David Bowie Dies of Cancer

[Gary Eatfood]

I get that, I probably will get round to watching them at some point, but like others have said, when celebrities die it's like 'meh' or 'ah, that's a shame', but I think a lot of people have been really hit by this one, I didn't think it would upset me as much as it has, for certain.

 

You're right. I've been shocked not only by his passing but also by the outpouring of emotion and the extensive media coverage it's received. I think we have just lost a national treasure without maybe even realising he was one.

[Chryatis]

Terrible one, this. I've always had a bit of a Bowie obsession, 'Station to Station' - and recently 'Blackstar' - were always the songs I'd annoy visitors with. Just yesterday I had a bit of a Bowie marathon at home. The one great thing is that he went out with 'Blackstar', which is as good a song as I've heard in the last few years. If, like me, his best years are a bit before your time, I strongly recommend you stick 'Quicksands' or 'Rock 'n' Roll Suicide' on now, and you'll know why this is such a sad loss.

Wouldn't have annoyed me mate

[Webbo]

The news coverage is getting a bit lady Di now. Just tone it down a bit.

[Vacamion]

I know a lot of people loved him, but I've never been a fan. Quite the opposite.

Yesterday I was driving about for most of the day. The car radio was unbearable.

At one stage, I went through 5 radio stations and Bowie was playing on them all. Even 5 live.

Radio 2 yesterday was about suffering grief for someone you don't know personally.

Spare me.

Twitter and Facebook are currently full of mawkish, grief mongering, "look at me, I was such a big fan" baws, too.

The post-Diana liverpudlianisation of our culture continues apace.

I'm not playing.

[Finnaldo]

Liverpudlianisation lol

 

New favourite word for sure.

[Beliall]

I know a lot of people loved him, but I've never been a fan. Quite the opposite.

Yesterday I was driving about for most of the day. The car radio was unbearable.

At one stage, I went through 5 radio stations and Bowie was playing on them all. Even 5 live.

Radio 2 yesterday was about suffering grief for someone you don't know personally.

Spare me.

Twitter and Facebook are currently full of mawkish, grief mongering, "look at me, I was such a big fan" baws, too.

The post-Diana liverpudlianisation of our culture continues apace.

I'm not playing.

 

II understand where you're coming from, and usually i would agree, but this isn't just any celebrity, he was more than that to a lot of people, this is comparable to how people must have felt when Elvis, Freddie mercury and Kurt Cobain died. 

[kingcarr21]

Cant believe the Goblin King is gone. Loved Labyrinth

[David Guiza]

I know a lot of people loved him, but I've never been a fan. Quite the opposite.

Yesterday I was driving about for most of the day. The car radio was unbearable.

At one stage, I went through 5 radio stations and Bowie was playing on them all. Even 5 live.

Radio 2 yesterday was about suffering grief for someone you don't know personally.

Spare me.

Twitter and Facebook are currently full of mawkish, grief mongering, "look at me, I was such a big fan" baws, too.

The post-Diana liverpudlianisation of our culture continues apace.

I'm not playing.

I do agree that the modern approach to celebrity death is very blown up compared to what it used to be. But, when it comes to somebody like David Bowie, Michael Jackson, Paul McCartney (should he ever go) etc I think it's completely understandable. These are people who have literally turned people's lives around and helped shape who they are through their music.

 

I'm with you on the mourning though. There is a huge difference between what was happening in London with street parties and people enjoying the music and sharing in a passion, which I think is excellent, and weeping in the street for somebody you have never met. Each to their own though I guess.

[Buce]

I know a lot of people loved him, but I've never been a fan. Quite the opposite.

Yesterday I was driving about for most of the day. The car radio was unbearable.

At one stage, I went through 5 radio stations and Bowie was playing on them all. Even 5 live.

Radio 2 yesterday was about suffering grief for someone you don't know personally.

Spare me.

