Grace Jones

For the English supercentenarian, see Grace Jones (supercentenarian).

Grace Jones
Jones, performing in Fremantle Park, Perth 2011
Background information
Born	(1948-05-19) 19 May 1948
Origin	Spanish Town, Saint Catherine, Jamaica
Genres	R&B, electronic, dance, disco, new wave, rock, funk, synthpop, avant-garde, reggae, trip hop
Occupation(s)	Singer-songwriter, actress (film & stage), model, performance artist
Instrument	Vocals
Years active	1969–present
Labels	Island, Manhatan, Capitol, Wall of Sound/PIAS
Website	Official Site

Grace Jones (born 19 May 1948 ) is a Jamaican singer, actress and model.

Jones started out as a model, regularly appearing at the New York City nightclub Studio 54. Jones secured a record deal with Island Records in 1977, which resulted in a string of dance-club hits. In the late 1970s, she adapted the emerging electronic music style and adopted a severe, androgynous look. Jones found mainstream success in Europe, particularly the United Kingdom, scoring Top 40 entries on the UK Singles Chart. Her albums include Warm Leatherette, Nightclubbing and Slave to the Rhythm, and her biggest hits are "Pull Up to the Bumper", "I've Seen That Face Before (Libertango)", "Private Life", "Slave to the Rhythm" and "I'm Not Perfect (But I'm Perfect for You)".

Her acting occasionally overshadowed her musical output in America, but not in Europe, where her profile as a recording artist was much higher. She appeared in some low-budget films in the 1970s and early 1980s. Her work as an actress in mainstream film began in the 1984 fantasy-action film Conan the Destroyer alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the 1985 James Bond movie A View to a Kill. In 1986 she played a vampire in Vamp, and both acted in and contributed a song to the 1992 film Boomerang with Eddie Murphy. More recently, she appeared as Christoph/Christine, an intersexed stage performer, in the 2001 film, Wolf Girl.

Life and career

Early life in Jamaica, and New York, and modelling career

Spanish Town, Saint Catherine, Jamaica, Jones's birthplace

Grace Jones was born in 1948 in Spanish Town, Jamaica, the daughter of Marjorie and Robert W. Jones, who was a politician and Apostolic clergyman. Jones and her siblings were raised by grandparents: at the time, her parents were working in the United States. Jones had a strict upbringing; her childhood was dominated and controlled under the influence of church. Jones went to church three times a week. Both sides of her family were religious. There were many bishops in her family, her brother Noel, her grandfather, and step-grandfather. Jones was a shy child, with just one school-friend. She excelled at sports and enjoyed the nature of Jamaica. Jones rebelled against her parents' expectations of her, and explored her inner tomboy by hiding in trees, and her inner vanity by painting her fingernails, immediately removing the polish when she heard her parents arriving home. Jones was thirteen years of age when she relocated to Syracuse, New York with her parents, and siblings, Jones continued her schooling, and eventually enrolled at Syracuse University where she studied to be a Spanish major. Halfway through college, Jones was approached by a drama professor who proposed that she come work with him in a play he was putting on in Philadelphia, Jones left with him. Jones was eighteen when she moved back to New York. She signed on as a model with Wilhelmina Modelling agency While the agency kept her busy modelling, Jones took every opportunity she could to audition for parts in plays and films. She did not have any luck and moved to Paris. Within three months of living in Paris, Jones had established herself as a sought-after European model, appearing on the covers of Elle, Vogue, and Der Stern Her exotic features attracted the Parisian fashion circuit to her. The European fashion scene was the place for Jones to be. She modeled for Azzedine Alaia, Jones became their muse and was frequently photographed promoting their line. While Jones was modeling in Paris, she frequented Club Sept, one of Paris's most popular gay clubs of the 1970s and '80s, and mingled with Yves Saint Laurent, Giorgio Armani, and Karl Lagerfeld.

