Windy City Media Group Frontpage News

THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

home search facebook twitter join
Gay News Sponsor Windy City Times 2023-12-13
DOWNLOAD ISSUE
Donate

Sponsor
Sponsor
Sponsor

  WINDY CITY TIMES

BENT NIGHTS Joe Jackson at Thalia Hall
Special to the online edition of Windy City Times
by Vern Hester
2015-11-10

This article shared 4077 times since Tue Nov 10, 2015
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email


When Joe Jackson's debut, Look Sharp ( A&M Records ), dropped in 1979, he found himself lumped in with fellow literate Brit punkers Graham Parker and Elvis Costello.

The three of them had undeniable similarities ( all fronting legendary bands, having distinctive voices, sharing a love for U.S. pop music—each having a talent for writing some of the most scathing lyrics ever ) but, in hindsight, getting categorized actually liberated them ( and us ) musically. In the space of 36 years, Costello, Parker and Jackson have created discographies that have gone far beyond what those debuts suggested.

Jackson, who was in town for a sold-out two-night stand at Thalia Hall, 1807 S. Allport Ave., has just released the double disk Fast Forward ( Caroline/Universal Records ), which contains whole segments recorded in four distinctly different cities ( New Orleans, Berlin, Amsterdam and New York ). As a musician who has made profitable leaps from punk to jazz, big band, orchestral works, movie soundtracks and jump blues, it would be fair to assume that one cannot assume anything about Jackson. There is also the fact that Jackson remains as one of a handful of artists who has never pandered to his audience ( he has always assumed that we are just as intelligent as he is ) even when he is at his most obvious ( "Fools in Love" ). Now edging into his fourth decade as a high-profile rock star, Fast Forward proves that he is still full of surprises.

The big one here is that Fast Forward is a straight-up "pop" album with Jackson's trademark cynicism held in check and a more pronounced wistfulness and ( YIKES!!! ) nostalgia. This is not to say that he has gotten all moist and wussy but that, despite the title Fast Forward, the recording is largely in a reflective mood.

Although there are no stylistic departures, Fast Forward is studded with jewels and could be called Jackson's first "adult" album. "If it Weren't for You" is a love song with a funny slightly zingy punch line ( "If it weren't for me you would be a better person..." ) while "Kings of the City" evokes the aloneness of constantly moving forward and only seeing things in a rear view mirror. My favorite here, "So You Say," is a great rainy-day ballad worthy of prime Ella Fitzgerald or Mel Torme. Maybe this ( mostly ) fangless Jackson is looking back with a honeyed perspective, but he is still at the top of his game.

If this new recording implies that Jackson has exchanged the vinegar in his soul for the safe taste of Maalox, on Nov. 2, his first night at Thalia Hall, he put that notion to rest. Opening the show alone at the keyboards, he gave the show a far different touch of nostalgia with four gems from the distant past: "Different for Girls," "My Hometown," "Be My Number Two," and the hetero-male chauvinistic challenger "Real Men." Hearing him snarl, "Don't call me a faggot not unless you are a friend...," near the close of "Real Men" snapped the evening right out of that gauzy haze but quick.

"Is She Really Going Out with Him?" and "Sunday Papers" had a healthy hunk of bile behind them and proved that Jackson was nowhere near rolling over and playing dead. "Chinatown" turned into an atonal jam session the moment Jackson closed his mouth and let his crack band ( Graham Maby on bass, Bill Frisell on guitar, and Stefan Kruger on drums ) run wild with it while a stripped down "Stepping Out" was elegant and lilting. "You Can't Get What You Want" had juice to spare while the new "Keep On Dreaming" edged toward roof rattling gospel. There were pleasant surprises ( a cover of Television's "See No Evil" and a sloppy joyride through Henry Mancini's "Peter Gunn" theme ) but the night was sealed by two of Jackson's best unheralded songs.

