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Pretty in punk
The rebel rocker of the '80s is coming to the Vans Warped Tour and Attracting a new generation of fans
from: newsday.com
by Rafer Guzman, Newsday Staff Writer
Quick, name this punk band: They pounded the club circuit for years and released their first album independently.
They scored a breakthrough single and signed to a major label. They recently played four sold-out dates at small clubs in New York, including CBGB. And now, for the first time, they're one of the star acts at America's premiere punk festival, the Vans Warped Tour, which stops at Nassau Coliseum next Saturday.
The band is, of course, JOAN JETT AND THE BLACKHEARTS, a group that's been around since the early 1980s, decades before the Warped Tour even existed. But doesn't Jett's bio sound like that of so many other, younger punk bands? At 45, Jett is at least twice the age of the kids she's playing to (and with) this summer, but in some ways she fits right in.
"I never subscribed to the idea that punk rock means you have to play fast and scream," Jett says, speaking by phone while on the road recently. "To me, it means being a rebel, being an underdog, being outside and doing it yourself."
Continuously making music
With a new album, "SINNER," released on her own BLACKHEART RECORDS label, the time seems right for Jett to reintroduce herself to a generation that probably knows her only as that lady who sang "I Love Rock 'n' Roll" back in the early '80s. But Jett was a fixture on the early punk scene, working with the Germs and members of the Sex Pistols. She was a "woman in rock" long before that term became a catchphrase. And she was an independent artist years before the indie-rock trend.
What's more, during a 30-year career, Jett has pretty much never stopped writing, recording and touring. At her show last month at the Brooklyn nightclub Southpaw, Jett was in impressive shape, boasting muscular arms and a supermodel-smooth stomach. Wearing black leather pants and a bikini top, she hammered out 90 minutes of loud, sweaty rock to an equally loud, sweaty crowd. Anyone holding a ticket to the Warped Tour would be foolish to miss her.
"She's a total showman," says Kathleen Hannah, the singer for Bikini Kill and Le Tigre who co-wrote several songs on Jett's new album. "Everyone knows she's sung 'I Love Rock 'n' Roll' 3,000 times, but she can do it like it's the very first time she's sung it. That's beyond talent."
Warped Tour founder Kevin Lyman says Jett is bringing "some style and class" to the festival. "I think a lot of kids don't know her, but by the time they leave here, they know who she is. I think she's accomplishing a lot by doing this."
A Runaway at age 15
Jett began her long and turbulent career at the age of 15 when she joined the Los Angeles-based all-girl band the RUNAWAYS as a guitarist and songwriter. The RUNAWAYS played time-tested power-pop, but they raised eyebrows for their sexually charged songs and also for being young females in the male world of rock. Commercial success eluded them; they played their last show in 1978, when Jett was 18.
Jett quickly became involved in the nascent punk scene at the time, traveling to England to work briefly with guitarist Steve Jones and drummer Paul Cook of the Sex Pistols, then producing the seminal punk album "(GI)" by the Germs. Soon after, she met producer and songwriter KENNY LAGUNA, and the two formed an unlikely but lasting partnership.
The two made an odd couple: Laguna, the old-school pop musician who worked with Tommy James and the Shondells, and Jett, the intimidating rocker chick. But Laguna says he saw a diamond in the rough when the two first met.
"She was drinking heavily," Laguna recalls, sitting backstage at Southpaw while Jett (now a health-conscious vegetarian) rests her voice and eats a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. "She was hanging out with Sid Vicious and Darby Crash, and she definitely showed that look. She was a little bloated. But she was very pretty, and she had this black leather jacket."
Jett says Laguna's pop sensibility helped temper her hard-rock instincts, but there's another reason the two have remained close: Laguna treats Jett like an equal. "He came to my defense early on, when nobody else was there to defend me," she says. "I think he was truly offended in his heart and soul by what he saw, people writing me off because I was just some little girl. And that still happens to some extent."
Jett wound up with a string of Top 20 hits, including "Crimson and Clover," "Do You Wanna Touch Me (Oh Yeah)" and "I Hate Myself for Loving You." Her charismatic presence made her a natural for MTV; in an era of dolled-up female singers such as Debbie Harry and Madonna, Jett stood out for her aggressive, masculine swagger.
An ambiguous identity
There's been plenty of speculation about Jett's sexual orientation, and Jett likes to fan the flames. Her new album features a cover of the Replacements' "Androgynous" and a cheeky version of Sweet's ode to bisexuality, "A.C.D.C." (The video features Carmen Electra flirting up a storm with Jett.) And the stickers covering Jett's guitars have offered what could be hints: One was of Tinky Winky, the "gay" Teletubby; another said simply, "Dykes Rule!"
In fact, Jett won't publicly discuss her sexuality. "But I do it in my music, and I always have," she says. "If you don't know who I am from listening to my music, then you're not going to figure it out from me talking to you, either."
After the Warped Tour, Jett plans to embark on her own headlining tour in October with the Eagles of Death Metal tentatively slotted as support act. Which brings up a question: Why, after all these years, is Jett still one of the few active, well-known female rock artists around?
"People will really cut down women - really get nasty - for no reason at all, just because you're trying to play music," explains Jett, who owns several homes on the Island. "Most women choose not to go that route, because that's not the kind of life they want, sparring with people for the rest of their lives. But this is all that I've ever done. And it's my job now to be the warrior, and to fight."
Rock that improves with age
JOAN JETT isn't the only old-school punk who's played the Warped Tour. Founder Kevin Lyman likes to book at least one or two heritage acts each year to remind the kids of their roots. Here are a few who have joined the tour:
Bad Religion
A regular on the Warped Tour (though not this year), Bad Religion has been around since 1980. But when the group began to score radio hits like "Infected" in the early '90s, it became relevant to a new generation. These days, singer Greg Gaffin is heading in a new direction: He's just released an album of spooky American folk songs called "Cold as the Clay" (Anti-).
Buzzcocks
Arguably the best band to emerge from the U.K. punk scene, Buzzcocks remain a cult item in the United States. But Thursday's Geoff Rickly is apparently part of the cult: He joined the Brits for a rendition of their new single, "Wish I Never Loved You," when they played the Miami date this year.
The Germs
The legendary L.A. punks appeared for a few shows this year with actor Shane West filling in for the late singer Darby Crash. West is playing the famously troubled singer - who in 1980 committed suicide by overdosing on heroin - in an upcoming film about the band called "What We Do Is Secret."
Billy Idol
Like Jett, Idol still has the flat stomach of a teenager - not bad for a 50-year-old. During last year's stint, he bravely devoted half his set to new material but still found room for "Rebel Yell" and "White Wedding." Jett might want to ask him how he managed to survive the summer while wearing leather pants.
Vandals
From the same school of goof-punk that included Toy Dolls, the Dickies and the Circle Jerks, the Vandals are one of Lyman's favorite bands - which explains why they've been on Warped several times. On the 2004 tour, the group alluded to their advanced age with the song "My Neck, My Back."
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