1977-79: Island Records

Portfolio, (1977)

Having established herself as a model in New York and Paris in the early 1970s, Jones released a series of disco singles

throughout 1975-1976, None of which managed to have success in the mainstream charts. Jones was signed by Island Records, and the label put her in the studio, at the time, sought after disco record producer, Tom Moulton, who made Gloria Gaynor was to produce Jones's first album, Portfolio. The two clashed, and during an interview on BBC's presentation of Queens of Disco segment on Grace Jones, Moulton stated his frustration with Jones at the time, by saying:

She told me, she'd do what it takes to make it. She couldn't sing, she sounded like Bela Lugosi, I mean, that's what she sounds like! I had to be right next to her, with every word, it was unbelievable. The star, she would come down to the studio, and adjust her voice during takes, and I said, "Grace, we don't practice in the studio, we record". Finally I got so mad and said, "Grace, with so little you could please so many", and until I apologized, she wouldn't sing, and so I picked up my jacket and walked out.

Despite the tiff, Moulton resumed with the production at Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia, the final result, the release of Portfolio (Grace Jones album)|Portfolio]], in the Autumn of 1977. The album featured three songs from Broadway musicals, "Send in the Clowns" by Stephen Sondheim from A Little Night Music, "What I Did for Love" from A Chorus Line and "Tomorrow" from Annie. The second side of the album opens up with a reinterpretation ofÉdith Piaf's "La Vie en rose" followed by three new recordings, two of which have been co-written by Jones herself, "Sorry", and "That's the Trouble", concluding the album would be "I Need a Man", Jones's first club hit. The artwork to the album was designed by Richard Bernstein, an artist for for Interview. to promote the album, Jones toured New York's gay bars

Fame, (1978)

In 1978, Jones and Moulton delivered Fame, an immediate follow-up to Portfolio. Recorded at Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia, the album delivered the same aesthetic as the previous one, if not, more mainstream-oriented disco tracks. The album featured another reinterpretation of a french classic, "Autumn Leaves" by Jacques Prévert. The Canadian edition of the vinyl formatted album included yet another French language track, "Comme un oiseau qui s'envole", which replaced "All on a Summers Night", in most locations this song served as the B-side of the single "Do or Die". On the Japanese version of the album "Comme un oiseau qui s'envole" replaced "Below the Belt", which in Italy was omitted in favour of an Italian song "Anema e core". A number of songs from the album, including "Anema e core", have been performed in Italian TV show Stryx, which ran in late 1978.

In the North American club scene, Fame was a hit album and the "Do or Die"/"Pride"/"Fame" side reached top 10 on both the U.S. Hot Dance Club Play and Canadian Dance/Urban charts. Fame ranked respectably in Italy and Sweden which Jones had successful marketing during the disco era. The album was released on compact disc format in the early 1990s, but soon went out of print. Up until 2011, it had not been available in any other digital format, it was released and remastered by Gold Legion, a record company that specializes in reissuing classic disco albums on CD. The re-release came with no bonus tracks. The album's liners notes read,

dedicated with love to a true Artist, Jean-Paul Goude

Muse (1979)

Muse was the last of Jones's disco albums, the album features a re-recorded version "I'll Find My Way to You", which Jones released just three years prior to Muse. Originally appearing on the 1976 Italian film, Colt 38 Special Squad) in which Jones had an acting spot as a club singer, Jones also record a song called "Again and Again" which was featured on the film, both songs were produced by composer Stelvio Cipriani. Icelandic keyboardist Thor Baldursson who arranged most of the album and also sang duet with Grace on the track "Suffer" had previously worked in Munich, Germany with disco stars such as Silver Convention, Boney M., Donna Summer, Amanda Lear and Giorgio Moroder. Like the last two albums, the cover art is by Richard Bernstein. With the decline of the disco genre, Muse was overlooked, and to date is considered to be Jones's "lost album". Muse remains her lowest-charting studio album in the USA and her only studio album to fail at charting a single. Like Fame, Muse failed to have a proper reissue, and was later released by Gold Legion.

