The ultimate rocker...Too unpredictable to be labeled....The true greatness of Bowie? He was all things to all people....

RIP......Play nice...

murph said:

http://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,950985,00.html

http://time.com/4174857/david-bowie-time-1983-lets-dance/

"He is the perpetual Next Big Thing"

In the summer of 1983, David Bowie’s Let’s Dance was one of the biggest albums in the western hemisphere, with its titular single making it to the top of the charts in the U.S., U.K., Australia and elsewhere. Bowie had been a shimmering mainstay of pop music for nearly a decade and a half, but the cadence of Top 40 — in particular the danceable funk of Chic front man Nile Rogers, who co-produced the album — had caught up to his pioneering ear, and thus Let’s Dance remains one of Bowie’s most commercially successful albums.

On July 18, 1983, he was on the cover of TIME, with critic Jay Cocks devoting 4,500 words to praising the album, delineating the artist’s ongoing aesthetic evolution, and declaring Bowie to be “music’s most exquisite artifact.”

“Bowie made some of the most adventurous rock of the past decade,” Cocks wrote. “When it did hit, which was most of the time, it laid down rules and set new marks for others to follow. Bowie kept the cutting edge keen … Detractors think of him as a particularly shrewd trendy, but the reason Bowie may so often be in the right place at the right time is that the audience looks for him to be there. He is the perpetual Next Big Thing.”

Amidst all the impressive things that Bowie did, let us not forget his works as a producer.

Iggy Pop's "The Idiot", an urban nightmare, decay and dirt, exsuding paranoia,
saving Iggy from a derailed career.
Contains the original "China Girl", to which poor Ian Curtis from Joy Division supposedly hung himself.
Also contains "Funtime", which is probably as far from fun as possible. Scary, in a sublime way.

Lou Reed's "Transformer", which is the ultimate cookbook of how to produce a rock'n'roll album.
Thin, slick, parcimonious reverbs, sublime tunings.
Contains "Vicious", "Perfect Day", "Satellite Of Love", and "Walk On The Wild Side".

Just these two albums would make him some kind of Rick Rubin of the seventies.
Impressive, to say the least.

bonatoc said:

Amidst all the impressive things that Bowie did, let us not forget his works as a producer.

Iggy Pop's "The Idiot", an urban nightmare, decay and dirt, exsuding paranoia,
saving Iggy from a derailed career.
Contains the original "China Girl", to which poor Ian Curtis from Joy Division supposedly hung himself.
Also contains "Funtime", which is probably as far from fun as possible. Scary, in a sublime way.

Lou Reed's "Transformer", which is the ultimate cookbook of how to produce a rock'n'roll album.
Thin, slick, parcimonious reverbs, sublime tunings.
Contains "Vicious", "Perfect Day", "Satellite Of Love", and "Walk On The Wild Side".

Just these two albums would make him some kind of Rick Rubin of the seventies.
Impressive, to say the least.

You forgot Al B Sure..

SeventeenDayze said:

One thing I really respect about David Bowie is that he had genuine appreciation and respect for black artists. Unlike other artists who shall not be mentioned, he wasn't being a "copycat" of the sound. It's hard to really distinguish this but I think most of you can understand the point I'm making. Some acts just copy others and then pretend it was theirs all along. David Bowie was never like that.

What was 'whos' for someone to claim it was 'theirs'? This just sounds like a veiled racist dig at white artists who like mobo.

Who tried to pretend they owned something then?

SquirrelMeat said:

SeventeenDayze said:

One thing I really respect about David Bowie is that he had genuine appreciation and respect for black artists. Unlike other artists who shall not be mentioned, he wasn't being a "copycat" of the sound. It's hard to really distinguish this but I think most of you can understand the point I'm making. Some acts just copy others and then pretend it was theirs all along. David Bowie was never like that.

What was 'whos' for someone to claim it was 'theirs'? This just sounds like a veiled racist dig at white artists who like mobo.

Who tried to pretend they owned something then?

Why don't you create a thread in P&R and we can talk about it further. I didn't write anything that wasn't in plain English. This thread is a tribute to Bowie and I meant everything I said. Nice try though.

I still can't quite wrap my head around that he made those two last songs on "Blackstar". I propably never will.

[Edited 1/12/16 13:28pm]

SeventeenDayze said:

SquirrelMeat said:

What was 'whos' for someone to claim it was 'theirs'? This just sounds like a veiled racist dig at white artists who like mobo.

