"My Jamaican Guy" is a single by the

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

n singer and actress

Grace Jones Grace Beverly Jones (born 19 May 1948) is a model, singer and actress. Born in Jamaica, she and her family moved to Syracuse, New York, when she was a teenager. Jones began her modelling career in New York state, then in Paris, working for ...

, released in 1983.

Background

"My Jamaican Guy" was the third single to Grace Jones' 1982 album ''

Living My Life ''Living My Life'' is the autobiography of Lithuanian-born anarchist Emma Goldman, who became internationally renowned as an activist based in the United States. It was published in two volumes in 1931 (Alfred A. Knopf) and 1934 (Garden City Publ ...

'', her third and last album recorded in the

Compass Point Studios Compass Point Studios was a music recording studio in the Bahamas, founded in 1977 by Chris Blackwell, the owner of Island Records. The concept of the studio was of a recording facility supported by in-house sets of artists, musicians, producer ...

Nassau, Bahamas Nassau ( ) is the capital and largest city of the Bahamas. With a population of 274,400 as of 2016, or just over 70% of the entire population of the Bahamas, Nassau is commonly defined as a primate city, dwarfing all other towns in the country. ...

. The track showcased

Caribbean music Caribbean music genres are very diverse. They are each synthesis of African, European, Arab, Asian, and Indigenous influences, largely created by descendants of African slaves (see Afro-Caribbean music), along with contributions from other commun ...

-inspired

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

/ dub sound. Jones penned the song herself, revealing in a 2010 interview that it was written about

Tyrone Downie Tyrone Downie (20 May 1956 – 5 November 2022) was a Jamaican keyboardist and pianist best known for his involvement as a member of Bob Marley and The Wailers.Foster, Chuck (1999) ''Roots Rock Reggae'', Billboard Books, , p. 66, 116 He studi ...

Bob Marley Robert Nesta Marley (6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981; baptised in 1980 as Berhane Selassie) was a Jamaican singer, musician, and songwriter. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, his musical career was marked by fusing elements o ...

The Wailers ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

, who "was with somebody else. He was a beautiful guy. He doesn't even know I wrote it about him." The song is largely written in

Jamaican Patois Jamaican Patois (; locally rendered Patwah and called Jamaican Creole by linguists) is an English-based creole language with West African influences, spoken primarily in Jamaica and among the Jamaican diaspora. A majority of the non-English wo ...

. Jones' mother Marjorie provided backing vocals but, as a

pastor A pastor (abbreviated as "Pr" or "Ptr" , or "Ps" ) is the leader of a Christian congregation who also gives advice and counsel to people from the community or congregation. In Lutheranism, Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy and ...

's wife, wasn't credited for fear of upsetting church elders. "

Cry Now, Laugh Later "Cry Now, Laugh Later" is a song by Grace Jones from her 1982 album ''Living My Life''. Background The single was released in the US and Canada only, simultaneously with "My Jamaican Guy" which was aimed at the European, Asian and Australian mar ...

", another ''Living My Life'' track, was released on the side B, and later got a separate A-side release on American market. In Japan, "Everybody Hold Still" made the B-side. That release featured a unique edit of "My Jamaican Guy", as well as a different cover. The US and the UK 12" versions of the track differed substantially; the US version (7:01) was in fact the unedited and unremixed album master and was later included on the 1998 compilation '' Private Life: The Compass Point Sessions''. The UK 12" credits separately "My Jamaican Guy" and "J. A. Guys (Dub)", but the tracks run together as one; the mix opens with the first four minutes of the ''Living My Life'' album version, then cuts to the three last minutes of the dub version "J. A. Guys" - the full length version of which in turn was released as the B-side of the US 12" "

Nipple to the Bottle "Nipple to the Bottle" is a single by the Jamaican singer, model and actress Grace Jones, released in 1982. Background "Nipple to the Bottle" was the lead single from Jones' sixth studio album, ''Living My Life''. The song was released in some te ...

". Both the UK 12" mix of "My Jamaican Guy" and the "J. A. Guys" dub remain unreleased on CD. The iconic image on the single cover was created by

Jean-Paul Goude Jean-Paul Goude (born 8 December 1938 in Montreuil (France)) is a French graphic designer, illustrator, photographer, advertising film director and event designer. He worked as art director at ''Esquire'' magazine in New York City during the 1 ...

, who was the singer's partner at that time and worked on some of her record artworks. A version of it was later used as a cover of her final "best of" compilation to date, '' The Ultimate Collection''.

Music video

The music video for "My Jamaican Guy" features Jones performing the song on stage, kissing her own image, and hugging her "Jamaican guy". It also includes some footage from her ''

A One Man Show ''A One Man Show'' is a long-form music video collection featuring Jamaican singer Grace Jones, released in 1982. The video mainly consists of music videos, with some concert footage filmed when Jones was touring with the eponymous tour. Backgroun ...

'' concert performance and still images of one of her most iconic images. The clip was directed by

and produced by Eddie Babbage. A slightly different, shorter version of the video was included on the ''A One Man Show'' VHS release in 1982.

In popular culture

In Japan, "My Jamaican Guy" was featured in the television commercial for the

Ezaki Glico , commonly known as just Glico, is a Japanese multinational food processing company headquartered in Nishiyodogawa-ku, Osaka. It does business across 30 countries, in North America, Asia-Pacific and Europe. Overview Ezaki Glico's primary b ...

chocolate brand Aphros, in which a Japanese actress

Yūko Tanaka is a Japanese actress from Osaka Prefecture, Japan. She has won several acting awards during a long career working in both film and television, after she graduated from Meiji University. Life and career Early career At the beginning of her ...

appeared.

Track listing

*7" single :A. "My Jamaican Guy" – 3:36 :B. "

" – 4:25 *Japanese 7" single :A. "My Jamaican Guy" – 3:14 :B. "Everybody Hold Still" – 3:09 *Australian 7" single :A. "My Jamaican Guy" – 3:37 :B. "J. A. Guys" (Dub) – 3:48 *12" single :A1. "My Jamaican Guy" – 4:05 :A2. "J. A. Guys" (Dub) – 3:11 :B. "Cry Now, Laugh Later" – 5:55

Chart performance

References

{{authority control Songs about Jamaica 1983 singles Grace Jones songs Songs written by Grace Jones Song recordings produced by Alex Sadkin 1982 songs Island Records singles Dub songs