Grace Jones Returns With A Hurricane

by reggaewire | November 11, 2008 at 01:26 pm

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Jones is such an impressive pop star that it is easy to forget, once upon a time, she actually made records, too. This is her first album in 19 years, and clearly finds her making up for lost time. On Corporate Cannibal, she discovers how well-suited she is to trip-hop.

Mostly, though, Jones marches through a familiar world of catwalk reggae and electro-funk, with all the imperial weirdness of her heyday. But intriguing cracks appear in the queenly demeanour. By the end of Williams' Blood, an opulently arranged family history, a new Jones can be glimpsed - a rather sentimental human being, of all things.

Jones was born in Spanish Town, Jamaica, the daughter of Marjorie and Robert W. Jones, who was a politician and Apostolic clergyman. Her parents took Grace and her brother Christian, to relocate to Syracuse, New York in 1965. Before becoming a successful model in New York City and Paris, Jones studied theatre at Syracuse University.

Jones secured a record deal with Island Records in 1977, which resulted in a string of dance club hits and a large gay following. The three disco albums she recorded — Portfolio (1977), Fame (1978), and Muse (1979) — generated considerable success in that market. These albums consisted of pop melodies, such as "All on a Summer's Night" and "Do or Die", set to a disco beat, as well as standards such as "What I Did for Love", "Autumn Leaves", and "Send in the Clowns".

During this period, she also became a muse to Andy Warhol, who photographed her extensively. Jones also accompanied him to famed New York City nightclub Studio 54 on many occasions.

Grace Jones' masculine appearance and manner influenced the cross-dressing movement of the 1980s. She would also exemplify the "Flat Top", a hairstyle popular among men in the late-80s, which she displayed on the cover of her first non-disco album, 1980's Warm Leatherette.

She maintained parallel recording and acting careers, and modeling work often overshadowed her musical output. Her strong visual presence extended to her concert tours.

Jones' work as an actress in mainstream film began with the role of Zula, the Amazon in the 1984 film Conan the Destroyer alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger and NBA legend Wilt Chamberlain. She next landed the role of May Day in the 1985 James Bond movie A View to a Kill.

She appeared in a number of other motion pictures including the 1986 vampire film, Vamp as well as Helen Strange in the Eddie Murphy film Boomerang - for which she recorded the song, "7 Day Weekend" - in 1992.
In 2001, she appeared alongside Tim Curry in Wolf Girl (aka Blood Moon), as a transvestite circus freakshow performer named Christoph/Christine. She also appeared in an episode of the Beastmaster television series as the Impatra Warrior.

Her most recent album release was 1989's Bulletproof Heart, but this Fall the avant-diva will return to the spotlight like a Hurricane!

Now signed to Wall of Sound Records, for the worldwide release and distro of Hurricane. The album's producer, Ivor Guest, says they've already finished recording Hurricane which includes input from Sly and Robbie, Brian Eno, Tricky, Tony Allen, Wally Badarou, Uzziah 'Sticky' Thompson, Mikey 'Mao' Chung, Barry Reynolds, John Justin, Martin Slattery, Philip Sheppard, Paulo Goude, Robert Logan and Don-E.

The Reggae News Agency