I'm still digesting Grace Jones almost five months after her fantastical performance on July 30th at the Hammerstein Ballroom. Luckily, it was my third time seeing her. This time, however, I reveled in a 61-year-old serving eight costume changes with mischievous delight--one of those outfits was a burst of flame that only covered her front as she revealed when she turned around to show her naked body behind it--while bounding across the stage with a commanding energy missing in some a third her age. She chatted with the crowd about how sex brought her back to recording after a 19-year break that could have been her retirement from making new music. She hit her stage marks so that lights and wind would set her just so. She nailed her now 32-year-old standard, her torch song take on Édith Piaf's "La Vie en Rose," with such vulnerable intensity I teared up.
Her stunning showmanship, Grace reminded us bilingually, en Rose, is not artifice. It's a personal communication, uncluttered by background dancers or routines. Her performance was precise, even when a fan unfurled a cape that spread across the stage during "Hurricane," the title track re-recorded for her new CD. I'd seen her perform a different version the number before, without so much ferocious fabric, over a decade ago at the 9:30 Club in Washington D.C. She opened that show with the white label bootleg remix of "Hurricane" by Peter Rauhofer that I bought from 12" Dance Records and still have after, even shedding so many records with each move. In D.C., she explained why the Tricky-produced album that the original "Hurricane" was supposed to appear on was never released: "We went way over budget."
At the Hammerstein, though, Grace was palpably different. Her ferocious joy was intoxicating. She was chatty with the crowd and thanked everyone who dressed for the occasion: "I appreciate an effort." So do I. That's why going out these days is so much fun--and why the sway and swagger of Grace's "Nightclubbing" was echoing in my head all yesterday, thinking about my Sunday out all over town. The disarming nightlife pageantry Grace sings about, the we who are "what's happening," congregates each and every Sunday at Vandam to show off new looks and get down. They're dancing to a faster tempo, though, at least until a camera comes their way. Included in the sea of paint and lights this past Sunday were (pictured from left to right) Demanda Dahling, Eric Halliwell, and Nancy Nosecandy.
Also there was Kyle (pictured below, with and without a new friend). We were all dancing to DJ Johnny Dynell who broke into some late-night disco, including Sylvester's "You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)" and Odyssey's "Native New Yorker," which I never grow tired of hearing. Everyone was, as the song goes, "dancin' closer and closer / making' friends and findin' lovers."
Dirty Martini (pictured below) was a-go-go-ing her heart out atop of the couches by the front wall. Soon enough, I found myself dancing on one of the glass tables near the back, where Jordan Fox and a group of friends were draining a bottle.
Earlier, I was downstairs, working up a sweat under the leaves, where Ladyfag was holding court. Vandam was my last stop Sunday night--well, Monday morning. Before, I had gone to see Sherry Vine (pictured below) at Barracuda. She had just landed from her whirlwind tour of Germany and she was "dehydratina," as she explained, sipping away at her Jack Daniels between numbers.
Not only did Sherry do her Chanukah song, she showed her new parody video for Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance," which Sherry calls for those who have delicate sensibilities, "I Sh!t My Pants." She warned us that unlike Gaga, who had $1 million and a week for her video, Sherry had $1.99 and six hours. No matter. It was hilarious--and not because I was taking advantage of Barracuda's two-for-one drinks before the show! I don't want to ruin it with any details. She said that it would be up on YouTube and Facebook by Wednesday. Check then.
I started off the night at The Stonewall Inn, too late to see Jacqueline Dupree, as I'd wanted to, but early for Porsche (pictured above), who was back in New York, finally, after weeks of taping The Wanda Sykes Show in L.A. She talked about meeting Megan Mullally, whose Karen Walker character for Will & Grace Porsche is known for doing onstage, and said Megan was "an absolute fucking doll." Porsche also told the crowd that she'd missed New York, "where we can drink until 4:00 a.m." Amen. Somehow that didn't make the Reasons to Love New York '09 New York magazine cover story. Editorial oversight, clearly.
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