1980-85: Island Records, Vol. 2

Warm Latherette, (1980)

With the "Anti-disco sentiment" spreading, Jones, with the aid of the Compass Point All Stars transitioned into the "New Wave" genre, with the 1980 release of Warm Leatherette. The album showcased the blending sound of reggae and rock. The album included covers of songs by The Normal ("Warm Leatherette"), The Pretenders ("Private Life"), Roxy Music "Love is the Drug", Smokey Robinson "The Hunter Gets Captured by the Game", Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers ("Breakdown") and Jacques Higelin ("Pars"). The album delivered a harsh sound with Jamaican undertones. Sly Dunbar, revealed that the title track was also the first to be recorded with Jones. While Tom Petty wrote the lyrics to "Breakdown", he wrote in the third verse of Jones's reinterpretation of the song. The album also included one song co-written by Jones, "A Rolling Stone". Originally, "Pull Up to the Bumper" was to be included on the album; however, it's R&B sound was found not fitting, with the rest of the material. The album charted in only the UK and the USA, and commercially remains one of Jones's least successful records; however, to her followers, it is considered the the highest-rated of all her studio releases.

Nightclubbing, (1981)

The 1981 release of Nightclubbing included Jones's own reinterpretations of songs by Flash and the Pan ("Walking in the Rain"), Bill Withers ("Use Me"), Iggy Pop, and David Bowie ("Nightclubbing"), and Ástor Piazzolla ("I've Seen That Face Before (Libertango)"). Three songs were co-written by Jones, "Feel Up", "Art Groupie", and "Pull Up to the Bumper", Sting wrote "Demolition Man", who would later record it with the Police which would be showcased on their album, Ghost in the Machine, and "I've Done It Again" was written by Marianne Faithfull, and Barry Reynolds, who Jones's would later compose the majority of the material showcased on her album, Living My Life. The strong rhythm featured on Nightclubbing, was under the production of Compass Point All Stars line up, including Sly and Robbie, Wally Badarou, Mikey Chung, Uziah "Sticky" Thompson, and Barry Reynolds. Nightclubbing became Jones's chart breakthrough success and ranks one of the greatest of her commercial triumphs in her entire musical career. The album entered in the top 5 in no less than four countries, and became Jones's highest-ranking record on the U.S. Billboard mainstream albums and R&B charts. Nightclubbing was brought to a higher critical acclaim, claiming the number one slot on NME's Album of the Year list. Slant Magazine listed the album at #40 on its list of Best Albums of the 1980's. Nightclubbing is now widely considered Jones' best studio album. The album's cover art is actually a painting of Jones, previously taken by Jean-Paul Goude, Jones is presented as a man wearing an Armani suit jacket, and from her plump and luscious lips, a cigarette, the look is complete with Jones's trademark flattop haircut. To promote the album, Jones appeared alongside noted psychotherapist Sonja Vetter, and slapped chat show host Russell Harty across the face live on air after he turned to interview other guests and she felt she was being ignored.

Living My Life, (1982)

Having already record two reggae-oriented albums under the production of Compass Point All Stars, Jones went back to Nassau, Bahamas in 1982, and recorded Living My Life, the album would result in Jones's final contribution to the Compass Point trilogy, only this time Jones would reinterpret only one song as her own, Melvin Van Peebles's "The Apple Stretching", the rest were original songs, "Nipple to the Bottle" was co-written with Sly Dunbar, while, apart from "My Jamaican Guy", the other tracks were collaborations with Barry Reynolds. Despite receiving a limited single release, the title track, was ultimately left off the album, further session outtakes included the track "Man Around the House" (Jones, Reynolds), and a cover of Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire", both of which were included on the 1998 compilation Private Life: The Compass Point Sessions. The album's cover art resulted from another Jones/Goude collaboration, the artwork has been described as famous as the music featured on the record itself. It features Jones's disembodied head cut out from it's original photograph and pasted onto a white background, Jones's head is sharpened, giving her head and face an angular shape. A piece of plaster is pasted over her left eyebrow, and her forehead is covered with drops of sweat. This is one of many of Goude's designs for Jones that has won critical acclaim and has been an inspiration for other artists ever since.
Jones's three albums under the production of the Compass Point All Stars would result in Jones's One Man Show, a performance art/pop theatre presentation devised by Jean-Paul Goude and Jones, in which she also performed tracks from the albums Portfolio ("La Vie en rose"), Warm Leatherette, ("Private Life", "Warm Leatherette"), Nightclubbing, ("Walking in the Rain", "Feel Up", "Demolition Man", "Pull Up to the Bumper", and "I've Seen That Face Before (Libertango))", and from Living My Life, "My Jamaican Guy", and the album's title track. Jones dressed in elaborate costumes and masks – in the opening sequence as a gorilla – and alongside a series of Grace Jones lookalikes. A video version, filmed live in London and New York City and completed with some studio footage, was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Long-Form Music Video next year.

