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Grace Jones' Island Life (1985)
Where has Grace Jones been for the past 20 years? Last we saw her she was getting blown up in the James Bond movie A View to a Kill. Leading up to that, however, the Jamaican-born Jones merged disco, reggae, funk, rap and having one of the most striking visages ever to have a great music career in the late 70s and early 80s. With the help of Sly and Robbie, she created an international music for a sexy party that has never ended.
As a model with a very unique look (the haircut especially), Grace Jones was an early and GREAT version of Carla Bruni, Rosie Vela, Paris Hilton, Scarlett Johansen, Bruce Willis and other celebrities who want a music career too. Grace Jones was very successful, and strongly associated with Studio 54 and every other hot spot.
Sade is a great artist to compare Grace Jones to, except that Jones was more of a public figure as a model/muse, and her music was more in the party mode than the after-party/quiet storm vibe of Sade’s music.
A few massive Grace Jones songs: “Pull Up to the Bumper,” “My Jamaican Guy,” “Demolition Man,” “Love is the Drug,” “Pars,” “Private Life” (yes some of these are covers). The Complete Compass Point Sessions is a great compilation, but I recommend finding the full old Island albums if possible.
Hurricane, the new album, been released after many years and rumors of her comeback including collaborating with Tricky. “Corporate Cannibal,” included here, is a result of that work. It sounds like a decent Tricky record (ok, not great), but next to the unmistakable, iron grooves of Sly and Robbie, it doesn’t feel like an effective update of her style. It’s a good experiment/publicity stunt, but I’m most happy to hear the retro Compass Point sound on songs like “This Is” “I’m Crying (Mother’s Tears)” and “Well Well Well.” On another note, I’m disappointed that Tricky isn’t near as important or prolific as Sly and Robbie are as a producer.
But it’s also nice to see how seriously Grace Jones took both making this album and being stalwart enough to get it released in this environment. She should have good opportunities to perform and hopefully license this music internationally.
Radio, has anyone even received a copy of the album?
Is there a club smash in this album? An interesting commercial surely awaits for Grace Jones. Her resume is stunning and her charisma is definitely intact, it will be fun to see what she does in the next few months to relaunch her image. If you love Grace Jones, you won’t be disappointed with the great music on Hurricane. While I love Tricky, she was wise to go back to Compass Point.