Twitter and Facebook are currently full of mawkish, grief mongering, "look at me, I was such a big fan" baws, too.

The post-Diana liverpudlianisation of our culture continues apace.

I'm not playing.

I think for me, and perhaps others of my generation, it's about losing a connection with the past, and a stark reminder of our ever approaching mortality.

Bowie was the first artist that I 'discovered' for myself (I was into the Stones, Beatles, Free, Floyd, but that was all from my elder brother's influence.). He was my first gig, I wore my hair like him, and spent countless hours listening to his music.

As someone mentioned earlier, you know you're getting old when your heroes start dying.

[Guest MattP]

I think for me, and perhaps others of my generation, it's about losing a connection with the past, and a stark reminder of our ever approaching mortality.

Bowie was the first artist that I 'discovered' for myself (I was into the Stones, Beatles, Free, Floyd, but that was all from my elder brother's influence.). He was my first gig, I wore my hair like him, and spent countless hours listening to his music.

As someone mentioned earlier, you know you're getting old when your heroes start dying.

 

That's a pretty good way of summing it up.

 

Had the radio on most of the day yesterday and I came to two conclusions, one I don't listen to nearly enough Bowie as I should (I checked and I have only eight of his songs on my phone), and two this man really was a genius, I forgot just how many top class songs were his, a concert on Radio 6 of his lessen known stuff was brilliant, I hadn't heard tracks like Rock N Roll Suicide, It's Gonna be Me and Hang onto Yourself.

 

This event is certainly up there with Elvis and Sinatra dying and I don't think anyone should feel any guilt for being sad about it.

[Bellend Sebastian]

That's a pretty good way of summing it up.

 

Had the radio on most of the day yesterday and I came to two conclusions, one I don't listen to nearly enough Bowie as I should (I checked and I have only eight of his songs on my phone), and two this man really was a genius, I forgot just how many top class songs were his, a concert on Radio 6 of his lessen known stuff was brilliant, I hadn't heard tracks like Rock N Roll Suicide, It's Gonna be Me and Hang onto Yourself.

 

This event is certainly up there with Elvis and Sinatra dying and I don't think anyone should feel any guilt for being sad about it.

 

It's Gonna be Me is off 'Young Americans' but if the other two are what floats your boat you can't go wrong with the 3 main Mick Ronson albums, Hunky Dory, Ziggy Stardust and Aladdin Sane.  The Man Who Sold The World is a bit too rocky for a lot of folk but still good

[Fox92]

Thing is about Bowie I don't think I've ever met a person that doesn't like him. Even with my taste in music (which is different than most people my age), if I met someone who doesn't like the Beatles or the Smiths (somehow) then they usually like Bowie. He covered so many genres and I think that is summed up with some of the statements coming out. People from Paul McCartney to Madonna to Debbie Harry to Morrissey even to Kanye West, all speak about Bowie's influence. It's amazing.

[Guest MattP]

It's Gonna be Me is off 'Young Americans' but if the other two are what floats your boat you can't go wrong with the 3 main Mick Ronson albums, Hunky Dory, Ziggy Stardust and Aladdin Sane.  The Man Who Sold The World is a bit too rocky for a lot of folk but still good

 

Cheers, I've got about 500 CD's upstairs and I'm sure Ziggy is one of them, I'll dig it out later.

 

Agree with Fox92 as well, one of the things I noticed about yesterday just on Facebook was how he seemed to have an impact on different generations, something an artist can very rarely do.

[Alf Bentley]

I think for me, and perhaps others of my generation, it's about losing a connection with the past, and a stark reminder of our ever approaching mortality.

Bowie was the first artist that I 'discovered' for myself (I was into the Stones, Beatles, Free, Floyd, but that was all from my elder brother's influence.). He was my first gig, I wore my hair like him, and spent countless hours listening to his music.

As someone mentioned earlier, you know you're getting old when your heroes start dying.

