Island Life

Island Life is a compilation album by Grace Jones released in December 1985, summing up the first nine years of her musical career. The album sits among Jones' best-selling works.

For other uses, see Island Life (disambiguation).
Island Life
Compilation album by
Grace Jones
ReleasedDecember 3, 1985
Recorded1977–1985
Genre
Length47:48
LabelIsland
Producer
Grace Jones chronology
Slave to the Rhythm
(1985)		 Island Life
(1985)		 Inside Story
(1986)
Alternative cover
1996 Island Life 2 re-release
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Robert ChristgauB-[2]

Background

After the major commercial success Grace Jones achieved with her comeback album Slave to the Rhythm in 1985, Island Records decided to release a best-of compilation at the end of the same year. Island Life would feature songs from most of Jones' Island Records albums: Portfolio, Fame, Warm Leatherette, Nightclubbing, Living My Life, and Slave to the Rhythm. No tracks from Muse were included. Some of the songs appeared in edited forms, and a remix of "Love Is the Drug" was included. No new songs were recorded for the album. Island Life consists only of previously released material, produced by Tom Moulton, Chris Blackwell, Alex Sadkin and Trevor Horn. American writer and journalist Glenn O'Brien wrote an essay for the record sleeve.

The Australian LP release of the album came with a bonus 12" disc containing four songs: "My Jamaican Guy", "Pull Up to the Bumper", "On Your Knees" and "Warm Leatherette", and the 1986 UK cassette release included three bonus tracks: "Demolition Man", "Nipple to the Bottle" and "Grace Jones Musclemix".

Island Life met with a warm commercial reception worldwide. It was a major success in the UK, reaching number 4 on the UK Albums Chart in December 1985, and New Zealand, where it topped the chart in March 1986, thus becoming the only chart-topper in Jones' entire career. CD sales of the album in the United States since 1991 have reached 112,000, according to Nielsen SoundScan.[3]

In April 1996 Island Records and Universal re-released the album under the name Island Life 2. Released only in France, it featured four additional tracks: "Pars", "Feel Up" and two versions of a 1993 single "Sex Drive", intended for the Black Marilyn album, which remains unreleased to date.[4] This version retains the cover picture of the original album, with the only difference being the yellow-coloured background.

Artwork

The cover picture is one of the most famous images of Grace Jones and was created by her then-partner Jean-Paul Goude. The impossibly graceful arabesque is actually a montage of separate images, following Goude's ideas on creating credible illusions with his cut-and-paint technique. The body position is "anatomically unlikely".[5] The picture was originally published in New York magazine in 1978 and subsequently used in the music video for Jones' hit single "La Vie en rose". It has been since described as "one of pop culture's most famous photographs".[6] Also included in the album sleeve are other iconic images of Jones, among them the "twins" photograph, Grace Jones in a cage and wearing a "maternity" dress.

The cover picture was featured in Michael Ochs' 1996 book 1000 Record Covers[7] and has been often imitated in works by other artists.[8] The image was also referenced in Nicki Minaj's 2011 music video for "Stupid Hoe", with Minaj mimicking the pose.[9] The cover art for Kylie Minogue's most successful album Fever was reportedly inspired by the Island Life cover.

Singles

As no new material was recorded for Island Life, the album was promoted by re-releases of singles. "Pull Up to the Bumper" was released at the end of 1985, with new artwork and "La Vie en rose" as a double A-side single. The song, which had peaked at number 53 in the UK when released originally in 1981, climbed to number 12 and became one of Jones' greatest hits in the UK. It also topped its previous peak positions in Germany and New Zealand. A special "Musclemix" version of the song was also released, which was a mash-up of "Pull Up to the Bumper" and other hits.

"Love Is the Drug" was released as the second single in early 1986, remixed by Eric "E.T." Thorngren. A music video was produced and the single, which had not charted upon its original 1980 release, entered charts in the UK, Ireland and Germany. A remixed version of "Private Life" was also released and the single re-entered singles chart in the UK. A "Re-Mix Re-Mask" mash-up was also released.

Track listing

All tracks produced by Chris Blackwell and Alex Sadkin, except for "La Vie en rose", "I Need a Man" and "Do or Die", produced by Tom Moulton, "Slave to the Rhythm", produced by Trevor Horn with assistance from Stephen Lipson, and "Sex Drive" on Island Life 2, produced by Mark Pistel and Philip Steir.

