Jayne County
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Jayne County, formerly known as Wayne County, is an influential transsexual performer, musician and actress whose career has spanned several decades.
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[edit] Biography
She left her hometown of Dallas, Georgia in 1968 to move to New York City, where she became a regular at the Stonewall Inn and took part in the historic riots that occurred there. In 1969, County was asked by Warhol superstar and playwright Jackie Curtis to appear in her play Femme Fatale at the La Mama Theatre, which would also star Patti Smith. In her autobiography, County says of Curtis, "...She was my biggest influence, the person who really got me started..." After a successful run of Femme Fatale, County wrote her own play World - Birth Of A Nation which she also appeared in, bringing her to the attention of Andy Warhol, who cast her in his own theatrical production Pork. After a run in New York, the play, with the New York cast, was performed in London for a few months. Upon returning to New York, County appeared in another play, Island, by Tony Ingrassia, again with Patti Smith.
Then, in 1972 County got her first band, Queen Elizabeth together, one of the pioneering glitter rock bands. Despite being signed to MainMan Management, the managing firm of David Bowie, no records were ever produced, although the company did spend over $200,000 to film the highly influential 1974 stage show "Wayne at the Trucks", no footage of which has ever been released (even in bootleg form). The show, which featured numerous costume changes and some of Wayne's raunchiest material, is an essential link between early glitter rock and punk, and is a precursor (and inspiration for) Bowie's own "Diamond Dogs" tour. Wayne's song "Queenage Baby" from this show is considered to be a blueprint for Bowie's later song "Rebel Rebel".
The film remains (presumably) in Bowie's vaults, though eight live recordings from this show were released in audio form on the 2006 CD Wayne County At The Trucks on Munster Records. It wasn't until 1975, with her new band "The Backstreet Boys" that the then-Wayne County recorded three tracks for the compilation Max's Kansas City: New York New Wave, which also featured Suicide, Pere Ubu and The Fast. Wayne County and The Backstreet Boys played regularly at the clubs CBGBs and at Max's Kansas City, where County was also a DJ. It was at this time that she appeared in the film The Blank Generation, directed by Amos Poe and Ivan Kral. The film, the recording and the shows were the beginnings of what came to be known as punk rock, and helped define this movement for a generation of youth.
In 1977, County left New York to return to London, where the English punk scene was just emerging. Here, she formed a new band called Wayne County & the Electric Chairs. Proving extremely popular in the underground scene in England, County released the EP Electric Chairs 1977, plus a single on Illegal Records. This was followed by the now famous song "Fuck Off" recorded as a single for Safari Records, with a European tour in support of the records. Upon returning to London, County met Derek Jarman who cast her as the character "Lounge Lizard" in the seminal punk film Jubilee, which also starred Adam Ant, Toyah Willcox, Ian Charleson and Jordan. After this The Electric Chairs recorded their first self-titled album, which featured one of County's most popular songs "Eddie and Sheena", and an EP named Blatantly Offensive, which contained County's most controversial songs "Fuck Off" and "Toilet Love." After touring, they followed this up with another album Storm The Gates Of Heaven. The next album, released in 1979 was Things Your Mother Never Told You. After it was released, the band broke up and County returned to the U.S. in 1979. It was at this time that the name Wayne was officially changed to Jayne.
In 1980, Jayne County traveled to Berlin to appear in another play by Ingrassia, Sheila. This was followed by Rock and Roll Peepshow, which the two co-wrote. Jayne then met an American named Tron von Hollywood and together they produced U-Bahn To Memory Lane. Tron introduced Jayne to filmmaker Rosa von Praunheim who cast her in his film City Of Lost Souls, for which she also wrote the title song, released in 1982.
In 1983, County returned to New York where she appeared in the theatrical production Les Girls with Holly Woodlawn and other transgendered performers. After this she returned to London for the premiere of City Of Lost Souls and stayed long enough to record another album Private Oyster. She then returned again to the U.S.
In the 1990s many of the earlier recordings were released, such as the early Safari tracks on a CD called Rock & Roll Cleopatra. She recorded the album Goddess Of Wet Dreams in 1993, followed by Deviation in 1995. That same year she appeared in Wigstock: The Movie and released her autobiography Man Enough To Be A Woman.
Since Deviation, several new Jayne tracks have surfaced on various compilations and through Jayne's official website. Many of these tracks, both live and studio, were collected on the Ratcage Records release So New York, including collaborations with Lisa Jackson and former Electric Chairs guitarist Eliot Michaels. A thunderous live show (recorded on Jayne's birthday) was released on the 2002 CD Wash Me In The Blood (Of Rock & Roll)- Live at Squeeze Box by Fang Records, and features a boisterous duet on "California Sun" by Jayne and former nemesis "Handsome" Dick Manitoba of the Dictators.
County had been an innovator in many arenas and gradually people were beginning to catch up with her. As one of the major inspirations of the queercore movement, she has the appreciation of a new generation for her ground-breaking work.
[edit] Films
- The Blank Generation, directed by Ivan Kral and Amos Poe (1976)
- The Punk Rock Movie, directed by Don Letts (1977)
- Punk In London, directed by Wolfgang Büld
- Jubilee, directed by Derek Jarman
- City Of Lost Souls. directed by Rosa von Praumheim (1982)
- Wigstock:The Movie, directed by Barry Shils (1995)
[edit] Books
- Man Enough To Be A Woman, Jayne County with Rupert Smith, 1995, published by Serpents's Tail ISBN 1-85242-338-2
[edit] Discography
- The Electric Chairs 1977 EP on Illegal Records 1977
- The Electric Chairs on Safari Records 1978
- Blatantly Offensive EP, Safari Records 1978
- Storm The Gates Of Heaven, Safari Records 1978
- Things Your Mother Never Told You, Safari Records 1979
- Rock and Roll Resurrection, Safari Records 1980
- Private Oyster, Revolver Records 1987
- Goddess Of Wet Dreams, ESP Records 1993
- Deviation, Royalty Records 1995
- Wash Me In The Blood (Of Rock & Roll)- Live at Squeeze Box, Fang Records 2002
- So New York, Ratcage Records 2003
- Wayne County At The Trucks, Munster Records 2006
