Category Archives: David Bowie

October 20: David Bowie Santa Monica Civic Auditorium 20 October 1972 (audio)

david bowie santa monica 1972

“Steve Martin here, backstage at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium. It’s a cool night in Los Angeles, and as you may know or not know, the Santa Monica Civic is about a hundred yards from the beach so we have a cool breeze blowing off the ocean through the stage at our backs. The auditorium is packed, as a matter of fact, for the first David Bowie concert in the Los Angeles area. There will be one more tomorrow night, this is the concert tonight which will be recorded by RCA for the next David Bowie album and we expect to hear some new material by this British superstar. David and his group, the Spiders From Mars will enter from the other side of the stage. The auditorium is completely blacked out except for flashing strobe lights. Now the entrance music will be the Ode, or should I say the Ode To Joy which is featured in the movie Clockwork Orange and the house lights are starting to dim… here’s David Bowie.”

Intro & Hang On To Yourself:

Ziggy played guitar, jamming good with weird and gilly
And the spiders from mars. he played it left hand
But made it too far
Became the special man, then we were ziggy’s band

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April 24: David Bowie released Diamond Dogs in 1974

david bowie diamond dogs

 When this came out in 1974, it was roundly dismissed as Ziggy Stardust’s last strangled gasp. In hindsight, Diamond Dogs is marginally more worthwhile; its resigned nihilism inspired interesting gloom and doom from later goth and industrial acts such as Bauhaus and Nine Inch Nails. ~Mark Kemp (rollingstone.com in 2004)

April 24: David Bowie released Diamond Dogs in 1974

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Jan 23: Station to Station by David Bowie was released in 1976


stationtostation

Jan 23: Station to Station by David Bowie was released in 1976

The return of the Thin White Duke
Throwing darts in lovers’ eyes
Here are we, one magical moment, such is the stuff

Station to Station is a collection of soul, rock, funk, and disco, twisted by an influence of experimental German artists. This is David Bowie’s “plastic soul” mixed with krautrock. This is the introduction of the “Thin White Duke”.

It is Bowie’s tenth album, one of his most important and in my opinion, one of his very best!

stationtostation2

David Bowie came from the soul infused “Young Americans” into Nicolas Roeg’s film, “The Man who fell to Earth” (the picture on the cover is a still from the film) and then into this masterpiece of a record. If you see the film and listen to Young Americans you get a sense of what made the album. There is a switch from popular dance oriented music into a more artful approach. But, without losing the pop sensibility. It is also a start for Bowie on his journey back to a more  European approach to his music, even if it was recorded in LA.

“I know it was in LA because I’ve read it was”
– David Bowie

TVC15 (from rehearsals for the Station to Station tour 1976):

Continue reading Jan 23: Station to Station by David Bowie was released in 1976

My 5 Favourite songs about Bob Dylan

 

 

Songs about Bob Dylan

1. Cat Power – Song to Bobby

My favourite line: “Oh God, can you tell me who are you singing to” as I have so many times read Dylan’s lyrics and wondered the exact same thing.

I love this song, she’s such a “fangirl”, and the way she mimics his singing style is so fitting for this song. She did her contribution to the soundtrack of I’m Not There, Stuck inside of Mobile with the Memphis blues again, in the same “Dylan-style” (included below), and she has covered several of his songs (Oh Sister and I Believe in You springs to mind).

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