David Bowie Top Ten Singles And A Bit Of History

David Bowie surprised his fans with the release of The Next Day. It had been ten years since they had seen any new material and the recording process for this disk was done quietly over three years time. What I found to be unusual was that the song he released early was the mellowest on the disk. Still, it is a great song, and I can’t think that anyone would have been put off enough by the nature of that song to write off the entire disk before they had the chance to hear it.
Looking back at his 40+ years, Bowie’s highest chart topping album was Station to Station. It reached the top five. He’s never and an album hit number one, but many of his singles have reached the top spot. At the time of this posting, his new album is charting at 35.
The song Space Oddity hit number one in November of 1975.  Ashes to Ashes made the top spot five years later.  Under Pressure was also a number one song, along with Let’s Dance, and Dancing in the Street. He’s had 23 top ten hit songs, if you include Where Are We Now. 
Bowie had over ten years of solid tours, and hit songs before musical tastes had changed.  Dancing in the Street was his last top ten hit song for many years to follow. He released three truly bad albums between the years 1986 and 1988, and acted in three just as awful movies in that same time period.
When he created the band Tin Machine in the late 1980’s, those of us who find every Bowie effort a “must listen,” would have to agree that this was not one of those times where the project clicked in like a puzzle piece. Personally, I had completely forgotten about the Tin Machine years. When I watch those old Tin Machine videos, it looks as if he’s trying to capture a bit of that late 1980’s punk momentum. You just can’t “un-class” a guy like Bowie. It didn’t work.   
His 1993 release of Black Tie White Noise was hailed as his glorious return to the music that he’s best known for. While I agree that songs such as Night Flights and You’ve Been Around certainly sound like the old Bowie, it’s hard for me to say that the album was any better than some of his marginal works.

Nine Inch Nails And David Bowie

He tried his hand at appealing to a younger audience when he hooked up with Nine Inch Nails in 1995.  That tour failed to bring new listeners to Bowie’s music.  Fans of Nine Inch Nails just didn’t get it.  In fact, there was a bit of backlash from those who felt that he was trying to wedge his way into a fully matured musical culture that had no need for old farts like David. It’s funny to see that Trent Reznor’s fans love Gary Numan, a band that came to fame 15 years before Reznor became a household name, but they passed on Mr. Bowie outright. But then, Reznor owes his musical career to guys like Numan.
If I’m allowed to fast forward to his 2003 release of Reality, I would say that the first song on the disk is quite strong, but the remaining songs seem to drift. David Bowie had a serious heart issue while supporting that disk, and it was scary enough to force him to retreat from the stage. Bowie took a ten year break, but the wait was worth it. The Next Day is a strong effort, and I find nary a “clunker” on the CD.  I hope he doesn’t take another ten year break. If he tours to support the new album, I’m certainly going to check him out.

David Bowie's New Album | The Next Day

David Bowie turned 66 yesterday. He released a song from his new album, as sort of a gift to everyone. It's darn good.  His voice does show signs of those 66 years, but once you settle into it, you will find it quite pleasing.  He went back to Tony Visconti for support on this one.  It shows, in a good way. Visconti is credited on a dozen of Bowie's albums, including what is called the "Berlin Trilogy," a group of three albums recorded in Germany.  The new Bowie album doesn't come out until March.  It's billed as a rock album.

David Bowie has redesigned his website.  It contains videos, and remixes of classic songs.  I suggest that you take a look for yourself.  As for the controversial album cover, one can find answers on the Barnbrook blog.
If the rest of the album is anything like the sample song, Bowie has a hit once again.

Klaus Nomi The Man from Another Planet

I remember seeing a video of Klaus Nomi back in the day when Urgh! A Music War came out. It was a bit too disco for my tastes back then, but now I can't get enough of this myserious man. Who was Klaus Nomi? I'm late to the Nomi party, but it's still worth taking the time to recognize the man "from another planet."

