"Up tight" (1967 drug ref)

Jesse Sheidlower jester at PANIX.COM
Fri May 26 22:18:12 UTC 2006


On Fri, May 26, 2006 at 01:46:56PM -0400, Wilson Gray wrote:
> I'd like to see what it says for "up tight," if  you don't mind. TIA.

This is an explicitly Christian book, written (purportedly) to show
other junkies that there's a way out of addiction. The cover copy
reads "Entranced by narcotics--sordid sex--an empty life ahead--
teenagers find...meaning...challenge...the way out."

In any case:

1967 J. Gimenez & C. Meredith _Up Tight!_ 8/2 (gloss.) UP TIGHT:
trapped; cornered; no way out. Also used to describe a close
friendship.

(John Gimenez ("I was a pimp and a dealer. I knew all the
connections.") is the purported author; "as told to Char
Meredith".

HTH,

Jesse Sheidlower
OED

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