 

 

I'm sure you're right about people of our generation. Many our age won't have liked Bowie, and no problem about that. But there was a deep emotional connection for some of us, so losing someone we remember as young and vibrant and with whom we had such a deep connection is bound to be emotional - and a sobering reminder of our own mortality.

 

However, most people would say that Bowie did most of his best work in the 70s (I like Let's Dance, but not as much as his brilliant 70s stuff). I really like what I've heard so far of "Black Star", to the extent that I ordered that and "The Next Day" a couple of days before he died. But I don't even know some of his early albums and certainly not his material from the late 80s and 90s. A couple of months back I decided that I should get his full back catalogue - but am working my way through The Beatles first. 

 

It was through his singles that Bowie first meant something to me. I remember being late going to cub scouts, aged 11, so that I could listen to the emotional turbulence of "Sorrow" on the Sunday chart show. I remember my Mum loving "Rebel Rebel" (strange now to think that she'd have only been about 40 then). I was fascinated but troubled (age 13?) at the smooth sound and strange lyrics of "Young Americans". As a 16-year-old who didn't fit in with conservative, macho school conventions, I felt vindicated at his gender-bending "Boys keep swinging". For fvcks sake, I even had my first serious hangover with Bowie - left alone at home for the weekend (aged 16?), pissed-up listening to "Heroes".

 

So, I find the reaction of some from younger generations interesting, as any connection has to be different in nature. Bowie's top-level creativity lasted longer than it does for most, but for someone born in 1995 it still ended 10-15 years before they were born. It's the equivalent of you or me being interested in Hank Williams or Glenn Miller at the age of 21. I'm sure that their appreciation is genuine but it can't have the same direct personal meaning for people under about 48, surely? Or could I have the same personal connection with Elvis Presley or The Beatles as someone who was listening to music in the 50s/60s?

 

I suppose it's different for young people now. Growing up in the 70s, rock/pop had only been around for 15-20 years, unless you count music like blues, jazz or country that mainly appealed to older palates. Whereas a teenager now has 60 years of rock/pop history. It was really only once I hit my 20s that I started to get into music from outside my own era, but I get the impression that many young people now pay less attention to their own era and more to older music. I'm not sure that's healthy.

 

In some cases, I'm sure that the celebrity/Diana culture has played a part in the reaction. Bowie was a big name, so people to whom his music meant nothing get over-involved, somehow wanting to make sense of their lives. I find that bizarre. Some of it is media-led: so much media space to be filled ("57 channels and nothing on", as Springsteen memorably put it). But the Diana parallel is correct, too. It's like the media and the public egg one another on to go over the top, thinking that they've got to get upset as he was such a big name. If Paul McCartney, Robert Plant or Morrissey died tomorrow, it would be normal for some people to be upset if those artistes meant a lot to them. But those of us who didn't have a deep personal connection with them wouldn't need to be that bothered just because they're major figures.  

[Rincewind]

One of the real ales on at the Kings Head  is called Sorry. Its been on a few days. Never thought of any connection until Alf mentioned the song.

[MikeyT]

Was never a fan but there's no denying what an amazing impact he had on music and the influence he has left and will continue to have on people. 

[Wymsey]

I preferred/prefer his music compared to today's rubbish - such as Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber, Nicki Minaj etc.

 

He set the right tone in with the background music.

[Samilktray]

Rip

[Chester Dontlie]

I've only found out about his passing a couple of hours ago (I don't follow the news, tv, radio etc, was told by a friend) so I'm also late to Blackstar. Those two new videos, what a way to orchestrate his own funeral! Brilliant to the very end.

 

But peeps like him don't just die and "rest in peace". I mean, that's what music and art in general gives you, a kind of immortality, right. He still lives in us thanks to all the amazing music he did, and he remained brilliant and creative literally till his last breath, contrary to most of his contemporaries and younger musicians who still do the same stuff they did when they were topping the charts, as if Earth stood still, simply because their audiences want it and it sells. What I admire about Bowie, he was never afraid to risk, change, do something different and that's a sign of a true artist.

