80's Flashback

Grace Jones, Pull Up To The Bumper, 1981. Last night my ex Ken and I saw Grace in concert at Manhattan's Hammerstein Ballroom, almost 25 years after we last saw her at Fort Lauderdale's Copa, where she appeared exactly three hours late. Grace took the stage a mere 90 minutes tardy last night, performing the first number entirely shrouded in a mylar burka. What followed will go down in Grace legend, with almost each of 17 numbers accompanied by a change into a costume more outrageous than the last. I think some of the queens near the stage spontaneously exploded into a cloud of glitter and unicorns. Check out Flickr user Mikey IQ for a great photo set. Fabulous shots can be found on Music Slut too. Grace's set list is here.

Judging by the Mission Control-like computers and cameras set up at the back of the room, the show will be released on DVD. Perhaps because of that, Grace was in uber-diva form, complaining continously about the spotlights, the back lights, the light from the wings, the volume of her microphone, etc. Ken and I started the show just a few feet from the stage, but were forced to retreat to the rear so we could see better, because everybody at the front had their hands over their heads to record the show on their phones. ANNOYING, people. But overall, the show gets a "WOW" from me. Amazing, amazing.