Grace Jones
Portfolio

Grace Jones is a character now consigned to history, for better or worse: someone who understood, a rare occurrence, when it was the right time to step aside and who was able to leave a deep mark, if not in the history of music, certainly in culture. Numerous bland imitators have pilfered her styles and plastic poses, often without even a tenth of her talent and stage presence, and with tracks like "Libertango" and "Slave To The Rhythm," she has surely carved out her deserved space in the collective imagination as well as in the Pop Olympus that matters. Grace Jones was a skillfully constructed phenomenon. Indeed, she was. Grace Jones was an adept fashion and trend-rider. Absolutely, yes. Grace Jones was a mediocre talentless climber. Unlike someone else who for more than thirty years has continued to bore us non-stop with their nonsense, absolutely not. The most vivid image of this singer, actress, model, and Jamaican Diva is surely that of a woman with an androgynous and statuesque allure, flamboyant yet somehow severe, almost exaggerated, almost intimidating, but her 80s image has somewhat overshadowed her musical beginnings, which showcase another side, less known but equally charismatic and captivating of Grace Jones, a more coquettish, more feminine side, decidedly more in shades of pink than noir.

I am talking about the first three albums of this extravagant and multifaceted performer, absolutely identical in structure, with progressively decreasing commercial success, a rapid rise and fall from 1977 to 1979, following the dazzling yet ephemeral success of disco music: "Portfolio," "Fame," and "Muse," also known as Grace Jones's disco trilogy. Of the three, "Portfolio" is certainly the most commercially successful, and overall the most effective; listening to it in 2013 is akin to a leap back in time, to an era now distant and unrepeatable. An album very traditional in its genre, rooted in black music, funk, and soul, without succumbing to the avant-garde allure of electronics, and a product of pure and simple entertainment, genuine, campy, lighthearted, and hedonistic, and the wonderful thing is that it does absolutely nothing to hide it. Grace sings with tremendous energy and ease, showcasing all her feline grace and her powerful, warm, and sensual voice, sings for the thrill of the show, probably enjoying herself in the process, most importantly she sings, she doesn't pant or mumble, she has no need for those cheap tricks to be sexy and appealing. As in the subsequent "Fame" and "Muse," the original side A of "Portfolio" is entirely occupied by a single-track "medley," this one specifically is simply a sparkling cascade of glitter lasting about 18 minutes, moreover in a Rossinian crescendo: direct from Broadway, three songs that integrate perfectly with each other, forming in fact a glittering suite in three acts. It starts with "Send In The Clowns", a brief waltz-tempo intro that quickly gives way to a sumptuous disco-funk filled with choruses and orchestrations, continues the discussion with "What I Did For Love", with even more energy and a breathtaking vocal performance, finally reaching the apex with the pressing, almost "martial" rhythm and the fabulous earworm chorus of "Tomorrow."

The dance tour de force proceeds relentlessly even on side B, with slightly less theatrical but equally effective atmospheres; the sensual midtempo funky-soul of "Sorry", the splendid orchestrations and energy of "That's The Trouble", and the perfect bass-piano combination of "I Need A Man", songs now completely anachronistic but which have lost absolutely nothing in terms of impact and efficacy: the melodies effortlessly and naturally get stuck in your head, that panther-like voice scratches as powerfully yesterday as it does today, and with rhythms like these, it's truly spontaneous to clear your mind and shake your ass, the ultimate aim of this record is exactly that, and for its well-defined field, this is the state of the art, the best you can have. The most peculiar and characterizing touch of class in the album is strategically positioned between the initial medley and the conclusive power-trio: "La Vie En Rose", a cover of Edith Piaf's legendary classic and a hit of moderate success, elegantly re-proposed with a fine semi-acoustic jazzy-bossanova arrangement, an elegant and evocative interlude, an added value that makes "Portfolio" a more complete album, not only a concentrate of high-class vintage disco music but a first taste of the eclecticism and overwhelming personality of Grace Jones, in all her majestic awesomeness.