This week we focus on Jake Shears, frontman for the band Scissor Sisters. Today's song is from their 2006 release. Shears, real name Jason Sellards, formed the band in 2001 with Scott Hoffman (Babydaddy). In live shows, Shears is known for his flamboyant style of costumes and dancing. While he was trying to make it in New York, Shears worked as a dancer in gay strip clubs and was a fixture on the gay club scene. Openly gay, Shears proposed to his longtime boyfriend earlier this year and they plan to marry in 2008.
http://www.timessquaregossip.com/2007/07/jake-shears-to-marry-in-new-york-city.htmll
32 comments:
We know there's a problem with the song. Trying to fix it.
I got the whole song and made me do exactly what it does every time I hear it. Get up and dance. What a great way to start a Sunday.
Anderson Cooper is fan of the Scissor Sisters as well as friend of Jake Shears. He has been spotted more than a few times at a Scissor Sisters show. I just can imagine him dancing. : )
Good Morning all,
What a great song to find when I brought up OMG this morning. What a voice - one part Barry Gibb, one part Andy Bell of Erasure, and totally joyful. Great way to start the day.
Spent most of yesterday Christmas shopping and decorating, and treated myself to the 2008 Brokeback Mountain calendar. *sigh*
Have a great Sunday! :*
Maybe a little Jimmy Somerville thrown in too? Whooo, love the rythym of this song too:
You'd think that I could muster up a little soft shoe gentle sway,
But I don't feel like dancin',
No sir, no dancin' today.
But it does make me feel like dancin' today. lol ;)
The Scissor Sisters are a hoot. From what I've read they are very popular in the U.K., whereas they are not that well known in the U.S. I've never been sure if that is because this kind of music tend to be more popular in Europe, or whether it is because they are so campy and gay.
I'm a huge fan of the Scissor Sisters first album, I never really got into the second one, Ta-Da, but I do love this single. They're a great band. What I've always admired about Jake Shears is how to-the-point and up front he is when it comes to just about everything in his life. He's inspiring to listen to and his energy is infectious.
I'm loving all these menorahs you two are finding. I actually look forward to seeing the new one each day, hehe. :)
He's inspiring to listen to and his energy is infectious.
He sure is, BLTB - made my day! I also read about his plans for his upcoming nuptials, and you can feel his happiness come through in his music. :)
Destiny ... Yes, the Scissor Sisters are very popular here in the UK (3rd biggest selling album in 2006). I think their style of music is more popular in the UK and Europe than in the US and also it has to be said that UK popular culture is a bit of a campfest so they fitted in very well. I think they're also pretty big in Germany.
Not sure that they've been that big this year but that could be because they've not had anything new out.
Great song absolutely. The Scissor Sisters is one of those bands I've regularly read tidbits about here and there but never took the time to really get into. Probably because they are often described as a dance/club band. Now that I'm finally taking the time to "listen" to them I have to agree their music has all the ingredients of a very addictive audio substance. ;D
One thing I remember clearly is reading about their leader's proposal to his BF and the wide grin it brought on my face. Thanks for spotlighting news like these.
I'm checking the "Famous Gay People" list right now (BTW, do you plan to rename it "queer" as it was suggested in the past?) and if its length is any indication our "Out Spotlight" is not about to be short of interesting subjects! :) :)
Ooh sistah netb, I thought it was "soft shoe devil sway"!
The Sistahs are huge here. I adore Land of a Thousand Words in particular and would love to hear it on this site some time.
Sistah, you're probably right - and "devil sway" sounds a lot more fun anyway! ;)
Guys, have we included Jimmy Somerville and Andy Bell in our Continuously Updated List of Queer People"? Apologies if we have. I used to worry about using that word, it was like the "N" word to me, or any of the numerous putdowns and slurs against women and minorities. But now, I see a strength in it. Anyway, here's a little blurb from Jimmy S' bio and Andy from Wikipedia:
Born in Glasgow, Scotland on June 22, 1961, he [Jimmy Somerville] co-founded Bronski Beat in 1984; from the band's debut single "Smalltown Boy" onward, Somerville's songs dealt openly with his own homosexuality, a recurring theme which met with surprisingly little commercial resistance as both the record and its follow-up, "Why?," cracked the UK Top Ten.
Following the disbandment of the short-lived synth pop group Yazoo, former Depeche Mode member Vince Clarke formed Erasure in 1985 with singer Andy Bell. Like Yaz and Depeche Mode, Erasure were a synth-based group, but they had stronger dance inclinations, as well as a sharper, more accessible sense of pop songcraft, than either of Clarke's previous bands. Furthermore, Erasure had the flamboyantly eccentric Andy Bell -- one of the first openly gay performers in pop music -- as their focal point. Bell's keening, high voice and exaggerated sense of theatrically became the band's defining image.
Along with the beauty of Jimmy's falsetto, I always felt a pain too, especially in "Smalltown Boy", which I hope we'll play here sometime.