Who tried to pretend they owned something then?

Why don't you create a thread in P&R and we can talk about it further. I didn't write anything that wasn't in plain English. This thread is a tribute to Bowie and I meant everything I said. Nice try though.

Perhaps you should have made your comments in the P&R forum them, becuase you didn't choose plain english, you made veiled suggestions with a racist overtone about other white artists. Problem with the P&R thread is that is has already been overrun with race obsessives and Trump addicts.

I think we can all agree their wasn't a racist bone in BDs body, so the Music: Non Prince forum can steer clear of that cesspool.

Jus discovered this gem. Didn't release it got a makeover. Always loved the song, but this mix is better than the original.

SquirrelMeat said:

Phishanga said:

I still can't quite wrap my head around that he made those two last songs on "Blackstar". I propably never will.

[Edited 1/12/16 13:28pm]

When I watched the video for Lazarus there were just under 3 million views. When I checked the view count last night there were nearly 10 million views. Now, there are 14 million views! I'm sure lots of people are just amazed at how he still managed to carry on until the very end. Most people commented that they didn't know he was ill. He just continued to live life to the fullest. Well done, Mr. Bowie, well done!

DAVID BOWIE LYRICS:

Lazarus Lyrics

from Blackstar

: http://www.metrolyrics.co...bowie.html

< >

Look up here, I'm in heaven
I've got scars that can't be seen
I've got drama, can't be stolen
Everybody knows me now1

[Verse 2]
Look up here, man, I'm in danger
I've got nothing left to lose
I'm so high, it makes my brain whirl
Dropped my cell phone down below
Ain't that just like me?

[Bridge]
By the time I got to New York
I was living like a king
Then I used up all my money
I was looking for your ass

[Verse 3]
This way or no way
You know I'll be free
Just like that bluebird
Now, ain't that just like me?

Oh, I'll be free
Just like that bluebird
Oh, I'll be free
Ain't that just like me?

i'm phasing in and out of sad. decided to post the lyrics to 'Laarus" before taking a listen. never realized how much Mr David "Bowie" Jones impacted my life.

David Bowie's last release, Lazarus, was 'parting gift' for fans in carefully planned finale

The producer of Blackstar confirms David Bowie had planned his poignant final message, and videos and lyrics show how he approached his death

: http://www.telegraph.co.u...inale.html

[Edited 1/12/16 16:04pm]

The "Lazarus" video is so alarming, so lovely and so enveloped in melancholy. I can barely look at it without feeling my heart sink in my chest. Incredibly, he stayed engaged and in peak creative form while struggling with a terminal illness. A master of his craft to the end.

I don't know if this has been mentioned, but the "Lazarus" video seems pretty incredible in retrospect. To me he's clearly fighting cancer (the girl in the video), and his frantic scribbling at one point represents him trying to finish the album and play before cancer takes him. And of course, he backs into that big armoire, closing the door behind him. Just imagine, filming a representation of your own death. So incredibly intense. I listened to it last night at the end of a long night of playing Bowie albums, and it was hard. He did not shy away from reality in his art.

NoVideo said:

I don't know if this has been mentioned, but the "Lazarus" video seems pretty incredible in retrospect. To me he's clearly fighting cancer (the girl in the video), and his frantic scribbling at one point represents him trying to finish the album and play before cancer takes him. And of course, he backs into that big armoire, closing the door behind him. Just imagine, filming a representation of your own death. So incredibly intense. I listened to it last night at the end of a long night of playing Bowie albums, and it was hard. He did not shy away from reality in his art.

Yeah the video was amazing in kind of a dark and weird but interesting way. Does anyone know when the video was actually filmed? I wonder how long it took. I heard music video shoots can be quite demanding and requiring long hours but he still had the strength to do the video. Amazing!

NoVideo said:

I don't know if this has been mentioned, but the "Lazarus" video seems pretty incredible in retrospect. To me he's clearly fighting cancer (the girl in the video), and his frantic scribbling at one point represents him trying to finish the album and play before cancer takes him. And of course, he backs into that big armoire, closing the door behind him. Just imagine, filming a representation of your own death. So incredibly intense. I listened to it last night at the end of a long night of playing Bowie albums, and it was hard. He did not shy away from reality in his art.

