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Before Boy George, Phranc, Falling James, Marilyn Manson and various other gender-benders, there was Wayne/Jayne County (there were also the New York Dolls, but, as they were hetero boys in drag, they will be raved about elsewhere...).
Sadly, Wayne/Jayne spent many years out of the spotlight, since, despite three classic albums (and lesser ones on the dancey side that I have not located), s/he had no chart success, being 'ahead of her time'. Fortunately, s/he is making a comeback, what with the release of a best-of (reviewed in Things That Spin), a new album ("Deviation", and pretty good) and this autobiography.
She was born in Dallas, Georgia, around 1947, as Wayne Rogers. Despite being a popular plaything for the het boys in her hometown, she was very unhappy in her poor, religiously fanatical family and fled for a variety of big cities. The book is stuffed with examples of her adventures in Atlanta and New York, including a role in the stonewall Riots.
She happened to come to the attention of the Warhol camp and went to England to star in Pork (having written and/or starred in NYC plays with the likes of Patti Smith), arriving in time to see some of the beginning alternative music movement there. As a fan of protopunk (i.e. the Velvets, Electric Prunes, etc.) from way back, and a columnist for Rock Scene, she decided to get involved herself.
After a disastrous managerial flirtation with David Bowie's Mainman company (and a creepy attempt at flirtation by Bowie that is described in the book), she set out on her own with bands The Backstreet Boys (no, not them) and Electric Chairs, combining garage rock/punk riffs with musings on sex, men, religion and politics, and the rest was herstory.
For such a short book, it is simply packed with attitude and information. For punk fans, any and all queers (especially those who think queens are a liability) and those who don't fit in, it is an absorbing read.
One of Miss Jayne's kin, Boy George, also has an autobiography out, which is much longer but no less frank. (Ed. note: it would appear to be out of print now, but libraries around here have it, so keep an eye out - I'm rather surprised it didn't re-emerge with the recent Culture Club reunion...bear in mind this is according to a US on-line bookseller, so it may be in print elsewhere...).
George is more (in)famous, of course. While, like Jayne, he encountered drugs, he cultivated a cuddly image that was shattered by the revelations. Jayne never pretended to be nice and 'straight' in her heyday.
For gossip fans, George's book is a treasure-trove. We learn about his relationship with Culture Club drummer Jon Moss; discover that Helen Terry, one of the Club's vocalist, is a dyke; and so much more. I'm startled he was not sued for naming names (well, several people, including the singer of Bush, have issued denials about various claims...but no suits, as far as I can tell...).
It is not very punk (though he was as a teenager, in both senses), but it is an interesting study of what sucking corporate rock's cock can do to someone (by the way - could we RETIRE that metaphor? Since SST, who put an anti-financial-fellatio message on a shirt, sued one of its own artists, Negativland, for giving the finger to Island Records and U2, it is tainted. Besides, there's nothing wrong with sucking cock...).
Richard Hell was a NYC rock bard in early Television, Johnny Thunders' Heartbreakers and finally the Voidoids. He has worked sporadically in music since the Seventies, focusing on publishing, movies, art and family.
He now is making a comeback to music (Dim Stars, spoken-word albums) and has a new novel, 'Go Now', as well as this gem.
'Artifact' is a collection of snippets from a notebook he kept from 1974 to 1980 (said book being given him by Patti Smith) and some articles. As such, it is a bit scattershot and some of it too personal to get inside of as a reader, but the best is thoughtful and witty. Observations such as "I'm so proud to be the one chosen to confirm your mistrust of human nature" (p. 19) are too funny and true not to be on a T-shirt. In short, an interesting insight into another's mind.
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