‘Young man’ Powell lets his hair down

US Secretary of State Colin Powell struts his stuff to the sound of the Village People’s YMCA.

IT’S NOT every day that Colin Powell dresses up as a construction worker and belts out the 1970s disco hit YMCA.

The US Secretary of State’s show-stopping performance at the traditional closing dinner of the annual Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Regional Forum would seem to be the highlight of what is usually a lacklustre event.

Mr Powell donned a hard hat and stuffed a hammer in his belt for the Village People’s YMCA, a massive 1970s hit.

He was backed by five US officials, all imitating the gaily flamboyant outfits of the original band.

Ministers regularly give their own take on classic tunes at the after-dinner show, a highlight of the annual forum.

Mr Powell and his colleagues - in costumes including those of a policeman and a native American - were happy to wind down from a hard day discussing security issues.

“President Bush, he said to me, Colin I need you to run the department of state,” the secretary of state sang to the tune of the original. “We are between a rock and a hard place.”

Mr Powell caused a sensation at the forum three years ago, by performing a skit in which he rolled around on the floor in a love duet with his then Japanese counterpart Makiko Tanaka was universally panned and prompted harsh words from Mr Powell’s wife Alma.