Before S-A-W spun Dead Or Alive a hit record (baby), club kids knew them for an audacious cover of "That's The Way (I Like It)" complete with bender Pete Burns prancing around a gym-full of female bodybuilders which may have accidentally said more about LaBurns than he'd intended. Even while strutting, pouting, and leering, it was obvious that this wasn't your typical drag queen: no coy giggles ala Boy George, Pete looked like the sort of gal that would help you fix a flat and then beat you up and steal your car because you wouldn't blow him. Linda and I were completely entranced by this creature; she to the point of shivers as he growled, "it should be okay, if you try it in my way", declaring herself ready for anything if he'd only do it now.
I wasn't ready to go that far but I did go to the record store when the US finally got the debut, "Sophisticated Boom Boom". I've loved/hated the thing ever since depending on my mood and what year it is when I revisit it. One song, though, has remained constant in my adoration and that is the musical self-help thesis that is "Far Too Hard"; a shimmering Studio 54 throwback that could have been a Philadelphia International track until you realize what this guy is on about and begin to feel as you might upon learning that your grandmother is a lesbian serial rapist. The fact that Pete actually sings this instead of utilizing his usual snarl and bark delivery makes it even more intriguing.
And about that singing... does anyone else hear Morrissey? And doesn't that shine an interesting light on that Smash Hits interview that left so many of us scratching our heads...
Dead or Alive would have their bigger moments - some of them featuring Pete giving us a preview of Cher's look circa '89 - but to my ears, he's never topped the five minutes he took to honestly explain the crux of his personality while linking the hedonism of the disco era to the goth kids to the alternakids to the...
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