Music

David Bowie: The Moments That Changed Us

by
The Public Staff
/ Jan. 11, 2016 12pm EST

On Sunday evening, rock star, pop star, actor, painter David Bowie died at the age of 69. Until Sunday evening, Bowie was arguably (though who was arguing?) the most influential living musician in the world. “David Bowie died peacefully today surrounded by his family after a courageous 18-month battle with cancer,” his son, director Duncan Jones tweeted after his death. His illness was well hidden, though the eccentric legend dropped a few hints that his time was running short, specifically in his latest music video for the song “Lazarus,” which is part of what would be his final album, Blackstar, released only a few days ago. Blackstar was Bowie’s twenty fifth(!) album.

This morning we took some time to sift through Bowie’s 25 albums, 22 film appearances, and countless interviews to find our favorite David Bowie moments.

 Aaron:   “Golden Years” from the Trainspotting Soundtrack 

Growing up, I never thought David Bowie was for me, but the inclusion of “Golden Years” on the Trainspotting soundtrack was enough for me to give his stuff another shot. I later found the Station to Station LP in a store I can’t remember (Montreal?) and it was the 10-minute title track (“return of the thin white duke, throwing darts in lovers’ eyes”) that cemented the compact between us. Every song on that record is pure gold. More than almost any songwriter, he understood the power of pop rock to transcend the boundaries of any medium and to take seriously his own depth as an artist, even if it was clumsy or obtuse like his role in the film Station to Station. He imbued so many of his songs with a wild, self-contained mythology, providing a standard of formal ambition in pop music that still burns brighter than stardust. Bowie’s for everybody. 

 Maria:   “Under Pressure” by Queen and David Bowie 

I don’t have a full explanation, I personally just like the catchy beat. However, after doing just a bit of research, the collaboration that started out to write a different song but turned into a jam session in Switzerland, which eventually produced “Under Pressure,” a hit all over the world.

 Billy:   “The Snowman” Introduced by David Bowie, 1982 

My first time getting to know David Bowie was as a young kid in library class. We watched this magical and sad animated film about a snowman coming to life and taking a young boy on a soaring adventure to the North Pole. Our librarian got a hold of the UK version that featured a short intro with Bowie that instantly infused him into a childhood memory that has stuck with me since. Now an annual tradition, I’m glad to know I’ll be remembering Bowie each year as the winter months set in.

 Cy:   China Girl Concert Tour 

Bowie was always one of my favorite Artists. His China Girl Concert tour was incredible and was one of my all time favorite concerts for decades. Also his Drummer Boy Christmas duet with Bing Crosby was both outstanding and an amazing clash of cultures—an example of what made him the very talented unique individual he was. RIP.

 Kevin:   Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Long-Haired Men Interview 

I’ve always been partial to this interview when he was still using the moniker of David Jones as part of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Long-Haired Men.

 Cory:   “Life on Mars” as heard in The Life Aquatic 

There’s a scene in Wes Anderson’s movie The Life Aquatic when Bill Murray and Owen Wilson are trying to figure out if they’re father and son. They’ve never conversed before and it’s super awkward. Murray, as Steve Zissou, excuses himself from the situation to smoke a joint because he’s incapable of genuine interaction. He looks around for a moment before taking a six second drag. As he gets high, “Life on Mars” comes to a climax. That blew me away the first time I saw it and almost brought me to tears when I watched the scene again today. The rest of the soundtrack, which consists of acoustic covers of David Bowie songs sung in Portuguese by Seu Jorge, is outstanding (and now heartbreaking) too.

 Chris:   “Fashion” 
 
 
The first Bowie song I fell in love with was Fashion, and it’s still one of my favorites… the video continues to intrigue me. But my favorite Bowie moment, despite the tremendous loss, might be this one. He was always a symphony of contrarian ideals, making music from unlikely sounds and fashion from unlikely clothes. The way he projected sexuality was, at times, unsettling—and yet he was widely desired by both men and women. He assumed the roles of unlikely characters in both his music career and in films (his foray into the latter medium being somewhat unlikely in itself). And now, he’s made art from the process of his dying… somehow managing to keep it all a secret until the very end in a world where stars aren’t able to keep anything from the public for any real length of time. It’s a historically significant gesture to have an artist leave us this way, putting a bookend on a life most of us couldn’t even dream of living. Bravo. 
 

 

 M. Faust:  Extras 

Because no one should go through even a day as sad as this without at least one good laugh. 

Find out how to purchase a higher quality version of local artist Rob Lynch’s gorgeous and poignant David Bowie centerfold by reading more here. Prints are available for a limited time only. 

 

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