinchas Zukerman and flutist/writer Eugenia Zukerman, Natalia grew up in Manhattan immersed in classical music.
Her ears were tuned to perfect pitch, and the guitar dexterity, intricate sense of rhythm and meter evident in her own musicianship came naturally. So did the lifestyle of a traveling performer. Performing live—and experiencing what she calls the life of a “wandering gypsy”—is a family tradition. In addition to her parents, her sister Arianna is an opera singer, and her grandfather played clarinet in Klezmer bands in Poland and later in Israel.
In a sense, Zukerman explores family heritage in “Song For Ramblin’ Jack” one of the 10 original songs on Brand New Frame. She explains it is in part about blood-related family but even more so about the extended family of American troubadours who travel the country sharing both traditional and contemporary genres, songs, skills, instruments, and styles.
“The song ‘Ramblin’ Jack’ came after a Folk Alliance conference in Austin. I realized there that I was a part of this grand tradition of troubadours that was, for me, as much about my own family of traveling musicians as a shared American history. I consider myself a student of traditional music, even though some would say the noise I make is not so traditional.
I did meet Ramblin’ Jack Elliot at a friend’s place in Pt. Reyes, CA a few years ago. I loved him, loved his way of weaving a story and loved that I, in my own little way, try to carry on his legacy as much as the legacy of my own family.”
Since 2004, Zukerman has been touring the country opening shows for roots greats and guitar slingers including Kelly Joe Phelps, Richard Shindell, Lucy Kaplansky, Garnet Rogers, Melissa Ferrick, Catie Curtis, Susan Werner and many others. It was on the road that Zukerman formed the relationship with Willy Porter that would lead to producing Brand New Frame and releasing the album on his label Weasel Records.
“Brand New Frame is a perfect fit with what I’ve always wanted Weasel to represent. The small but mighty team here is thrilled to share Natalia’s record, and tremendous talent, with the world.” -Willy Porter.
Shoot the Freak
Natalia Zukerman Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Who runs back and forth
While people take their best shot
It is a plane
To make a game like war
Or maybe the other way around
Either way he's going down
Cuz you said it would make me feel like I was free
But there's nothing safe, about the ride we're on
What comes up it must come down
And you know where going down
Cuz people are still trying to be birds
Yeah
We are all still trying to fly
Well haven't we heard?
We sat under a noisy sky on labour day
And watched those planes dip and dive
You said I think this is like being under attack
But we'll make it out alive
Well I hope we make it out alive
Cuz blue angels are still trying to be birds
Yeah
We are all still trying to fly
Yeah
That man in Coney island
He says it's just a job
When the summer's through I'll be done
And he laughs at me and my sympathetic smile
He says you know we've just begun
And don't you know we've just begun
Cuz people are still trying to be birds
Yeah
And I am still trying to fly
Despite what I've learned
In Natalia Zukerman's song Shoot the Freak, she paints a picture of a man in Coney Island who runs back and forth while people take their best shot at him. The man is the target of an amusement park game designed to resemble war, where people test their ability to shoot a moving target. The singer reflects on the game and contemplates whether it's a simulation of war or the other way around. Either way, the man is going down, as the game requires him to.
The singer then shifts to a metaphor about riding a roller coaster with her companion. The companion tells her that the ride will make her feel like she was free, but the singer doesn't feel safe about it. She acknowledges that what comes up must come down and declares that they're going down. The roller coaster ride seems to represent their relationship, which has its ups and downs, and the uncertainty about their future together.
The song then moves to a scene on Labor Day, where the singer and her companion sit under a noisy sky and watch planes dip and dive. The singer's companion says that it feels like being under attack, but reassures her that they'll make it out alive. The plane show seems to be a metaphor for the struggles and challenges that they're facing, but they're determined to survive. The last verse circles back to the man in Coney Island, who says that it's just a job and that they've just begun. The singer sees the man as a symbol of people who are still trying to be birds, defying the limitations of their existence, and acknowledges that she is still trying to fly despite what she's learned.
In summary, Shoot the Freak is a poignant reflection on human aspirations and limitations, especially in the context of war and relationships. The song uses vivid imagery and metaphors to explore these themes and invites the listener to ponder their own struggles and hopes.
Line by Line Meaning
There's a man in Coney island
The singer describes a man in Coney Island who is running back and forth while people take their best shot at him.
Who runs back and forth
The man keeps running back and forth while people try to shoot him.
While people take their best shot
The people shoot at the man as he runs back and forth.
It is a plane
The game of shooting the man is like playing a war game with planes.
To make a game like war
The game of shooting the man is similar to a war game with planes.
Or maybe the other way around
The war game could also be similar to the game of shooting the man.
Either way he's going down
The man is eventually going to lose the game and get shot.
So we ride the roller coaster
The singer and someone else ride a roller coaster based on someone's suggestion to feel free.
Cuz you said it would make me feel like I was free
Someone suggested that riding a roller coaster would make the singer feel free.
But there's nothing safe, about the ride we're on
The ride is not safe and can be dangerous.
What comes up it must come down
What goes up on the roller coaster must come back down to the ground.
And you know where going down
The artist believes that they will not come out of the roller coaster ride unscathed.
Cuz people are still trying to be birds
People are still trying to fly and defy the limitations of the human body.
Yeah
An interjection to add emphasis to the previous line.
We are all still trying to fly
The singer is including themselves in the group of people who are attempting to fly despite the odds.
Well haven't we heard?
The artist feels that the idea of flying has been discussed before.
We sat under a noisy sky on labour day
The artist and someone else sat beneath a noisy sky on Labor Day.
And watched those planes dip and dive
The singer watched planes flying up and down in the sky.
You said I think this is like being under attack
The person with the singer compared the noise of the planes to an attack.
But we'll make it out alive
The artist hopes that they both will survive despite the noise and chaos around them.
Well I hope we make it out alive
The artist reiterates their hope that they will both survive the experience.
Cuz blue angels are still trying to be birds
The Blue Angels, a group of planes, are still attempting to fly like birds.
And I am still trying to fly
The singer is still attempting to fly despite the odds and limitations.
Despite what I've learned
The artist is still trying to fly despite knowing the difficulties and challenges involved.
That man in Coney island
The singer remembers the man running back and forth in Coney Island.
He says it's just a job
The man sees his job of being shot at as just a way to make money.
When the summer's through I'll be done
The man's job of being shot at only lasts for the summer season.
And he laughs at me and my sympathetic smile
The man finds the artist's sympathy amusing and not helpful.
He says you know we've just begun
The man sees his job as only the beginning of something bigger.
And don't you know we've just begun
The man insists that the singer recognize that their job is just the start of something else.
Contributed by Kennedy H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.