I LOVE ROCK AND ROLL
And I Love Joan Jett

One of the best live rock shows I've seen in my life was Joan Jett and the Blackhearts back in the summer of 1982. They played a venue at Astroworld, which is how I managed to get access to the seedy world of rock concerts at the tender age of 14. Even though both the album and single named "I Love Rock and Roll" had gone to the top of the charts, and even though their follow-up single releases were strong sellers at the time, they played like a hungry nightclub band, totally rocking out as though they were trying to outdo the headliner, even though they had been top-billed. Twenty four years later, after seeing numerous other bands play live, the Blackhearts show still resonates with me, along with Frank Zappa, U2, and only a few others, as the standard by which I judge other bands. It was that good of a show.

It's not simply that they're such a great live act, either. Jett is, in my humble opinion, one of the all time great rock writers. Her songs are simple, usually following the classic verse/chorus, verse/chorus, solo/chorus structure. Her lyrics are simple, too, but always finding a way to draw blood--there's never a hint of self-aggrandizing pretention in a Joan Jett song; she's working class, and just gets the job done, always effectively. The arrangements are usually to the point, as well, two guitars, heavily distorted, bass, and drums, often evoking a sort of cool tribal sound. You don't get any closer to the essence of rock and roll than this.

Anyway, they haven't topped the charts since I saw them play, but they're still together, releasing new material and touring every few years, which brings me to the subject of this post: Joan Jett's new single is pretty darned good. It also pretty much answers a question that's been on many fans' minds for many years.

From GLBTQ:

Joan Jett (b. 1960)

Jett's leather-clad, bad-girl image, and her collaboration with seminal Riot Grrrl act Bikini Kill, as well as with (female) rock groups L7 and Babes in Toyland, helped cement her reputation as a kind of queercore role model despite her lack of a genuine niche. The queercore movement, characterized by hardcore punk music and militant lyrics, embraced her, though she had already achieved prominence when queercore came to the fore in the late 1980s.

While she has not issued a public statement regarding her sexuality, Jett has performed publicly with a sticker on her guitar that proclaims, "Dykes Rule," and her sizable lesbian following is a formidable presence at her shows. With the Blackhearts, Joan has performed at numerous gay-rights events, headlining at St. Louis's Pride Fest in 2001, and she often appears at queer-themed shows and clubs in New York City.

In response to the rumors surrounding her sexuality, Jett has said, "I don't really care what people call me. I think it's important to support people you want to support and not be afraid of being called names."

Click here for the rest.

Because dykes, in fact, do rule, and because it means nothing about a performer's sexual orientation if he or she attracts a large gay following...okay, I'm just kidding. I think it's as obvious as George Michael, Rob Halford, and Mr. Sulu that Joan Jett is a lesbian, although such a thing never occurred to me when I was a young teen. But for whatever reason, probably old-school music business paranoia, Jett has been coy about whether she likes boys or girls for many years.

Her new song, "ACDC," and, yes, it is about bisexuality, but not hers, seems to wipe away the shy act. And it's a fucking great tune; gone is the absurd late 80s heavy metal production style she used for a while on songs like "I Hate Myself for Loving You," which is still pretty good in spite of the hairspray: this new tune goes back to the classic Blackhearts hard rock sound that I grooved to when I was in the eighth grade.

Check out the video here.

And just because I can, check out the video for "I Love Rock and Roll" here.

And, what the hell, have a Joan Jett rockin' video feast: "Do You Wanna Touch Me" (which sounds to me these days like a really heavy Gary Glitter UPDATE: I just found out that the song was written by Gary Glitter), "Crimson and Clover" (the Blackhearts covering the 60s bubblegum hit, featuring a very important pair of leather pants that permanently marked itself on my libido back in the day), and, while I'm at it, the aforementioned metal-goofy, but still pretty cool, "I Hate Myself for Loving You."



Dykes rule!

$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$