Side A
No.TitleWriter(s)AlbumLength
1."La Vie en rose"
Portfolio7:25
2."I Need a Man"
  • Paul Adrian Slade
  • Pierre Papadiamondis
Portfolio3:22
3."Do or Die"
Fame3:22
4."Private Life"Chrissie HyndeWarm Leatherette5:10
5."Love Is the Drug"
Warm Leatherette6:02
Side A - UK cassette release bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
6."Demolition Man"StingNightclubbing 
7."Nipple to the Bottle"
Living My Life 

Side B

No.TitleWriter(s)AlbumLength
1."I've Seen That Face Before (Libertango)"
Nightclubbing4:29
2."Pull Up to the Bumper"
  • Kookoo Baya
  • Grace Jones
  • Dana Mano
Nightclubbing3:38
3."Walking in the Rain"
Nightclubbing4:18
4."My Jamaican Guy"Grace JonesLiving My Life6:00
5."Slave to the Rhythm"
Slave to the Rhythm4:22
Side B - UK cassette release bonus track
No.TitleWriter(s)AlbumLength
6."Grace Jones Musclemix"variousIsland Life 
Island Life 2 bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)AlbumLength
11."Pars"Jacques HigelinWarm Leatherette4:48
12."Feel Up"Grace JonesNightclubbing4:04
13."Sex Drive" (Sex Pitch Mix)Sheep on DrugsBlack Marilyn7:18
14."Sex Drive" (Hard Drive Mix)Sheep on DrugsBlack Marilyn5:10

Notes

  • "Grace Jones Musclemix" is a mashup of (in order) "Pull Up to the Bumper", "Slave to the Rhythm", "Warm Leatherette", "Private Life", "Walking in the Rain", "Use Me" and "Love Is the Drug".
  • 7" edits of "Do or Die", "Pull Up to the Bumper" and "Slave to the Rhythm" are included.
  • "Love Is the Drug" appears as Eric "E.T." Thorngren's remix.

Charts and certifications

Release history
Region Year Format(s) Label
Worldwide 1985 LP, CD, Cassette Island, Island Masters, Bertelsmann
Australia LP Festival
Portugal LP Island, Dacapo
Yugoslavia LP Island, Jugoton
UK 1986 Cassette Island
Brazil 1988 LP Island
Europe 1989 CD Island
US, Europe 1990 CD Island, Island Masters
France 1996 CD Universal International

References
  1. Andrew Hamilton. "Island Life - Grace Jones". www.allmusic.com. Retrieved 2006-12-28.
  2. Robert Christgau. "Robert Christgau: CG: grace jones". www.robertchristgau.com. Retrieved 2012-04-12.
  3. Keith Caulfield (19 December 2008). "Ask Billboard: Perez Hilton, Solange, Grace Jones". Billboard. Retrieved 22 April 2015.
  4. "Grace Jones Trivia – Grace Jones Interesting Facts – Grace Jones Notes". www.gracejones.org. Archived from the original on 2010-12-30. Retrieved 2010-09-27.
  5. Will Hodgkinson. "Snapshot: Grace Jones". arts.guardian.co.uk. web.archive.org. Archived from the original on June 15, 2008. Retrieved 2009-08-01.
  6. "Images: Grace Jones by Jean-Paul Goude". afirstclassriot.com. Archived from the original on 2012-05-11. Retrieved 2012-08-15.
  7. Ochs, Michael (2005). 1000 Record Covers. Taschen. p. 540.
  8. Tom Townsend. "The Queen of music Grace Jones meets HRH The Queen!". music.uk.msn.com. Archived from the original on 2012-06-16. Retrieved 2012-08-17.
  9. "Nicki Minaj Channels Beyoncé, Grace Jones, and Gaga in "Stupid Hoe"". thenynthlife.com. Archived from the original on 2013-12-27. Retrieved 2012-05-14.
  10. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (Illustrated ed.). Sydney: Australian Chart Book. p. 160. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  11. "Discographie Grace Jones" (in German). austriancharts.at. Archived from the original on 2010-10-31. Retrieved 2009-11-10.
  12. "Discografie Grace Jones" (in Dutch). www.dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 2009-10-15.
  13. "Suche nach "grace jones"". www.charts.de (in German). Retrieved 2012-04-05.
  14. "Liedsuche" (in German). www.charts-surfer.de. Retrieved 2009-11-10.
  15. "Discography Grace Jones". charts.nz. Retrieved 2009-11-10.
  16. "Discography Grace Jones". norwegiancharts.com. Archived from the original on 2012-11-02. Retrieved 2009-11-10.
  17. "Grace Jones" (in German). hitparade.ch. Archived from the original on 2010-08-02. Retrieved 2009-11-10.
  18. "The Official Charts Company - Island Life by Grace Jones Search". The Official Charts Company. 6 May 2013.
  19. Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums. Guinness World Records Limited. p. 288. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  20. "Grace Jones". AllMusic. Retrieved 2009-11-11.
  21. "Grace Jones Album & Song Chart History". www.billboard.com. Retrieved 2012-04-05.
  22. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1997 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on 10 August 2020.
  23. "Austrian album certifications – Grace Jones – Island Life" (in German). IFPI Austria.
  24. "NZ Top 40 Albums Chart". Recorded Music NZ. Archived from the original on 1 March 2016. Retrieved 1 March 2016.
  25. "British album certifications – Grace Jones – Island Life". British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type Island Life in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
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