HEAVEN
Pere Ubu / Cosey Fanni Tutti / Porn
“‘Wild Thing’ by The Troggs signaled my entrance on stage. Other, slower records, like Judie Tzukes’s ‘Stay With Me Till Dawn’ provided a sense of intimacy, seduction and sensuality. I had to perform live and sometimes in volatile situations, navigating a way of conjuring an evocative scenario that was all about sex, or at least its suggestion.” So explained Cosey Fanni Tutti, concerning her time as “Scarlet,” a London stripper in the 1970s and early ‘80s.
Best known as a member of the industrial music group Throbbing Gristle, Fanni Tutti also moonlighted with various kinds of sex work, a sideline which is currently explored in-depth for an exhibition titled “Incognito.” On display until January 25th at the Humber Street Gallery—located in the UK artist’s Hull hometown—is a selection of ephemera including photographs, costumes, and 64 7” records (often marked with a sticker labeled “Scarlet”) used during what is politely referred to as her “stripteases.”
“Wild Thing” is certainly a bitchin’ entrance for a 5’8 sexbomb, and given the timeframe, other singles in the collection—Bad Company, Bryan Ferry, Rod Stewart—are equally expected and appropriate. But being an industrial musician, some provocative selections must be included, and Fanni Tutti doesn’t disappoint, as her tastes were aimed towards the industrially-minded underground of Northeast Ohio: namely, Devo’s “Satisfaction” and Pere Ubu’s “Heaven.” It’s not too hard to imagine the devolved Akronites’ Stones cover in a rowdy strip club, but Pere Ubu—Cleveland’s premier avant-garde group—is another matter entirely. “Heaven” might not be as aggressive as the Gristle-esque “30 Seconds Over Tokyo,” but Rod Stewart it is not.
Here she comes a-walking with that solar beat.
The sun does funny things, it’s like some prankster’s cheat.
The world is full of red light districts, with many dancers walking a “solar beat,” but I’d venture that none of the establishments—barring the ones that Fanni Tutti graced—ever had a DJ spinning Pere Ubu. Not even in Cleveland. Especially not in Cleveland.
C’mon darlin. C’mon darlin!
It feels like heaven, it feels like heaven.
“Choosing familiar music from chart hits ensured audiences could quickly identify with me. My own mood also came into play when choosing records. Each record also had a narrative of sorts, to suggest a choreography; a point within the song that might be suitable for floor work, dance moves and a way I could remove clothing.” Clothing was removed offstage as well, for various photo shoots—some artsy and personal, and others for XXX sex mags (I have a folder of such images on my desktop). Some of these materials have appeared in other retrospectives, alongside terms such as “Fluxus” and “feminism,” and the fertile period is generally agreed to be an expression related to performance art. There’s some truth in this, but a harsher interpretation could be equally accurate: That art and music weren’t paying the bills, so our girl took some easy work with smut. Still, Fanni Tutti had the good sense to document some aspects of these years, and in 1979 she asked TG bandmate Peter Christopherson (who later had a working relationship with Cleveland musician Trent Reznor) to photograph her various stripper costumes. Such are the elements of Fanni Tutti’s blue period which the galleries and academics focus on, and one press release elaborated that “behind each costume, record, magazine image and art action is a story, a memorable incident, a person, a conversation.” Again, this is all true enough, but there’s been some scrubbing—and without the filth, what’s even the point?
What is generally avoided, or referred to in the briefest of terms, is Fanni Tutti’s appearance in fully hardcore films. With minimal effort, I was able to track down one complete feature (Sexangle, 21 minutes), and a two-minute-plus excerpt of something called Silent Cry. Both offerings have robust comment sections, and it’s a recondite pleasure to see an Xhamster thread with references to the likes of Nurse with Wound and Current 93. Less musically minded are the commenters who claim to have seen Fanni Tutti dance—two of whom go the extra mile and reminisce nostalgically about going down on the performer in the pubs. “I was absolutely hooked on her,” enthused one man of questionable credibility. More reliable is an account from Ubu founding member Scott Krauss, who happened to play drums on “Heaven.” On a Facebook thread, Krauss responded to a question from an acquaintance of mine concerning Ubu’s time in the UK, where they met Throbbing Gristle. The two bands shared a respect for each other, though the drummer dished that his bandmate David Thomas was “scared” by TG frontman Genesis P-Orridge. Krauss then elaborated that “GPO took Tony [Maimone] and I to a ‘gentleman’s lunch’ club in London to see Cosey dance…” Interestingly, many of the Xhamster commenters also mention the lunch detail—“She was my absolute turn on… watched her in her band Throbbing Gristle, and many times as a lunchtime stripper in the city pubs… was so lucky to taste her delights”—so maybe the lads are telling the truth.
Still, if you have doubts, may I direct your attention to Sexangle—where there is undeniable evidence of Fanni Tutti receiving cunnilingus, in this case from a female costar. “Please stick your tongue right up!” a dubbed (and posh) British accent demands. The TG queen gets ample screen time across the short film, so there’s also a solo shower sequence, a blowjob sandwich, and a big dick pulled out of her hairy snatch just in time to shoot cum over that pale soft belly. (Such are the details that the gallery retrospectives omit.)
Silent Cry is equally interesting, if for different reasons: Art easel in the background. White lingerie. Lights a cigarette, stares at camera, brushes hair while topless. Takes a phone call (or pretends to). And then the film sort of flickers out. I wish there was more footage. Specifically, I wish there was film from an event described by critic Simon Reynolds, where a pre-TG P-Orridge and Fanni Tutti engaged in “simultaneous anal and vaginal sex using a double-pronged dildo.” C’mon Darlin!
It feels like heaven, it’s such a problem.
Dave being scared by Gen is adorable