Jamaican Megastar Grace Jones Hailed By Naomi Campbell On 73rd Birthday
While most Jamaicans appeared to be oblivious of the 73rd birthday of Pull Up to The Bumper and My Jamaican Guy singer Grace Jones on Wednesday, global fashion icon Naomi Campbell was paying a big tribute to the island’s first female megastar.
This year, Grace is not only celebrating her 73rd birthday but also the 40th anniversary of her signature hit single Pull up to the Bumper, a song which was remade by Dancehall superstar Patra for her sophomore album Scent of Attraction in 1995.
Naomi, who was born in the UK to Jamaican parents, hailed Grace, who was born in Spanish Town, St Catherine on Instagram on Thursday, two days after announcing she had become a mother at 50.
The supermodel model shared a recent photo of herself and Grace alongside several throwback photos of themselves frolicking at Grace’s 42nd birthday at Springfellow’s Nightclub in New York in 1990, as well as another from their attendance at Wimbledon in 2013.
“Happy Birthday to my Jamaican Sister the legendary the one and only Grace Jones @gracejonesofficial, blessings to you on this special day. I cherish our decades of kinship and shared bday’s. What people don’t know about you, is how big your heart is and how maternal you are,” Naomi wrote.
“I will be forever grateful to you, looking out for me as teenager all over the world !! You exude an inner strength and have always been authentic and unapologetic in all you do An icon of our time. Ladies and Gentleman Ms Grace Jones ♥️♥️♥️🎂🎂🎂😘😘😘🇯🇲,” the Vogue cover girl wrote.
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Jones, who has her roots in Spanish Town, left Jamaica at the age of 12 to join her parents in the United States where she lived in Syracuse. She recorded Pull up to the Bumper, in 1981 and My Jamaican Guy in 1982. My Jamaican Guy which is written in Patois and English, was penned by Jones and was the third single on her 1982 album, Living My Life.
Pull Up to the Bumper which was also written by Grace, was released as the third single from her fifth album titled Nightclubbing for Island Records and is described sonically, as a reggae-disco fusion with, among other things, elements of funk and R&B music.
The song, which was Grace’s first Trans-Atlantic hit, peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs chart in the US and number 53 in the UK. When it was re-released in 1986, it peaked at number 12 in the UK.
The single sparked controversy for what many media houses regarded as its sexually suggestive lyrics, prompting some radio stations to refuse to broadcast it due to the lines: “Pull up to my bumper baby / In your long black limousine / Pull up to my bumper baby / Drive it in between” as well as “Grease it / Spray it / Let me lubricate it” and “I’ve got to blow your horn.”
Patra’s version was also a high performer, reaching number 60 on the US Hot 100, number 21 on the R&B chart,and #15 on the dance chart. It also reached number 78 in Australia, number 12 in New Zealand and number 50 in the UK.
In 2018, Grace was presented with the nation’s fifth-highest honour by the Jamaican Government, the Order of Jamaica (OJ). The fashion icon, singer, actress, author, and film producer, was being recognised for her exceptional contribution to the field of entertainment internationally.
At the time, Prime Minister Andrew Holness said Jones, whom he regards as always a strong advocate for Jamaica, was befitting of the award due to for her own work as an actress and international icon, but also because she has never forgotten her Jamaican roots and had embellished her international profile using Jamaica, and made an indelible contribution to Brand Jamaica.
Grace is known for her work with prominent fashion houses such as Yves St Laurent and Kenzo and appearing on the covers of Elle and Vogue. She also starred in the James Bond movie A View to a Kill as the assassin May Day in 1985, and also appeared alongside Eddie Murphy in Boomerang.