Welcome. Thank you for visiting my blog. I appreciate your interest. My most recent book — Poor Gal: The Cultural History of Little Liza Jane — chronicles the extraordinary voyages of the “Liza Jane” family of songs. University Press of Mississippi released it on November 27, 2023 as part of the American Made Music Series. “Little Liza Jane” and its sibling songs continue to touch people from many different sides of the American experience. In October 2024, Poor Gal received a Special Recognition Award from the ASCAP Foundation in its annual Deems Taylor/Virgil Thomson Book Awards.
All told, I’m the author of eight books and chapbooks — including Metacarpalism (poetry) and non/fiction (stories) — as well as stories and poems that have appeared in more than 100 publications, such as Ploughshares, Prairie Schooner, American Scholar, PANK, The Iowa Review, Best American Poetry, and The Penguin Book of the Sonnet. I’ve received grants and awards from the University of Michigan, Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, Maryland State Arts Council, Arts & Humanities Council of Montgomery County (Md.), New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation, and Women in Film & Video, among others.
Speaking of film, I’m co-producer / co-director of the forthcoming multimedia documentary project Li’l Liza Jane: The Story of America Through the History of a Song. And speaking of song, I was vocalist / lyricist for the hard-charging 2022 punk album States of America released by rock band Joy on Fire. Songs and videos debuted on NPR’s All Songs Considered, Jammerzine, American Pancake, 25YL, and a host of international film festivals.
Feel free to contact me about anything, although some of my favorite topics are stout, pancakes, Clarice Lispector, Paul Celan, Swansea City, John Coltrane, learning, teaching, and foxes.
email: gutstein at gmail dot com
Please visit my website for more information. You can also peruse the tabs at the top of my blog for more information on my books, magazine publications, the music videos I've participated in, and a full index of music posts that can be found here.
___ Blood And Gutstein is a non-monetized blog focusing on nearly forgotten music, wordplay, writing, and ruckuses.