Slave to the Rhythm, (1985)

After the release of Living My Life, Jones essentially retired from her career in music, and had a considerable amount of recognition as an actress, with the role of Zula, the Amazon, in Conan the Destroyer (1984), for her work in the film, Jones was nominated a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress. In 1985, Jones starred as May Day, henchman to the main antagonist, Max Zorin, in the fourteenth James Bond film A View to a Kill, Jones was also nominated a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress for her work.
After completion of the film, Jones returned to the studio to work on Slave to the Rhythm, which would be the last of her recordings under Island, Bruce Woolley, Simon Darlow, Stephen Lipson and Trevor Horn wrote the material featured on the album, and was produced by Trevor Horn, Lipson assisted in the album's production. Unlike Jones's other albums, this album was a concept album, that featured several interpretations of the title track. The project was originally intended for Frankie Goes to Hollywood which would serve as a follow-up to their hit "Relax", but was ultimately given to Jones. The album ranges in genres of funk, and R&B, incorporating go-go beats. All eight tracks on the album featured excerpts from a conversation with Jones, speaking about many aspects of her life, the interview was conducted by journalist Paul Morley, the album delivered an autobiographical aesthetic. The album also features voice-overs from actor Ian McShane (famous for his role as Al Swearengen on the HBO original series, Deadwood reciting passages from Jean-Paul Goude's biography Jungle Fever. Slave to the Rhythm was successful in terms of it's commercial performance, it was received highly in German speaking countries and the Netherlands, where it secured top 10 placings. It also reached number 12 on the UK Albums Chart in November 1985. The outcome of it's release would result it being second highest ranking album released by Jones.

Island Life, (1985)

After Jones's success with Slave to the Rhythm, Island decided to release Island Life, which would be Jones's first best-of compilation, the compilation would feature songs from most of Jones's releases with Island, Portfolio, Fame, Warm Leatherette, Nightclubbing, Living My Life, and Slave to the Rhythm, tracks from Muse were not included. No new songs were recorded for the release, and consisted only previously released material. American writer and journalist Glenn O'Brien wrote the essay which would be included on the inlay booklet. The compilation received warm reviews, and charted successfully in the U.K., New Zealand, and the United States. The artwork on the cover of the compilation was of another (Jones/[[Jean-Paul Goude|Goude) collaboration, it featured Jones's celestial body in a montage of separate images, following Goude's ideas on creating credible illusions with his cut-and-paint technique. The body position is anatomically impossible. The artwork was originally published in the New York magazine in 1978, and was used as a backdrop for the music video of Jones's hit single "La Vie en rose". The artwork has been described as "one of pop culture's most famous photographs". Also included in the vinyl formatted compilation sleeves are other iconic images of Jones, among them the "twins" photograph, and Jones in cage and wearing "maternity" dress. The compilation's cover art would later influence American model Amber Rose to recreate the pose for her 2010 photo shoot. The image was also parodied in Nicki Minaj's 2011 music video for "Stupid Hoe", mimicking the pose. Also, the cover art for Kylie Minogue's most successful album Fever, was inspired by the Island Life cover.