"A Slow Song" is such a naked and sincere torch song that hearing it again made it clear why it took someone like Adele to bring the art form back into fashion. Torch songs depend on a deliberate and delicate balance between unchecked emotion and subtle suggestion through phrasing and demands a concentrated skill. Jackson grabbed the moment and ran with it for all it was worth.

"On the Radio" has always been a fun, rollicking F.U. anthem, but hearing it now in the era of school bullying and epidemic teen suicides has given it an entirely different tone. Of course when he wrote it in 1980 he had no clue that his autobiographical rave up could have such resonance. As the victim of bullying from seemingly all directions depicted in the song, Jackson tore through the lyrics with a vengeance ( "Now you can't get no where near me, you can only hope to hear me on your radio..." ) and made it clear that he was very much in touch with his adolescent rage. The song came late in the evening but it was obvious that, at the tender age of 61, Jackson still has acid as well as sentiment pumping through his heart and that this story is far from over.

Heads up: For those who didn't get enough ( or any at all ) at her stand at The Chicago Theatre last week, Janet Jackson will be playing The Allstate Arena on June 4, 2016. Tickets are already on sale.


This article shared 4077 times since Tue Nov 10, 2015
facebook twitter pin it google +1 reddit email

Out and Aging
Presented By

  ARTICLES YOU MIGHT LIKE

Gay News

'Rumors' performers create alternative drag playground 2024-03-24
- At first glance, Dorian's Through The Record Shop (1939 W. North Ave.) looks like a brightly-lit shop with a handful of records on the wall, but there's a secret world behind those unassuming shelves. Visitors are ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ Queer musicians, Marvel situation, Elliot Page, Nicole Kidman 2024-03-21
- Queer musician Joy Oladokun released the single "I Wished on the Moon," from Jack Antonoff's official soundtrack for the new Apple TV+ series The New Look, per a press release. The soundtrack, ...


Gay News

THEATER Chicago's City Lit has anxiety on tap with 'Two Hours in a Bar' 2024-03-21
- Two Hours in a Bar Waiting for Tina Meyer by Kristine Thatcher with material by Larry Shue Text Me by Kingsley Day (Book, Music and Lyrics). At: City Lit Theater, 1020 W. Bryn Mawr Ave.. Tickets: ...


Gay News

Lollapalooza announces lineup; SZA, Skrillex among headliners 2024-03-19
- Lollapalooza has released its line-up for the event that's taking place Aug. 1-4 at Grant Park. Headliners include SZA, Blink-182, Skrillex, The Killers, Hozier, Melanie Martinez and Stray Kids, among others. Some of the other acts ...


Gay News

Jamie Barton brings nuances of identity to her Lyric Opera 'Aida' performance 2024-03-18
- Chicago's Lyric Opera is currently featuring a production of Giuseppe Verdi's Aida starring Michelle Bradley as Aida, Jamie Barton as Amneris and Russell Thomas as Radamès. The opera runs through April 7, 2024, with Francesca Zambello ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ Lady Gaga, 'P-Valley,' Wendy Williams, Luke Evans, 'Queer Eye,' 'Transition' 2024-03-15
- Lady Gaga came to the defense of Dylan Mulvaney after a post with the trans influencer/activist for International Women's Day received hateful responses, People Magazine noted. On Instagram, Gaga stated, "It's appalling to me that a ...


Gay News

House-music festival on Aug. 30-Sept. 1; icons, Idris Elba to be part of it 2024-03-13
- The ARC Music Festival—an event celebrating house music—will take place Aug. 30-Sept. 1 at Chicago's Union Park, per WGN-TV. This will mark the fourth year that the festival will celebrate the genre at Union Park—less than ...


Gay News

COBRAH slithers into Chicago and brings Feminine Energy 2024-03-08
- COBRAH snaked her way into Thalia Hall, 1807 S. Allport St., for two nights March 7 and 8 for her Succubus Tour. This Swedish-born talent has a way with naughty words and ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ Jinkx Monsoon, Xavier Dolan, 'Frida,' Lena Waithe, out singer 2024-03-08
- Two-time RuPaul's Drag Race winner Jinkx Monsoon is headed back to the New York stage, joining off-Broadway's Little Shop of Horrors as Audrey beginning April 2, according to Playbill. The casting makes Monsoon the first drag ...


