grace jones- hollywood bowl-live-7/26/2009
grace jones-corporate cannibal
grace live-2006
grace jones- hurricane- mix1
grace jones- pull up to the bumper- live-2008
grace jones- blast from the past with luciano pavarotti live- 2002
grace jones- blast from the past- la vien rose- 1978
grace jones- blast from the past- 1977- i need a man
Grace Jones (born May 19, 1948)- Jamaican-American singer, model, and actress.
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 Randy to relocate to Syracuse, New York in 1965. Before becoming a successful model in New York City and Paris, Jones studied theater at Onondaga Community College.
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. 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.
Toward the end of the 1970s, Jones adapted the emerging New Wave music to create a different style for herself. Still with Island, and now working with producers Chris Blackwell, Alex Sadkin and the Compass Point All Stars, she released the acclaimed albums Warm Leatherette (1980) and Nightclubbing (1981). These included re-imaginings of songs by Sting, Iggy Pop, The Pretenders, and Roxy Music.
Parallel to her musical shift was an equally dramatic visual makeover, created in partnership with stylist Jean-Paul Goude, with whom she had a son. Jones adopted a severe, androgynous look, with square-cut hair and angular, padded clothes. The iconic cover photographs of Nightclubbing and, subsequently, Slave to the Rhythm (1985) exemplified this new identity. To this day, Jones is known for her unique look at least as much as she is for her music.
In the mid-1980s, she worked with Trevor Horn for the conceptual musical collage Slave to the Rhythm and with producer Nile Rodgers for Inside Story (1986). Although she has yet to become a truly mainstream recording artist in the United States, much of her musical output is still popular on the Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play and Hot Dance Airplay charts, and many of her songs are regarded as classics to this day.
Grace Jones on her "Hurricane" Tour 2009
Grace Jones is a contralto vocalist. Although her image became more notable than her voice, she is in fact a highly stylized vocalist. She sings in two modes—in her monotone speak-sing as in songs such as "Private Life," "Walking in the Rain," and "The Apple Stretching"; and in an almost-soprano mode in songs such as "La Vie en Rose" and "Slave to the Rhythm." Her vocal range spans two-and-a-half octaves.
Grace Jones's masculine appearance, height (5'10½"), and manner influenced the cross-dressing movement of the 1980s. She would also exemplify the "Flat Top," a hairstyle popular among-but not exclusive to-men in the late-1980s, 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. In her performances, she adopted various personas and wore outlandish costumes, particularly during her years with Goude. One such performance was at the Paradise Garage in 1985, for which she collaborated with visual artist Keith Haring for her costume. Haring painted her body in tribal patterns and fitted her with wire armor.
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