Description
Klaus Nomi was a fixture in the late-'70s NYC East Village performance art scene, but his big coming-out party was when he performed alongside David Bowie on Saturday Night Live in 1979. It wasn't easy to out-alien The Man
Who Fell to Earth, but Nomi's demented harlequin act complete with plucked, Elsa Lanchesterlike eyebrows, whiteface and widow's peak�not to mention a
pink poodle doll pal �pulled it off (Nomi often claimed he was from outer space). That got Nomi signed to RCA, where he recorded two studio albums (and adopted the oversized plastic tux that Bowie wore when he sang "The
Man Who Sold the World" ON SNL) before succumbing to AIDS in 1983
at the age of 39, one of the first celebrities to die from the disease. This is
his 1981 debut record, generally regarded as his crowning achievement; it
includes his signature "The Nomi Song," as well as just-plain-weird cover
versions of Lou Christie's "Lightning Strikes" and Chubby Checker's "The
Twist" that display the German countertenor's incredible vocal range and
uncompromising artistic vision (with help from Nomi's original musical
director Kristian Hoffman of the band Mumps). Throw in some startling
performances of classical repertoire like Henry Purcell's "The Cold Song"
and Saint-Sa�ns' aria to Samson and Delilah and you have a record destined to crash and burn commercially but to live on in cult classic-dom forever. Real Gone Music's reissue features the original album art and inner sleeve; the vinyl comes in a black and white "cabaret smoke" vinyl pressing limited to 1000 copies.