Gay News

Queer Eye's Jai Rodriguez is set to slay at The Big Gay Cabaret 2024-03-05
- Out and proud performer Jai Rodriguez is set to play at The Big Gay Cabaret this March for three days. Presented by RuPaul Drag Racer Ginger Minj, this monthly series highlights the wide world of cabaret ...


Gay News

THEATER 'R & J' puts a female, queer spin on Shakespeare 2024-03-05
- Romeo and Juliet is the theatrical gift that keeps on giving. It's been reworked for the masses numerous times, whether in direct adaptations or musicals such as West Side Story. Shakespeare's plotline points have even inspired ...


Gay News

THEATER When growth is paramount: Jim Corti helps fuel Aurora theater expansion 2024-03-01
- Out actor/director/choreographer Jim Corti made his Broadway debut in 1974, in the ensemble of Leonard Bernstein's musical Candide. Director Harold Prince's acclaimed Tony Award-winning revival is often cited as a ...


Gay News

SHOWBIZ Queer actors, icons duet, Hunter Schafer, Oscars, Elizabeth Taylor 2024-03-01
- Queer actor Kal Penn is set to star in Trust Me, I'm a Doctor—a film that chronicles the final days of actress/model Anna Nicole Smith, whose overdose death in 2007 at age 39 sparked a tabloid ...


Gay News

'Always Olivia' celebrates Olivia Newton-John at Raue Center 2024-02-26
- From a press release: Always Olivia, a tribute to one of the most celebrated and beloved pop culture icons of all time, the late Olivia Newton-John comes to Raue Center in Crystal Lake on Saturday, May ...


Gay News

Samuel Savoir-Faire Williams's violin stylings help COH mark Black History Month 2024-02-23
- As part of its celebration of Black History Month, Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted St., presented a solo jazz performance by violinist Samuel Savoir-Faire Williams on Feb. 21. The two-hour long performance presented a showcase ...


 


Copyright © 2024 Windy City Media Group. All rights reserved.
Reprint by permission only. PDFs for back issues are downloadable from
our online archives.

Return postage must accompany all manuscripts, drawings, and
photographs submitted if they are to be returned, and no
responsibility may be assumed for unsolicited materials.

All rights to letters, art and photos sent to Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago
Gay and Lesbian News and Feature Publication) will be treated
as unconditionally assigned for publication purposes and as such,
subject to editing and comment. The opinions expressed by the
columnists, cartoonists, letter writers, and commentators are
their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of Nightspots
(Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay,
Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature Publication).

The appearance of a name, image or photo of a person or group in
Nightspots (Chicago GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times
(a Chicago Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender News and Feature
Publication) does not indicate the sexual orientation of such
individuals or groups. While we encourage readers to support the
advertisers who make this newspaper possible, Nightspots (Chicago
GLBT Nightlife News) and Windy City Times (a Chicago Gay, Lesbian
News and Feature Publication) cannot accept responsibility for
any advertising claims or promotions.

 
 

TRENDINGBREAKINGPHOTOS







Sponsor


 



Donate


About WCMG      Contact Us      Online Front  Page      Windy City  Times      Nightspots
Identity      BLACKlines      En La Vida      Archives      Advanced Search     
Windy City Queercast      Queercast Archives     
Press  Releases      Join WCMG  Email List      Email Blast      Blogs     
Upcoming Events      Todays Events      Ongoing Events      Bar Guide      Community Groups      In Memoriam     
Privacy Policy     

Windy City Media Group publishes Windy City Times,
The Bi-Weekly Voice of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Trans Community.
5315 N. Clark St. #192, Chicago, IL 60640-2113 • PH (773) 871-7610 • FAX (773) 871-7609.