Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat
Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat
Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat
Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat
Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat
Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat
Jean-Michel Basquiat Jean-Michel Basquiat
Gray – The Big Gig

Gray performed several times at the Mudd Club. The last gig there was by far the most memorable. Glenn O'Brien, music critic, had already written about the band very positively in Andy Warhol's Interview magazine. Taking this review into consideration, it was natural to put all of the band’s creative energy into this big gig in 1980. We had procured a few hundred dollars from Steve Mass, the owner of the club, to pay for an "extravagant set," according to band member Michael Holman.

We decided to rent industrial scaffolding to build the set. When we showed up at the club, the scaffolding was delivered and we went to work. Jean-Michel showed up late and did not lift a finger when it came to the tedious building. When Michael confronted Jean-Michel about his attitude, Jean-Michel walked out of the club in defiance.

Later that evening, during rehearsal, Vincent Gallo played keyboards tilted at a 45-degree angle, while Michael played drums beneath a part of the floor that had been removed. Wayne Clifford played keyboards elevated halfway up, and I was so high up on the scaffolding playing guitar, the only thing the audience could see were my ankles and feet. Jean-Michel showed up with a wooden crate from Chinatown. He placed the box on stage right and crawled inside the crate with his wasp-synth, guitar, and microphone. He inspired the audience by remaining in the crate the entire performance. As he played, he read his poem “Mona Lisa.” Michael, to this day, says that he was very affected by Jean-Michel’s eccentric genius that evening.


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