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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 3, 2004)
decentar 3.2004 * Just O U t 47 Peachy keen It’s Old Guard meets New Guard as Elton John and Rufus Wainwrlght hit their stride together JC c v ta a k e cfjo l mom (fooA Every Fri l Sat at 9:10pm intentions' than tw n qot time ? llewly Remodeled Q'teen. ¿Roam Rew Light Show tor hank goodness for Rufus W ainwright. Not because his music is lovely, hut because the W alkman blaring his new album warmed my ears as the cigarette warmed my fingertips on a bitterly cold Thursday-morning walk home from an all- nighter at the office. All th a t’s missing is the chocolate milk. Rufus’ lush, baroque songs give me peace as 1 stroll through the rapidly changing but appropriately named SEED neighborhood. This really is a fantastic time to be queer. Want Two, the sequel to 2003’s ground breaking Want Oru\ coincides with the 43rd release from Elton John, Peachtree Road, his introspective follow-up to 2001 ’s acclaimed Songs from the West Coast. It’s so inspiring to see these two artists working at the top of their games. It’s also inspiring to rediscover Elton, a 57- year-old legend who hasn’t put out anything meaningful since 1983’s “1 Guess T h a t’s W hy They Call It Blues.” I pretty much lost interest around the time he started re-releasing “Candle in the W ind"— first as a 1987 live version and then 10 years later as a dreadful tribute to Princess Diana. (Speaking of which, is anyone else disturbed by growing resemblance between Prince Harry and Di lover James Hewitt? Just asking.) Anyway, I’m noticing a number of similari ties between Rufus and Elton’s new albums— in fact, one of the tracks on Want Two is titled “Peach Trees.” Hmm, are these secretly com panion pieces? Let’s explore the evidence: T hey’re both openly gay. Elton keeps it pretty subtle, especially considering his longtime lyricist, Bemie Taupin, is straight. Meanwhile, Rufus holds nothing back on “Gay Messiah”: “No it will not be me/Rufus the baptist I be/No I won’t be the one/Baptized in cum.” T hey’re both influential. Critics constantly compare Scissor Sisters’ “Take Your Mama” to early Elton, while two Rufus songs (“Vibrate" and ‘G reek S in g ”) are covered on the latest release from, ixldly enough, M anhattan Transfer. T hey’ve both had brushes with death. Elton wrote “Someone Saved My Life Tonight” about his 1968 suicide attem pt— a cry for help because he was about to marry a woman who didn’t even like his music. Rufus came out as a reciwering crystal meth addict last year. T hey’re both dabbling in acting. Rufus appears in Marty Scorsese’s upcoming Howard Hughes biopic. The Aviator (a gixxl excuse to check out the Spruce Goose parked in McMinnville, by the way), and Elton is devel oping an ABC sitcom. T hey’re both unabashedly uncensored. Elton recently stuck his foot in his mouth by knix:king on M adonna’s perceived lip-syncing during her Reinvention Tour. (Hey, buddy, 1 shelled out 315 clams to see her perform in the Bay Area the weekend Reagan kicked the bucket. Do not mess with Madge.) As for Rufus, he wears his politics on his sleeve in 3tack J t Siawi Send a gift subscription to H u s tm T a Jim's Closet Order at www.justout.com or call 503-236-1252 4030 NE H/vIsty PoRilANd 503 288 923 7 www liollywood-bowl nf r by Jim Radosta THE TOP SHELF 4 T \ Q: Name three gender-bending r Beatles tunes. ® A : ‘G e t Back” (“Sweet Loretta M artin thought she was a woman/But she was another man”), “Polythene Pam” (“She’s so good-looking but she looks like a man/Well you should see her in drag dressed in her polythene bag”) and “I Am the Walms" (“Boy, you been a naughty girl you let your knickers down”). We also would’ve accepted “Lovely Rita" (“T he bag across her shoulder/Made her look a little like a military man”), which will be performed along with the entire Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band album by Sneakin’ O ut and the Billy Shears O rchestra on Dec. 3 in Portland and Dec. 4 in McMinnville. (See Page 30 for details.) The three bears perform covers of classic rock tunes (mixed in with the occasional Strauss) every Sunday at the Dirty Duck. I can’t wait to hear how they reinterpret The Beatles’ 1967 masterpiece; their Nov. 21 gig included clever renditions of “Penny Lane,” “Eleanor Rigby” and “Norwegian Wood." (I always thought that last one would be a great title for a Scandinavian porno.) üue i_úng. üue strong. set Tested Free Walk-In HIV Testing • Anonymous • Needle Free • Results in one week Monday Nights 5:30 to 7:30 Washington County Health C linic - Beaverton 1 2 5 5 0 SW 2nd (between Hall & Watson) NOW OPEN Thursday Nights 5:30 to 7:30 W ashington County Health C linic - Tigard 15296 SW Royalty Pkwy (behind Les Schwab across from King Gty) For more information, please call 5 03184614965. &*rcO^ Fo r All You Naughty Boys and Q irls ... The Portland Spirit presents STORM LARGE & THE BALLS Dig, if you will, the picture: W ithin 15 minutes, a perfonner transforms right before our eyes from a diaper- clad, Gollum-esque baby into a dude singing DeBarge while plopped on the shitter into a fast-talking music show host dropping refer ences to Mark Goodson. M eet A ndrew Ox, one of the many talented members of H ouse of C unt, which just wrapped up a three-week run at Noctur nal overseen by gay director Howie Bag- gadonutz. For those who couldn’t make it, you can get a taste of C unt when O x ’s ex, * Amby M artin, performs her wild one-woman show Dec. 7 and 14 at the fabulous gay- owned Wild Abandon. (See Page 30 for details.) T he pair serve yummy brunch there every weekend, FYI. Join us aboard Portland’s only floating nightclub with one o f the city’s most outrageous acts. ■••**>• ,, - ' \\\\\ Q “I am both, and I am neither.” ** — A phrase uttered repeatedly by the fearless gender-variant youth who spilled their guts Nov. 21 at Language of Paradox, the highlight o f 2 Gyrlz Performative Arts’ monthlong Enteracdve Language Festival. If you missed out this year, don't make the same mistake in 2005. “W aiting for a Dream”: “There’s a fire in the priory/And an ogre in th e oval office/Once again we all will be so broken/Now can I finally sleep again?" JP1 JlM RADOSTA needs your feedback. W nte to jixn@justout.com. B S torm Large an d The Balls ~ 12/3 and 12A 7 Boarding at 10 4 5pm /Cruising 11:0 0 pm to 1:30am $16 advance/$ 2 0 at door (Adults 2 1 + only) $8 one-tim e hors d'oeuvre buffet C all ( 8 0 0 ) 2 2 4 -3 9 0 1 o r (5 0 3 ) 2 2 4 -3 9 0 0 Visit www.portlandspirit.com