No, he did not. Right to the very end. That is how David Bowie lived his life...and how David Jones came to terms with his own death. But, it is very hard to watch. Almost like watching someone's demise in real life (been there.) I don't know if I can watch the video again. I almost wish he hadn't released the video. It reminded me of when Johnny Cash filmed "Hurt." A very gritty painful video...but not as painful as Lasarus was to watch. Almost too personal. The one thing I noted, that no one has commented on on any board, was the leotard Bowie wore when he was scribbling furiously, right before he went into the armoire. Shades from his past--his mime background and the one piece leotards he wore in the 70s when he was nearly skeletal from not eating enough. I found that eerie and quite a comment on what was going on in the present in relationship to his past. Johnny Cash's video was not as graphic as this one and easier to watch... The pain was mostly in his face and voice. In Lazarus, Bowie's last journey was utterly graphic...and almost unbearable, at least for me, to watch.

purplethunder3121 said:

NoVideo said:

I don't know if this has been mentioned, but the "Lazarus" video seems pretty incredible in retrospect. To me he's clearly fighting cancer (the girl in the video), and his frantic scribbling at one point represents him trying to finish the album and play before cancer takes him. And of course, he backs into that big armoire, closing the door behind him. Just imagine, filming a representation of your own death. So incredibly intense. I listened to it last night at the end of a long night of playing Bowie albums, and it was hard. He did not shy away from reality in his art.

No, he did not. Right to the very end. That is how David Bowie lived his life...and how David Jones came to terms with his own death. But, it is very hard to watch. Almost like watching someone's demise in real life (been there.) I don't know if I can watch the video again. I almost wish he hadn't released the video. It reminded me of when Johnny Cash filmed "Hurt." A very gritty painful video...but not as painful as Lasarus was to watch. Almost too personal. The one thing I noted, that no one has commented on on any board, was the leotard Bowie wore when he was scribbling furiously, right before he went into the armoire. Shades from his past--his mime background and the one piece leotards he wore in the 70s when he was nearly skeletal from not eating enough. I found that eerie and quite a comment on what was going on in the present in relationship to his past. Johnny Cash's video was not as graphic as this one and easier to watch... The pain was mostly in his face and voice. In Lazarus, Bowie's last journey was utterly graphic...and almost unbearable, at least for me, to watch.

I'm inspired by the strength he had facing his final days.

Such dignity.

purplethunder3121 said:

NoVideo said:

I don't know if this has been mentioned, but the "Lazarus" video seems pretty incredible in retrospect. To me he's clearly fighting cancer (the girl in the video), and his frantic scribbling at one point represents him trying to finish the album and play before cancer takes him. And of course, he backs into that big armoire, closing the door behind him. Just imagine, filming a representation of your own death. So incredibly intense. I listened to it last night at the end of a long night of playing Bowie albums, and it was hard. He did not shy away from reality in his art.

No, he did not. Right to the very end. That is how David Bowie lived his life...and how David Jones came to terms with his own death. But, it is very hard to watch. Almost like watching someone's demise in real life (been there.) I don't know if I can watch the video again. I almost wish he hadn't released the video. It reminded me of when Johnny Cash filmed "Hurt." A very gritty painful video...but not as painful as Lasarus was to watch. Almost too personal. The one thing I noted, that no one has commented on on any board, was the leotard Bowie wore when he was scribbling furiously, right before he went into the armoire. Shades from his past--his mime background and the one piece leotards he wore in the 70s when he was nearly skeletal from not eating enough. I found that eerie and quite a comment on what was going on in the present in relationship to his past. Johnny Cash's video was not as graphic as this one and easier to watch... The pain was mostly in his face and voice. In Lazarus, Bowie's last journey was utterly graphic...and almost unbearable, at least for me, to watch.

Yeah I agree. I started not to watch but was curious and watched it. It was really a huge statement from him. Tough to watch indeed.

purplethunder3121 said:

NoVideo said:

I don't know if this has been mentioned, but the "Lazarus" video seems pretty incredible in retrospect. To me he's clearly fighting cancer (the girl in the video), and his frantic scribbling at one point represents him trying to finish the album and play before cancer takes him. And of course, he backs into that big armoire, closing the door behind him. Just imagine, filming a representation of your own death. So incredibly intense. I listened to it last night at the end of a long night of playing Bowie albums, and it was hard. He did not shy away from reality in his art.