 

Yes, media tend to overwhelm us with obituaries, tributes and whatnot, LadyDi style indeed, but I for one refuse to wallow in sorrow (great song btw). I'd rather celebrate Bowie by listening to his music, not thinking about the empty space he's left that nobody can ever fill etc etc. 

 

Life on Mars is prob my favourite Bowie song for a few years now, but it changes (pun intended). Can't believe he wrote that in 1971, being only 24, yes word genius comes to mind, or was it that cut up technique of his, but still you gotta be a genius to cut up words like that, in that order

 

Btw, besides his obvious golden stuff like Hunky Dory, Ziggy, Aladdin etc that was already mentioned I also treasure his 90s album Hours and have no doubts that The Next Day (his penultimate one) is up there with his best. When I was listening to Where Are We Now on The Next Day in which he remembers his Berlin days (terrible German accent btw ) I thought it could possibly be his farewell album but hey, little did I know.

 

Sorry lads if I was rambling a bit, but you know, I loved his music since I was a teenager in mid 90s, since then never stopped listening, got a lot of inspiration from it, so the news are still fresh to me (living in Schluppistan and all that). Don't really want to beat that 'good old days when music wasnt shit' drum, I'm on the wrong side of 30 now I like a lot some of present days music, being rather open minded and all, but I have this feeling that the greats of popular music are either gone or will be gone soon, there's not that many of them left now, and I just struggle to see the worthy replacements... I wonder who from today's top of the pops will be considered brilliant and inspirational in 40-50 years from now.

[Guest]

My death waits like an old roue'
So confident, I'll go his way
Whistle to him and the passing time

My death waits like a Bible truth
At the funeral of my youth
Are we proud for that and the passing time?

My death waits like a witch at night
As surely as our love is right
Let's not think about the passing time

But whatever lies behind the door
There is nothing much to do
Angel or devil, I don't care
For in front of that door there is you

My death waits like a beggar blind
Who sees the world through an unlit mind
Throw him a dime for the passing time

My death waits there between your thighs
Your cool fingers will close my eyes
Let's think of that and the passing time

My death waits to allow my friends
A few good times before it ends
So let's drink to that and the passing time

For whatever lies behind the door
There is nothing much to do
Angel or devil, I don't care
For in front of that door there is you

My death waits there among the leaves
In magician's mysterious sleeves
Rabbits and dogs and the passing time

My death waits there among the flowers
Where the blackest shadows, blackest shadows cowers
Let's pick lilacs for the passing time

My death waits there in a double bed
Sails of oblivion and my head
So pull up your sheets against the passing time

But whatever lies behind the door
There is nothing much to do
Angel or devil, I don't care
For in front of that door there is, Thank You

Read more: David Bowie - My Death Lyrics | MetroLyrics 

[Guest MattP]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06tx3l6

 

Would recommend anyone interested gives this a listen, Marc Riley, a huge Bowie fan did a excellent two hour show on Monday on Radio 6.

[Nick]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b06tx3l6

 

Would recommend anyone interested gives this a listen, Marc Riley, a huge Bowie fan did a excellent two hour show on Monday on Radio 6.

Cheers.

[Fox92]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-35310890

 

 

 

David Bowie's body has been privately cremated in New York, according to reports.

 

 

 

Understand it's for the family - you don't want a media circus after all - but a funeral would have been appropriate for such a legend. 

[Strokes]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-35310890

 

 

 

 

Understand it's for the family - you don't want a media circus after all - but a funeral would have been appropriate for such a legend.

Surely whatever he wants is what is appropriate, it's not like he didn't have time to put plans in place.

[Buce]

Surely whatever he wants is what is appropriate, it's not like he didn't have time to put plans in place.

Agreed.

I think a tribute concert would be the most appropriate way to remember him.