Sorry for such a long post! ;)
Two more singers to include:
Leslie Gore - Who announced in 2005 that she is a lesbian. She stated further that she did not know her own orientation until she was in her twenties, and after she discovered that she was a lesbian, she never gave much thought to exposing it publicly, but at the same time she took no great lengths to hide it.(Wikipedia)
Leslie sings one of fav of mine: Sunshine, Lollipops,Rainbows.
And Dusty Springfield.
Throughout much of Springfield's career, her sexuality was a matter of speculation. In 1970, she disclosed that she was bisexual when she told Ray Connolly of the London Evening Standard during an interview that "A lot of people say I'm bent, and I've heard it so many times that I've almost learned to accept it....I know I'm perfectly as capable of being swayed by a girl as by a boy." By 1970 standards, Springfield had made a very bold statement. The fact that she never married meant that the issue continued to be raised throughout her life from this point onwards, although she stated that she had enjoyed relationships with both men and women "and liked it".
(Wikipedia)
Dusty has one of the greatest voices in the history of Pop. Her album Dusty in Memphis is consider one of the greatest albums ever produced. Many people will know her from the song Son of a Preacher Man.
^^Spesh, she really does have one of the best voices ever. She was one of my mom's favorites, and I've always adored her voice. Thanks for reminding us of both Leslie Gore and Dusty Springfield. "Anyone Who Had A Heart" is my favorite, I think. ;)
Love Jake Shears - even though I did think he was plagiarizing Elton John when I first heard the album. Elton's a fan as well, though, so I guess imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.
Just mulling over the PR discussions from yesterday. I'm not a conspiracy theorist. At all. I don't think everything Jake does is driven by the need for PR.
But I still don't understand why last year someone went as far as cutting Jake out of a frame with Austin and Sophia to make it look like a date. (Not even mentioning the almost certainly photoshopped shot). And released the Jake and Sophia to look like another date weeks later. Who would go to that much effort before Lakers I? If a Jeese fan can explain that to me I'd love to hear it.
Any author for 3:47?
Oops, sorry, guess who? Me, NETB. ;)
Thanks NETB!
You learn every day. I never knew about Dusty Springfield and Lesley Gore. :)
Special & Wicked, what do you think about announcing one or more additions to the list in the Out Spotlight post every Sunday?
And here are my personal contributions for the day:
Marie-Claire Blais, Canadian author and playwright, openly gay.
Michel Tremblay, major Canadian novelist and playwright, born in 1942, has always been openly gay. An interesting note since we're celebrating Hanukkah: his work has been translated into many languages, including Yiddish.
Oups, forgot this one:
Alan Bates, fantastic actor, unfortunately closeted till he died.
Frenchy, that is a good idea. I like it!
Been having serious computer problems this weekend. If anybody has a good IP that they would recommend, let me know. Especially in the DC area.
Another Jeese sighting with kids
^Why do I want say land shark? : )
So the guy isn't absolutely sure it was Jake. And another thing, if it was, he says that Jake left by walking out the exit door, then Reese came into the area with her kids to see the sharks. So Jake wasn't really with them, he was just walking ahead of them and not spending time in the same areas with them? Sounds "fishy" to me!
Why do I want to say "candygram?"
Forgot to say I found this sighting posted @ WFT. Makes me wonder how these sightings on obscure blogs and Livejournals always get posted either here or WFT.
Land shark is one of my all-time favorite SNL favorite routines special. And I think it was more likely to have been a land shark than Jake.
Special K, did you mean that the shark touched a "land shark"? That's too funny! Can you imagine him afterwards telling all his aquarium buddies "I touched Shark Witherspoon!" :)
That is if he lives to tell about it. :(
Makes me wonder how these sightings on obscure blogs and Livejournals always get posted either here or WFT
Simple really. Blog seaches, wicked. If you blog search with Jake's name for instance, certain blog search engines will search every blog and LJ for mentions of his name. In this case I suspect someone was blog searching Reese's name since the LJ author misspelled Jake's name.
"So the guy isn't absolutely sure it was Jake."
Actually, the next thing we'll hear is that Jake, Reese and the shark had an 10-minute orgy in the acquarium bathroom. Jake then proposed and was rejected by the shark, gave Reese a friendship ring shaped like Orca the whale, pulled out his transporter device and beamed back to Santa Fe.
Aaaaaah, love fauxmance style....
What's odd about the aquarium post is that if you try to go to the previous days live journal entry, it asks for a log in. If the guy has a locked friends only journal, why leave a comment about Reeke open.
LOL, land shark! What can I say, I laugh at all the quips here; you guys are very funny. :D Meh, I can't even be bothered to read the copy for that latest sighting.
I was thrilled to see Smalltown Boy mentioned, though. It's a long-time favorite of mine; so beautiful and heartbreaking. Same goes for the video.
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