No, he did not. Right to the very end. That is how David Bowie lived his life...and how David Jones came to terms with his own death. But, it is very hard to watch. Almost like watching someone's demise in real life (been there.) I don't know if I can watch the video again. I almost wish he hadn't released the video. It reminded me of when Johnny Cash filmed "Hurt." A very gritty painful video...but not as painful as Lasarus was to watch. Almost too personal. The one thing I noted, that no one has commented on on any board, was the leotard Bowie wore when he was scribbling furiously, right before he went into the armoire. Shades from his past--his mime background and the one piece leotards he wore in the 70s when he was nearly skeletal from not eating enough. I found that eerie and quite a comment on what was going on in the present in relationship to his past. Johnny Cash's video was not as graphic as this one and easier to watch... The pain was mostly in his face and voice. In Lazarus, Bowie's last journey was utterly graphic...and almost unbearable, at least for me, to watch.

Well-said. It is starkly painful.

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

bonatoc said:

Amidst all the impressive things that Bowie did, let us not forget his works as a producer.

Iggy Pop's "The Idiot", an urban nightmare, decay and dirt, exsuding paranoia,
saving Iggy from a derailed career.
Contains the original "China Girl", to which poor Ian Curtis from Joy Division supposedly hung himself.
Also contains "Funtime", which is probably as far from fun as possible. Scary, in a sublime way.

Lou Reed's "Transformer", which is the ultimate cookbook of how to produce a rock'n'roll album.
Thin, slick, parcimonious reverbs, sublime tunings.
Contains "Vicious", "Perfect Day", "Satellite Of Love", and "Walk On The Wild Side".

Just these two albums would make him some kind of Rick Rubin of the seventies.
Impressive, to say the least.

You forgot Al B Sure..

Thanks for posting this video. I forgot about this song between the two of them. But, on another note....does anyone else think Al B. Sure wasn't very articulate in this interview? Why the hesitation about revealing his real name? I understand that this interview was before Google was big and Wikipedia wouldn't be for another decade but seriously....Another question, did David Bowie actually play the sax as well or was it just a prop?

[Edited 1/12/16 21:13pm]

He plays the Sax very well...He started playing when he was 12 years old...

[img:$uid]http://i66.tinypic.com/35ciebn.jpg[/img:$uid]

[Edited 1/12/16 20:34pm]

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

He plays the Sax very well...He started playing when he was 12 years old...

[img:$uid]http://i66.tinypic.com/35ciebn.jpg[/img:$uid]

[Edited 1/12/16 20:34pm]

I saw an interview where he said it was his dream growing up to be the sax player in Little Richard's band.

EroticDreamer said:

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

He plays the Sax very well...He started playing when he was 12 years old...

[img:$uid]http://i66.tinypic.com/35ciebn.jpg[/img:$uid]

[Edited 1/12/16 20:34pm]

I saw an interview where he said it was his dream growing up to be the sax player in Little Richard's band.

I bet he did...

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

EroticDreamer said:

I saw an interview where he said it was his dream growing up to be the sax player in Little Richard's band.

I bet he did...

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

He plays the Sax very well...He started playing when he was 12 years old...

[img:$uid]http://i66.tinypic.com/35ciebn.jpg[/img:$uid]

[Edited 1/12/16 20:34pm]

Cool, thanks for sharing When I saw the video clip of him holding the sax and then twirling it or something that kind of tipped me off that perhaps he had played it because he had this body language that only sax players have that really can't be imitated by those who use it as a prop in TV and movies.

[Edited 1/12/16 21:16pm]

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

EroticDreamer said:

I saw an interview where he said it was his dream growing up to be the sax player in Little Richard's band.

I bet he did...

Bowie really embraced R&B. He never thought he could do it alone. He always surrounded himself with the best musician of any genre to get the job done, and took their advice. It was always Bowie's vision but integrated sound and input from who he worked with. One of my favorite albums is Young Americans. Such a warm sound. Love that a young Luther Vandross was on this album.

SeventeenDayze said:

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

I bet he did...

So basically Prince is a mashup of Little Richard and David Bowie!

purplethunder3121 said:

KCOOLMUZIQ said:

I bet he did...

Bowie really embraced R&B. He never thought he could do it alone. He always surrounded himself with the best musician of any genre to get the job done, and took their advice. It was always Bowie's vision but integrated sound and input from who he worked with. One of my favorite albums is Young Americans. Such a warm sound. Love that a young Luther Vandross was on this album.

Yes, he had a genuine appreciation for it and added his own touch to it. I think "Fame" is amazing and still sounds great today!