Firstly, I have to admit that as much as I love and enjoy Living My Life, this is my least favourite in the trilogy that Grace Jones recorded with Sly & Robbie etc. It just doesn't quite hit the heights of the critically-acclaimed Nightclubbing (1981) and the still-superb Warm Leatherette (1980) though Living My Life certainly has its moments with the outstanding tracks Nipple To The Bottle, The Apple Stretching, Everybody Hold Still and Inspiration. Regardless of it being the weakest in the trilogy (which, of course, is just my own humble opinion), Living My Life stands as a solid piece of work and is totally essential to any Grace Jones fan. So theres plenty to recommend here and it must be noted that the whole sound of this album was groundbreaking for its time.
Produced by Alex Sadkin and Chris Blackwell, these sessions were all, again, recorded at the Compass Point Sessions in Nassau Bahamas. What does set Living My Life apart from its two predecessors is that theres only one cover version here (The Apple Stretching) and the rest showcase the songwriting talents of Grace Jones, a skill at which she proves herself most adept as riviting songs like Nipple To The Bottle and Everybody Hold Still prove. Just as on Warm Leatherette and Nightclubbing, those two renowned reggae wizards Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespere play on each session, with Sly credited for playing the drums and syndrums (Sly also co-wrote the classic Nipple To The Bottle with Grace) and Robbie on that ever-effective, cracking bass guirtar. Other top-notch muscians jamming away include Barry Reynolds (who co-wrote many of the songs with Grace) and Mikey Chungy on guirtars, Wally Badarou on keyboards and Uzziah Thompson on the pounding, heavy percussion.
Living My Life (1982) opens with the six minute delight My Jamaican Guy (written solely by Grace Jones), a sparse but sprightly arranged reggae/funk/new wave/soul mid-tempo ballad. And just listen to that glorious opening on the track - way ahead of its time and still sounds cool today, a fact reflected in the number of times it has been sampled by others. My Jamaican Guy is not least complimented by a striking vocal performance from Grace where she alternately sounds deep, evocative and at times, fiery and aggressive. The track certainly had ample commercial potential and was released as a single, scoring Grace another international hit.
My Jamaican Guy is swiftly followed by the bouncy, super-infectious Nipple To The Bottle (Grace Jones and Sly Dunbar). While echoing the sounds of Grace's classic hit Pull Up To The Bumper it still emerges as unique and distinct within itself. Hosting a startling combination of reggae-funk-soul-new wave, Nipple To The Bottle is lyrically fun (riddled with double entendres just as on Pull Up To The Bumper) and musically diverse with some odd yet compelling synchronised sound effects, zooming in and out sporadically. Grace's stirring delivery is assertive, moody and soulful and this undoubtedly ranks as one of her definitive classics and the ultimate highlight of this project.
Her endearing cover version of The Apple Stretching (Michael Van Peebles) depicts life in "sunny" New York. Capturing a raw, half-spoken, half-sung performance by Grace, The Apple Stretching perfectly demonstrates Grace's unquestionably natural musical flair. This was released alongside Nipple To The Bottle as a double A-side single, quickly securing Grace another international hit.
More immediate and upbeat is the boisterous Everybody Hold Still (Grace Jones and Barry Reynolds), telling a tale of a day in the life of Grace where things start off badly, rapidly go downhill and then to top it off she gets involved in a hold-up! Extraordinary song to say the least, crackling with dry wit, and is another contagious number. Grace's spirited performance makes this more than memroable.
The rhythmically divine Cry Now-Laugh Later (Grace Jones and Barry Reynolds) is an instantly catchy affair, telling another tale of crime. Graces unique voice is effectively synchronised throughout this sparsely-arranged, funky little number.
Even smoother is the excellent Inspiration (Grace Jones and Barry Reynolds) a track that at points is reminiscent of the song Breakdown from 1980's Warm Leatherette, containing a similarly dreamy, mellow, mesmerising arrangement that escalates and ignites on the chrous and bridge. Inspiration also holds more bizarre sound effects that all add to the intensity of the swirling atmosphere. The terrific final cut Unlimited Capacity For Love rounds the album off nicely, featuring a captivating performance from Grace and great arrangements, including a non-stop drum machine that rolls on and on throughout the track.
For me the only very minor flaw is that much of Living My Life has a noticeably more commercial sound than Warm Leatherette and Nightclubbing. There's definitely undercurrents of pop flowing through tracks such as Cry Now-Laugh Later and Unlimited Capacity For Love both of which are smacked with a distinctly 1980's sound. Not that thats a complaint as such as both are solid tracks just by comparison to the rest of the album, they haven't aged quite as well. Over twenty five years old and still much of Living My Life sounds impressively way ahead of its time. The fact that Living My Life was slightly more commercial was reflected in its success, particuarly in Britain where it flew into the Top 20, peaking at #15 and enjoying a lengthy run on the chart. It's just a shame Grace hasnt always been rewarded with the commercial success she so richly deserves.
Overall Living My Life is another excellent and essential Grace Jones album, encapsulating highly original and extraordinary, exceedingly diverse material, delivered with spirit, passion and fire by its legendary star.
Ian Phillips
August 2009