1986-2006: Inside Story Vamp, Bulletproof Heart, and Boomerang

After having success with Slave to the Rhythm and Island Life, Jones started to record again under a new contract with Manhattan Records, which resulted in Inside Story, Jones teamed up with music producer Nile Rodgers of Chic, which Jones had previously tried to work with during the disco era. The album was recorded at Skyline Studios in New York and post-produced at Atlantic Studios and Sterling Sound. Inside Story was the first album in which Jones had a chance to produce, which resulted in heated disputes with Rodgers. Musically, the album was more accessible than her previous albums with the Compass Point All Stars, and explored different styles of pop music, with undertones of jazz, gospel, and Caribbean sounds, all songs on the album were written by Jones and Bruce Woolley. Richard Bernstein teamed up with Jones again to provide the album's artwork. Inside Story was seriously marketed, and strategies included newspaper advertisements, street posters, and radio spots, the record company targeted the US market, where Jones never had success in the mainstream. Eventually, Inside Story would become one of Jones's greatest musical successes, the album made the top 40 in a number of European countries. The album was Jones's last entry to date on US Billboard 200 albums chart. The same year, Jones starred as Katrina, an Egyptian queen vampire in the vampire film Vamp, to understand the cravings of a vampire, Jones started smoking, and developed a habit. For her work in the film, Jones was awarded a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress.
After the release of Inside Story, Jones took another break from recording, during which time she focused her time on acting, appearing in two films in the year of 1987, Straight to Hell, and Mary Lambert's Siesta,for which Jones was nominated for Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actress. Bulletproof Heart was released in 1989, for the album Jones would work with producer Chris Stanley, who at that time was her first husband. Stnaley co-wrote, and co-produced the majority of the songs, and was featured as a guest vocalist on "Don't Cry Freedom". Robert Clivillés and David Cole of C+C Music Factory produced a number of tracks featured on the album, Musically, Bulletproof Heart delivered the same aesthetic as the previous album, Bulletproof Heart depended heavily on the use of synthesizers, drums and electronic percussion. The album was received poorly, and with only charting in Germany, it failed to enter charts elsewhere. The album proved to be the lowest-charting of Jones's studio albums, and least successful of all of Jones's offerings. Although Jones stayed musically active, Bulletproof Heart would be her last studio album for almost twenty years. In 1992 Jones starred as Helen Strangé, in the Eddie Murphy film Boomerang, for which she also contributed the song "7 Day Weekend" to its soundtrack. Jones released two more soundtrack songs in 1992; "Evilmainya", recorded for the film Freddie as F.R.O.7, and "Let Joy and Innocence Prevail" for the film Toys. She recorded two albums during the 1990s, but they remain unreleased or unfinished thus far. In 1994, she was due to release an electro album titled Black Marilyn with artwork featuring the singer as Marilyn Monroe. "Sex Drive" was released as the first single; due to disagreements with producers, the record was shelved. In June 1998, she was scheduled to release an album entitled Force of Nature, on which she worked with trip hop musician Tricky. The release of Force of Nature was cancelled due to a disagreement between the two and only a white label 12" single featuring two dance mixes of "Hurricane (Cradle to the Grave)" was issued; a slowed-down version of this song became the title track of her comeback album released ten years later. Jones made "Storm" in 1998 for the movie The Avengers, and in 1999, appeared in an episode of the Beastmaster television series as the Umpatra Warrior. The same year, Jones recorded "The Perfect Crime", an up-tempo song for Danish TV written by the composer duo Floppy M. aka Jacob Duus and Kåre Jacobsen. Jones was also ranked 82nd place on VH1's "100 Greatest Women of Rock & Roll", In 2000, Jones collaborated with rapper Lil' Kim, appearing on the song "Revolution" from her album The Notorious K.I.M.. In 2001, Jones starred in the made for television film, Wolf Girl (also known as Blood Moon), as an intersexed circus performer named Christoph/Christine.

In 2002, Jones joined Luciano Pavarotti on stage for his annual Pavarotti and Friends fundraiser concert to support the United Nations refugee agency's programs for Angolan refugees in Zambia. In November 2004, Jones sang her hit "Slave to the Rhythm" at a tribute concert for record producer Trevor Horn at London's Wembley Arena. In April 2005, Eurostar accused Jones of grabbing a manager's arm and verbally abusing her. Eurostar said "Jones was thrown off the Paris to London train at Ashford, Kent". Jones said she requested to be let off. She left the train after British Transport Police were called and the service was delayed by fifteen minutes. Eurostar said "the row erupted because Jones had a first class ticket but refused to pay extra after sitting in the premium area." In 2006, Jones starred as herself in Perry Henzell's No Place Like Home, a film about a New York City film producer who goes to Jamaica to shoot a shampoo commercial, and finds herself having a life changing experience on the island.

