Americana Highways is pleased to bring you this premiere of Eilen Jewell’s “79 Cents (The Meow Song) from her album Gypsy (Signature Sounds) due to be released on August 16th. The band is Jewell on acoustic and electric guitar, organ and vocals, with spouse Jason Beek on drums, Jerry Miller on electric guitars and mandolin, and Shawn Supra on bass, plus a host of guest appearances.
Taking on a deadly serious topic with humor and irreverence is clearly one of Eilen Jewell’s specialties. “The motherhood penalty” of making “79 cents on the (white man’s) dollar,” couldn’t be more well timed, as the US women just won the World Cup soccer tournament this past weekend against the Netherlands, and the entire stadium chanted “Equal Pay.” Eilen Jewel has created the perfect blend of satire here, and the music is catchy as hell.
I was inspired to write ‘79 Cents (The Meow Song)’ after the 2016 presidential election. I was trying, and still am trying, to make sense of what it means to be a woman in a country that somehow elected a self-professed pussy grabber as head of state. What does this mean for my daughter? What does it reveal about the way this country views women? Regardless of whether one accepts the data regarding the pay gap, it continuously feels like I am worth less than a man in our culture, in both subtle and blatant ways. Lately I can only face the patriarchy with humor, which I’m sure will offend many. But, well, at least I’m not grabbing pussies. — Eilen Jewell
Check into it, here: http://www.eilenjewell.com listen to “79 Cents,” and further below watch the stadium chant “Equal Pay.”