VANITY 6: IS IT THEIR TIME?

VANITY 6: IS IT THEIR TIME?

CAROL COOPER

Rumors of the Time's breakup over an ego dispute with their Princely benefactor may be greatly exaggerated, but two members of Prince's excellent R&B offshoot are said to have taken off to write and produce other groups, like lady funksters Klymaxx. So what of the other proteges?

Rick James now claims that Prince stole the concept of Vanity 6 from him while they were touring together in .'81. Be that as if may, the idea of underaged vamps performing in lingerie fits Prince's sly, multiplex persona more than James's reductionist punk funk. But do these ladies, selected for their youth, looks and malleability in the hands of the master have a chance competing against the talented millions in soul and pop?

Brought to live and learn in the insular Minneapolis environment, there's no telling how much this trio could pick up by osmosis. Certainly the libertine arrogance of their mentor has rubbed off on Vanity (Denise Winters) and—after all—he did get her on the cover of Rolling Stone, which is more than most rock stars would do for a paramour. The debate over who actually wrote the tunes on the trio's debut IP, words and music, still rages in critical circles, despite album credits. But I'd be willing to bet money that "Something In The Water" was written about Vanity or someone like her, and, as the following interview with her suggests, the rights and powers of stardom can make strange and fortuitous bedfellows. ☆ ☆ ☆

Is your work with Vanity 6 the first time you've performed onstage?

Yes. But I had done auditions before, and I'd been a back-up singer, but never done anything to the degree of what I'm doing now. I'd also been writing lyrics and music on piano, and making cassette demos.

When you, Brenda and Susan finally got together in Minneapolis, did you find there were regional differences in your approach to the music?

Although Brenda's from Boston and I'm from Canada, we've both traveled a lot and, rather than regional differences, what you get is differences in personality. Brenda is the only one who'd been in a band before, playing guitar and singing. But each of our personalities is reflected on the album, as well as a planned combination of white ideas and black—rock 'n' roll and soul. We'll each add something to a song. This was particularly so on "If A Girl Answers Don't Hang Up." It's a true story of something that happened to me, and as I was telling it to Brenda, she broke in to tell how she would have handled it.And we wrote the song that way. In the course of talking things over, some interesting ideas come out—sometimes complete with the rhymes!

Do you foresee a day when Vanity 6 will play instruments on stage?

Yes, there could come a time. But I enjoy being onstage and dancing, and I love performing with nothing between me and the audience, just working with the microphone. But it could even be next year, where for a part of the show I play something, but right now I'd rather concentrate on the audience rather than an instrument.

I was most impressed with your work on "3X2 = 6" Why don't you include it as a capper on your live set?

Thank you. But that was the song I had the most trouble recording and getting the vocals right. I don't know how well it would go over as a single. We took a chance on "He's So Dull" before "Nasty Girl," and it was a mistake. Had the Go-Go's come out with "He's So Dull," it would have gone gold. But with a new group, you have to get established first.

It seemed very purposeful for you to use Greta Garbo in "3X2" because of her controversial androgyny, and her aspirations to play serious, even masculine roles like St. Francis. Given time she might have permanently changed the way people perceived the female role in Hollywood.

Yeah, to a certain extent she probably would have. I'd like to think that I'm opening new doors for others like myself. It's hard, because people like to label you as something . "What are you? White or black?" Well, I'm white and black, so they think I'm a joke. If they put me in a movie, who'll play my mother & father? And if you're beautiful, they really don't take you seriously. There's a certain sexuality in everybody, but people would rather be frightened than comfortable with it. Marilyn Monroe was never frightened of her sexuality, and that was a quality she had as an actress that put her above everyone else.

How do you see yourself in the future, in the long run?

Going down with dignity, (laughs) Carrying the white flag.