2007-present day: Hurricane, and upcoming projects

Despite several comeback attempts throughout the 1990s, Jones's next full length record would be released almost twenty years later, mainly because Jones decided "never to do an album again", changing her mind after meeting music producer Ivor Guest through a mutual friend, milliner Philip Treacy. After the two became acquainted, Guest let Jones listen to a track he had been working on, which as the final result, became "Devil In My Life", once Jones set the lyrics to the song. The lyrics to the song were written after a party in Venice that Jones's attended. The two ended up with as many as 23 tracks. In 2007 Guest announced that he and Jones had completed recording the album. The album showcased a number of autobiographical songs, which included "This Is", "Williams' Blood" and "I'm Crying (Mother's Tears)", an ode to her mother Marjorie. "Love You to Life" was another track based on real events and "Corporate Cannibal" referred to the subject of corporate capitalism. "Well Well Well" was recorded in dedication to the memory of Alex Sadkin, member of Compass Point All Stars who had died in a motor accident 1987, "Sunset Sunrise" was written by Jones's son, Paulo, the song ponders the relationship between mankind and mother nature.
Four songs had been ultimately removed from the album, which included "The Key to Funky", "Body Phenomenon", "Sister Sister" and "Misery". Another track recorded by Jones was, "Volunteer", which had leaked in 2007. For the production of the album, Jones teamed up with Sly and Robbie, Wally Badarou, Barry Reynolds, Mikey Chung, and Uziah "Sticky" Thompson, of the Compass Point All Stars, with contributions from trip-hope artist, Tricky, and Brian Eno. musically the album delivered the same aesthetic as her first three albums recorded with the Compass Point All Stars, with the exception that this time the album was not recorded in the Bahamas.
The album was released on Wall of Sound on November 3, 2008 in the United Kingdom. PIAS, the umbrella company of Wall of Sound, distributed Hurricane worldwide; however it excluded North America. The album resulted with positive reviews, it ranked a score of 72 out of 100 on review aggregator Metacritic. Prior to the album's release, Jones performed at Massive Attack's Meltdown festival in London on 19 June 2008, Jones performed four new songs from the album and premiered the music video which Jones and artist Nick Hooker collaborated on, which resulted in "Corporate Cannibal". Jones promoted the album even further by appearing on talk show Friday Night with Jonathan Ross, Jones performed at several awards galas, and embarked on The Hurricane Tour, which received positive reviews. The same year, Jones was honored with Q Inspiration Award.
In 2009,Chris Cunningham produced a fashion shoot for Dazed & Confused using Jones as a model to create "Nubian versions" of Rubber Johnny. In an interview for BBC's The Culture Show, it was suggested that the collaboration may expand into a video project. Jones also worked with the avant-garde poet Brigitte Fontaine on a duet named "Soufi" from Fontaine's album Prohibition released in 2009, and produced by Ivor Guest. In March 2010 Jones performed for guests at the 18th annual Elton John AIDS Foundation Academy Award Viewing Party. The Elton John AIDS Foundation is one of the world's leading nonprofit HIV/AIDS organizations supporting innovative HIV prevention programs, and works to eliminate stigma and discrimination associated with HIV/AIDS. That evening, US$3.7 million was raised. The same year, a budget DVD version of A One Man Show was released, as Grace Jones – Live in Concert, it included three bonus video clips ("Slave to the Rhythm", "Love Is the Drug" and "Crush".
2011 saw Jones again collaborating with Brigitte Fontaine on two tracks from her 2011 release entitled L'un n'empêche pas l'autre and performed at the opening ceremony of the 61st FIFA Congress. Jones released a dub version of the album, Hurricane – Dub, which came out on September 5, 2011. The dub versions were made by Ivor Guest, with contributions from Adam Green, Frank Byng, Robert Logan and Ben Cowan. In 2012, Jones performed during the Diamond Jubilee of Elizabeth II and during Lovebox Festival. On 27 October Jones performed her only North American show of 2012, a performance at New York City's Roseland Ballroom. The same year, Jones presented Sir Tom Jones with not only the GQ Men of the Year award, but her underwear. Tom Jones accepted the gift in good humor, and replied to the stunt by saying, ”I didn't think you wore any”.

