See You At the Green
(New Haven Register, 6/22/01) Busy Cameo hasn't faded from sight.
Yes,
we know--mention the word "Cameo," as in the R&B/funk
supergroup of the '70s and '80s, and you think, "red
codpiece." Larry Blackmon's high-top fade (dubbed "The
Cameo," which sparked a hairstyle craze among young black men
during the late '80s). Hits like "Strange" and
"Word Up." But beyond the '80s, the group seemed more like a
surefire candidate for VH1's "Where Are They Now?"
Cameo
frontman Larry Blackmon would advise the naysayers out there to be
aware, because the group's alive and kicking. In fact, it was a
bit hard to even catch up with him for this interview--between just
returning fro a show in Amsterdam, collaborations with Mariah Carey (for
her single "Loverboy," sampled from Cameo's 1987 hit
"Candy") and hip-hop group Dead Prez, a starring role in a new
stage play and this Saturday's performance at New Haven's International
Festival of Arts & Ideas, let's just say that Blackmon's still a
very busy guy.
"It's
just a life, really," he said during a phone interview.
"For us, it's more than just what we're doing musically--we really
enjoy what we do. I thank God for it."
Indeed,
Cameo's members have had the kind of career many would envy.
Founded by ex-Julliard student Blackmon in the early '70s as an antidote
to the disco thing, the group was originally called The New York City
Players and included Tomi Jenkins and Nathan Leftenant, who are still
with the group.
Along
with a rigorous touring schedule and standout singles such as "I
Just Want to Be," the renamed Cameo built a name for itself during
that decade. But it was their 1984 single "She's
Strange" that crossed Cameo over from R&B/funk into the top 40
pop market realm, followed by 1985's "Single Life," a smoothly
raucous ode to the beauty of bachelorism. And the 1986 hit
"Word Up," with Blackmon's funky, joyfully obnoxious nasal
vocals, was probably funk's defiant last stand before the heyday of
hip-hop. But as Blackmon will tell you in a heartbeat, going
against the grain is what Cameo does best.
"If
you were to look 'different' up in the dictionary, you'd see Cameo's
picture," he said, listing a slew of varied musical influences from
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young to Earth, Wind & Fire.
"Radio and promotion people would say, 'You need to come with a
ballad now' or suggest something uptempo--and we'd always go in the
exact opposite direction."
Of
course, when you think of Cameo and its offbeat quirkiness, you can't
help but think of Blackmon's fire-engine red codpiece, an outrageous
staple of his outfits during concerts and videos. It was the brainchild
of late artist/fashion consultant Toyce Anderson, who worked with
Blackmon during shooting of the "Word Up" video. Taken
aback when he first saw it, Blackmon decided to go with it--and the
rest, as they say, was history.
"There
were a couple of tours where we were like, 'Man, we're tired of the
codpiece,'" he said, "and the audience just wasn't having
it!"
The
group may have faded from the charts, but it continues to record albums,
the latest being last year's Sexy Sweet Thing. What has
held Cameo together all these years, while other groups have fallen into
oblivion?
"That's
a good question," said Blackmon. "It's a strange kind of
situation--it's not like we consciously made a decision like, 'OK, we're
going to be together 20 years from now.' We're continuing on with
the work because the work's not done, in our opinion."
So,
for Blackmon, the beat goes on. Aside from performing around the
world with Cameo, he'll also be exercising his acting muscles this fall
in the Shelley Garret-produced stage play, "You're Going to Make Me
Love Somebody Else."
Having
a full plate is definitely a blessing, said Blackmon--and there's no end
in sight for him.
"There's
lots of other things I'd rather not be doing!" he said.
|
