David Bowie, one of rock music’s greatest and most influential artists, died last Jan. 10 after an 18-month battle with cancer. It was only three days after his 69th birthday during which he released his 25th album, the jazz collection Black Star. Fans had been looking forward to the release of his new videos and a possible tour. Bowie had successfully kept his illness a secret from the public. So the news of his dying was a huge surprise to everybody. He would have marked the 50th anniversary of the release of his first album titled David Bowie back in 1967 next year.
The term multi-talented artist sounds very inadequate when describing all of Bowie’s accomplishments. It seems like he was so extraordinarily gifted that there was nothing he could not do. He was a singer, songwriter, arranger, producer, multi-instrumentalist, actor, mime, painter and not to forget a daring and most elegant, androgynous fashion icon. Long before any other rocker ever did, Bowie walked around in a dress, wore eye make-up and lipstick and sported nail polish. He looked fantastic. He also told people he was bi-sexual.
He only acted occasionally, but Bowie appeared in such a wide variety of interesting roles in the movies. He was an alien seeking help for Mars in The Man Who Fell Down To Earth; a British soldier in a Japanese concentration camp in Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence; the aging husband of a beautiful vampire in The Hunger; the Goblin King Jareth in Labyrinth; Pontius Pilate in Martin Scorsese’s The Last Temptation of Christ; a gigolo in Marlene Dietrich’s “harem” in Just A Gigolo; and a few years ago, he was the Serbian/American scientist Nicola Tesla in The Prestige. He also gave a critically-acclaimed performance in The Elephant Man on Broadway.
But of course, it is as a musician that Bowie will be most fondly remembered. He was not the sort of crooner or pop idol that fans get sentimental about. I don’t think he was ever that kind of romantic in his songs. His music was too complex for everybody to relate to. But he was certainly very sexy. He was daring, audacious, an unpredictable visionary who had an unerring taste for what is timeless and unique. He was into jazz, the blues, pop, folk rock, adult contemporary, soul, glam rock, industrial rock, disco and others besides.
Those forays into various music types were not always commercially successful like what happened when he put up a band called The Tin Machine. But you can bet your last buck that Bowie gave them his best. His recordings were always of excellent quality and they now stand as memorials to the genius of this man. He was also a remarkable live performer and his concerts were one of the first to mix rock music with theatrics. He was also one of the pioneering artists in the use of music videos as a promo tool. Bowie’s videos are ranked among the best of all time. Of course, all these come from his music.
Some of the best known songs to come out of his many albums during these past four decades were Space Oditty, Changes, Life On Mars, Starman, Ziggy Stardust, All The Young Dudes, Diamond Dogs Rebel Rebel, Young Americans, Fame, Heroes, Under Pressure with Queen, Ashes To Ashes, Scary Monsters and Super Creeps, Let’s Dance, China Girl, Modern Love, This Is Not America, Dancing In The Street with Mick Jagger, The Jean Genie, Sound And Vision Boys Keep Swinging, Jump They Say, Where Are We Now? and The Stars Are Out Tonight, among lots of others.
Bowie was born David Jones in London of English and Welsh parentage. He showed artistic inclinations as a child and had early training in music and acting. He changed his name to Bowie to avoid confusion with Monkee member Davey Jones. He is survived by his wife, the famous Somalian model, Iman and two children, Duncan and Alexandria. They lost a much-loved husband and father.
Bowie’s fans lost Ziggy Stardust, Aladdin Sane, The Thin White Duke, the Starman and the most famous of all his personas, Major Tom. To this day, many still remember that black and white TV screen showing astronaut Neil Armstrong landing on the moon while Bowie’s Space Oddity played in the background. Ground control to Major Tom…. Ground control to Major Tom…