Artistry

Voice

Jones has a contralto vocal range. She sings in two modes: either in her monotone speak-sing voice as in songs such as "Private Life", "Walking in the Rain" and "The Apple Stretching", or in an almost-soprano mode in songs such as "La Vie en Rose", "Slave to the Rhythm", and "Victor Should Have Been a Jazz Musician". Jones's voice spans two and a half octaves.

Music videos and performances

The majority of Jones's music videos have been directed by long-time collaborator, Jean-Paul Goude. This includes "I've Seen That Face Before (Libertango)", "My Jamaican Guy", "Living My Life", and "Slave to the Rhythm". The two revisited, and created a video for "Love Is the Drug" from the 1980 album Warm Leatherette. Keith Haring directed the video for Jones's 1986 single, "I'm Not Perfect (But I'm Perfect for You)", which featured Andy Warhol. On the video "Corporate Cannibal", the first single off Hurricane, Jones collaborated with artist Nick Hooker. Jones had seen his work for U2 and Hooker chose the song he made the video for. Chris Levine, a lighting and installation designer, collaborated with Jones on the music video for the third single off the album, "Love You to Life". The two also collaborated on Stillness at the Speed of Light, an exhibition at the Vinyl Factory in Soho, London. The exhibition showcased two slow motion animated stills of Jones, "Stillness at the Speed of Light", and "Superstar"; it ran from 30 April to 14 May 2010. Levine was also responsible for laser installation pieces that were seen at Jones's Royal Albert Hall concert in 2008. Jones is reportedly late when she performs live, and her performances are said to be "wild"; fans have recalled performances where she hurled champagne bottles into the audience, smoked joints on stage, performed naked (sometimes with live lions, and leopards during her musical acts), stormed off stage, and storm right back onto it as if nothing ever happened. In 2012, Jones performed for millions at Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee Concert hula-hooping through a set of songs, in a PVC leotard, and an extravagant red hat. The same year, Jones performed at the Lovebox Festival.

Jones's image, and legacy

Jean-Paul Goude was responsible for Jones's dramatic transformation, the distinctive androgynous appearance, the square-cut and angular padded clothes. Goude is the artist behind many of Jones's album covers; her first two albums with Chris Blackwell and the Compass Point All Stars, Warm Leatherette (1980), and Nightclubbing (1981), which featured a charcoal skinned Jones sporting an angular padded blazer, and a cigarette in her lips. In 1982, Jones's One Man Show was released, a performance art presentation devised by Goude and Jones herself, in which she performed tracks from the albums Portfolio, Warm Leatherette and Nightclubbing dressed in elaborate costumes and masks – in the opening sequence as a gorilla – and alongside a series of Grace Jones lookalikes. Goude photographed Jones for her next album, Living My Life (1982), then in 1985 for Slave to the Rhythm, and Island Life Jones's first compilation album. In 1989 Goude photographed Jones for her last album in nineteen years, Bulletproof Heart, the two recently teamed up again in 2008 to photograph, the dub re-release of Jones's latest album, Hurricane featuring Jones smoking a cigarette whilst wearing a sparkling hat.

Jones's striking appearance, height of (5'9" or 1.75 m, some sources claim 5'8"), and manner influenced the cross-dressing movement of the 1980s. To this day, she is known for her unique look at least as much as she is for her music and has been an inspiration for numerous artists, including Madonna, Annie Lennox, Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Brazilian Girls Róisín Murphy, Nile Rodgers, Santigold, and Basement Jaxx. Jones was listed as one of the fifty best-dressed over 50s by the Guardian in March 2013. For his 2013 Spring/Summer campaign, fashion designer Jean Paul Gaultier channelled Jones, using model Jeneil Williams.

