There's nothing I can say about Bowie that hasn't been said already so I won't try. What I can do is comment on a few things I liked as a young fan.
Christmas and my Birthday, like today, always remind me of Bowie. My Mum and Dad always got me an album for years and I had all his first handful of LP's.
I was always interested in the more obscure material from Bowie's early output. The Port of Amsterdam was one such brilliant but unusual tune. I had it as a single and adored its maritime imagery of the old port. It was a B-side of the much more famous Sorrow in 1973. I preferred Amsterdam.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-WCZ1UGVR8E
Round and Round was another B-side, this time to the brilliant Drive-In Saturday. It was a fast rock and roller but it couldn't compete with the celluloid vision of the Drive-In A-side, which I adore. Still, Round and Round is a Bowie track rarely heard nowadays.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDzSys1fPok
John I'm Only Dancing was a 1972 single and I clearly recall this A-side on Top of the Pops. It was a strange video of dancers and I was entranced by the melody. The B-side was Hang on to Yourself, a rocky track that appeared on the Ziggy Stardust LP.
Another song I loved was The Laughing Gnome. I've been singing this since the early Seventies to anyone who'd listen, mostly my young daughter and my grandson! The gnome bits are just class! Hooray!
Some brilliant songs were recorded by Bowie before he was famous. With different bands he created amazing portraits of English life with magical hints of childhood and innocence. Many were captured on two LP's I had in the early Seventies, The Wonderful World of David Bowie and the incredible Images, neither of which I have anymore alas.
Picking two songs from this period I'm going for There is a Happy Land https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqNHo1gXKlo and Silly Boy Blue https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bkl1BfO5-1M, which I always liked a lot. There are countless more from this time and You Tube feature true promo videos like Sell Me A Coat https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAybnKW1Djk
Moving forward I could pick tons of tracks from his first flush of LP's but I'll go for two of the more obscure ones.
Future Legend https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Q7ABB8h7KA opened the iconic Diamond Dogs album and I hung onto every dystopian word as a young Bowie fan. It's twisted world of decay appealed to me greatly. It merged into the title track Diamond Dogs perfectly and I can still feel the excitement I felt at the time.
Big Brother is also a track on Diamond Dogs but it's the David Live version, which sticks in my mind, on account of its heavy rock chops. This amazing live piece includes a truly amazing riff and even the most ardent older-teen rockers who I knew at the time were mesmerised by it. Here's the full track for your personal enjoyment I hope https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AsLt0SFrap0
I could write all day about Bowie but I'll leave it there tonight.
What do you think?
I was never a fan tbh
ReplyDeleteZiggy played guitar with Weird and Billy.
DeleteNor me. Don't mind The Laughing Gnome or Space Oddity (or his intro to The Snowman), but I've never forgiven him for murdering the Little Drummer Boy on Bing Crosby's Christmas Special in 1977.
ReplyDeleteThere was another Christmas special that year or 78 introducing one Baba Fett Kid. That was a better special.
DeleteBoba! Doh!
DeleteHe was too girly-looking for my tastes. He should've picked one and stuck with it, instead of all this 'androgynous' nonsense. I like my singers to look and sound like men - which is why I love Patsy Cline. (Little joke there.)
DeleteThough never a big fan, I loved 'Space Oddity','Life on Mars', 'Ashes to Ashes' and his 'Let's Dance' album.
ReplyDeleteI think the majority of people liked something of his at some point in his eclectical career.
Mish.
Life on Mars is a classic Mish. I adore the lyrics. Sailors fighting in the dance halls, Oh Man, look at those spacemen go! I could sing the whole thing!
DeleteI am a Let's Dance guy. And don't take any s**t about it!
ReplyDeleteStill puttin' out fire (with gasoline)
ha ha, put on your red shoes Arto!
Deletemy favourites Bowie's album are low and diamond dogs!I often read sci fi books while listening to Bowie.. ew
ReplyDeleteLow's too late for me EW but DD is a class act that I love! We want you Big Brother!
DeleteI have about 6 Bowie albums. It would be hard to pick a favourite, though it might be Ziggy Stardust, Hunky Dory is a good album as is Let's Dance. The tracks I like, China Girl, Bewley Brothers, Panic in Detroit. The very best is probably Sound and Vision
ReplyDeleteBewley brothers is a fabulous sing Khusru I agree. Real cool traders is such a great line among many more ace lyrics. Panic in Detroit is just ace too. Looked a lot like Che Guevara!
DeleteDavid Bowie was always on the radio when I was a kid, it seemed, particularly The Laughing Gnome on J*mmy S*v*ll*’s Old Record Club. I always confused it with ‘They’re Coming To Take Me Away’ by Napoleon XIV (I think), though! I did like ‘Starman’ (which I associated with the DC comics character) and ‘Space Oddity’ (for obvious reasons) but I never liked that sleeve to Diamond Dogs, which struck me as indefinably unsettling! It was only when I was in my early twenties and started widening my musical tastes that I really came to appreciate what a fantastic and innovative artist he was. I think he’s written some of the best pop ever, ‘Life On Mars’ and ‘Changes’ being particular favourites. I’m not much of a fan of anything past ‘Scary Monsters’, though
ReplyDeleteGreat memories Paul. I like Starman too. I keep meaning to watch The Man Who fell to Earth. Its funny how we all seem to have a start point and cut off with Bowie. Yours was after Scary Monsters. Mine was earlier, anything after David Live. Must be an age thing. I'm the same with Rush and Budgie, my other two great musical loves. Definate cut-off points with them too.
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