Elizabeth and the Catapult — the moniker used by Greenwich Village native singer-songwriter Elizabeth Ziman — makes smart, sophisticated pop, incorporating influences from folk, soul, and American standards, full of warm heart and sharp wit. Elizabeth brought these qualities, and more, in her recent appearance at Jammin Java, touring behind the release of her latest album, Responsible Friend.
Starting things off with what Elizabeth called a “welcome song” on April 13, then she moved into her new material. “90 Years Young” was written about her great aunt Arlene, who passed away at the age of 95. She changed the number to 90, she said, because it worked better musically. The hilarious “Goodbye Wisdom,” another song on Responsible Friend, is about a dental ordeal she went through: during a regular appointment, her dentist said he should pull her one remaining wisdom tooth, and that it would be no big deal — done in 15 minutes. An hour and a half later, she was surrounded by several members of the staff, and she eventually had to go to an oral surgeon to get the tooth out. She was given codeine for pain after the surgery, which she says unlocks her creativity, and she wrote the song that way.
Growing up in New York, Elizabeth never learned to drive. That works fine if you’re in the Big Apple, but if you’re a touring musician, it’s a problem. In “Learning to Drive,” she sings about how she finally got a license in 2019, and was immediately put on a tour in California, which is not the easiest place to drive, especially for a novice driver.
Introducing the title cut of the album, she said, “When I was very young, I had all these insane experiences,” like singing at the White House and Carnegie Hall, “because of this choir I was in.”
Watch the official music video for “Responsible Friend” by Elizabeth and the Catapult on YouTube:
Elizabeth reached back to sincerely, e., an album she made during the pandemic, explaining how she and her partner, Jon Titterington, were forced out of their apartment in New York by their landlord. “50/50,” one of the heavier songs on Responsible Friend, deals with “the horror and the beauty we see every day online.” “Love You Still,” another weighty song, was influenced by her experiences with a cousin who was in the hospital. Elizabeth said she had “felt it was my responsibility to lift them up.” She learned, however, that it really wasn’t, and that she couldn’t. All she could do was be there for them.
Rounding out the set were a couple of covers, Bill Withers’s “Stand By Me” and the classic American standard “Whatever Shall Be, Shall Be.” She ended her set with “Emily.”
Jon Titterington, who tours with Father John Misty, opened the show and joined Elizabeth for much of her set. He prefaced his set by saying, “my songs are very stupid.” (I can relate: after the show, I told him how I wrote a song abut the infamous Pitchfork monkey review, calling “Monkey Pissing In My Own Mouth Blues.” He replied, “You’re one of my people.”)
“Green Room,” he explained, is “about wish fulfillment, vis-a-vis having your childhood dreams come true.” He dedicated the next song “Dirge for the 200 Billion,” to his friend Dave, mentioning that “it has a verse about a Super Nintendo game from 1991 called Pilot Wings. He did a song song was about making the plane crash that killed Richie Valens, Buddy Holly, and the Big Bopper “relevant to Gen Z.” “Call to Prayer is about “getting your passport taken away in a foreign country.” He finished with “That Old Feeling.”
I wasn’t familiar with Jon’s work, but I felt we were kindred spirits. I sort of feel that way about Elizabeth, too — she shares my mom’s habit of taking to herself. Both were delightful and charming, and their music was a delight.
Visit Elizabeth and the Catapult online for more music and tour dates!