Discography

Main article: Grace Jones discography

• Portfolio (1977)
• Fame (1978)
• Muse (1979)
• Warm Leatherette (1980)
• Nightclubbing (1981)
• Living My Life (1982)
• Slave to the Rhythm (1985)
• Inside Story (1986)
• Bulletproof Heart (1989)
• Hurricane (2008)

Filmography

As an actress

Film and television
Year	Title	Role	Notes
1973	Gordon's War	Mary
1976	Attention les yeux!	Cuidy
1978	Stryx (TV series)	Rumstryx
1981	Deadly Vengeance	Slick's girlfriend
1984	Conan the Destroyer	Zula
1985	A View to a Kill	May Day
1986	Vamp	Katrina
1987	Straight to Hell	Sonya
	Siesta	Conchita
1992	Boomerang	Helen Strangé
1995	Cyber Bandits	Masako Yokohama
1998	McCinsey's Island	Alanso Richter
	Palmer's Pick Up	Ms. Remo
1999	BeastMaster (TV series) Episode(s): "The Umpatra"	Nokinja
2001	Wolf Girl (TV movie)	Christoph/Christine
	Shaka Zulu: The Citadel (TV movie)	The Queen
2006	No Place Like Home	Herself - Dancer
2008	Falco - Verdammt, wir leben noch!	Kellnerin
	Chelsea on the Rocks (Documentary)	Bev

Stage work
Year	Title	Role	Location
1997	The Wiz	Evillene	U.S. Touring Revival

As musician

• A One Man Show (1982)
• Grace Jones - Live in NYC 1981 (2010) [Remastered version of A One Man Show with 3 bonus music videos, "Slave to the Rhythm", "Love Is the Drug" and "Crush"]

Documentaries

• Armee der Liebenden oder Revolte der Perversen (1979)
• Mode in France (1984)
• Superstar: The Life and Times of Andy Warhol (1990)
• In Search of Dracula with Jonathan Ross (1996)
• Behind the Music - Studio 54 (1998)
• So Far So Goude (2005) [DVD only available as a bonus in the Thames & Hudson published biography on Jean-Paul Goude]
• Queens of Disco (2007)

Awards and recognition

In 1983, Jones's A One Man Show was nominated a Grammy Award for Best Long Form Music Video, in 1985, she was nominated a Best Supporting Actress, for her role as Zula in Conan the Destroyer. In 1986, Jones was earned three more nominations, Collage Music Journal Awards's Best Female Artist, an MTV Video Music Award for "Slave to the Rhythm", and a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress for A View to a Kill. In 1987, Jones went from earning a nomination for Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Supporting Actress, for her work in the film Siesta, to earning a Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress, for Vamp. In 1999, Jones was ranked 82nd place on VH1's "100 Greatest Women of Rock & Roll", and in 2008, Jones was awarded the Q Inspiration Award.

Personal life

Over the years, Jones's relationship with her father had been strained, he was strict, and was forced to disassociate himself from Jones, because the church refused to make him a bishop as long as he was associated with his daughter, due her public profile. According to the church's beliefs, one should only use their singing ability to glorify god. Marjorie, had always supported Jones's career, and can be heard singing towards the end of "Williams' Blood"; and as backing vocals on "My Jamaican Guy" but also because of the influence of the church and upsetting it's elders, could not be associated with Jones's music. Marjorie's father, William, was also a musician, and played with Nat King Cole. Through her relationship with long-time collaborator, Jean-Paul Goude, Jones has a son, Paulo, through Paulo, Grace has a granddaughter. Jones has been married twice; her first husband was producer Chris Stanley, whom she married in 1989. She married her second husband, bodyguard Atila Altaunbay, in 1996. Swedish actor, Dolph Lundgren originally worked as Grace's bodyguard before they took a romantic turn. They were together for four years; Jones is also responsible for Lundgren's acting career as she got him a part as a KGB officer in A View to a Kill.

External links

• Official Grace Jones website
• The World of Grace Jones
• Official Grace Jones page at Facebook
• Official Grace Jones page at Twitter
• Official Grace Jones page and Official Grace Jones VEVO page at YouTube
• Official Grace Jones page at MySpace