I can trace one of his first shows to 1978, when he performed for the New Wave Vaudeville show in New York. Many people in the audience thought that he was not really singing, as it was just too amazing to believe. As far as I can tell, one of the first solid interviews of Klaus Nomi took place in 1979. The Soho News reported that he was "A creature of any state, sex, or sensibility you choose."
Klaus Nomi in New York
He had landed in New York seven years prior to that interview, and in 1976 he took time out for vocal lessons. It would only be fitting that Nomi would need to work with a professional in order to get his vocal stylings in order. The person he chose to teach him the finer points of opera also happened to be a "drag diva." Did Klaus pick up more than vocal lessons from his teacher? He claims that Maria Callas was one of his biggest influences. Perhaps Nomi mixed drag and his love of opera in order to create the image that brought him fame. Once he hit the stage, his personality was split between opera, and performance art.

One of the high points of Klaus Nomi's career was when he sang back up for David Bowie. On that night, the world got a glimpse of what many in the New York new wave scene had been used to seeing for some for at least a year prior. From there, Nomi would go on to record cover songs like The Twist, and You Don't Know Me. He was called a "countertenor," but some folks dispute that, simply stating that he sang falsetto. One thing is certain, when he had the right song to sing, he would amaze even the most hardcore punk and new wave fans.

Four Dystopian Songs For the Ages

As I finish reading Fahrenheit 451, I begin to wonder if there are dystopian songs just as meaningful as some of the more famous books on the same subject. Before I dive into what I consider to be four Dystopian songs for the ages, I feel that it's worth mentioning my favorite novels on that theme: The book mentioned above, Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood, 1984 by George Orwell, Lord of the Flies, Running Man, and A Clockwork Orange. Can we find four dystopian songs worth mentioning?

Dystopian Songs for the Ages

In the Year 2525 by Zager and Evans has to be mentioned. Written in 1968, this song touches upon what the world is like in intervals of one thousand ten years. This song covers pharmaceuticals, sustainability, the dehumanization of man through the use of technology, and touches upon the second coming of Jesus Christ. This song hit number one in the summer of 1969.

Down In The Park, written by Gary Numan. This song came out ten years after the previous song hit number one. The lyrics talk of a futuristic park where humans are hunted down and destroyed by android robots. Spectators watch the carnage from a club.

Diamond Dogs by David Bowie came out in 1974, and is a nod to George Orwell's novel 1984. The song depicts a future where people live in chaos.

Radiohead first denied that the theme of the album OK Computer was based on dystopian themes, but later admitted that it was. Karma Police is a good example of that disk.

There are dozens of songs with the same theme, and I must admit that Pink Floyd certainly should be mentioned as a band that wrote songs like Animals, and The Wall. It's fairly easy to be inspired by what the future may look like.

Peter Murphy was a Pleasant Surprise

My friend Paul is in town from Pennsylvania. He's here for six weeks, and we are catching up on things. I was the second in line for an invitation to see Peter Murphy at The Rave in Milwaukee. We had a deal. He bought The Rave tickets, and I paid for a few drinks while there. Believe me, a couple of drinks at the Rave, and I had my ticket price covered.

There was no opening act for the show, and it seemed like the road crew was in no hurry to get the show started. I overheard a bartender say "are we having a show tonight or not?" It was that laid back. By the time Peter Murphy went on, there were no more than 350 fans in the crowd. No matter, the people that came out on a Sunday night were very happy to see him.

Some fans felt that his performance in Milwaukee was the best they have seen in years. I must say that as the night went on, I was amazed by his energy on stage. He worked the crowd, but more impressive was how he worked his voice. The guy hit the notes all night long. I might have heard one sour note, but it was nothing worth complaining about.

Another great thing was the mix at the Rave. How rare is it to go to that venue and actually hear everything clearly. This would be the first time in many years for me. Killing Joke comes to mind as the worst mix I had ever heard there. It was so bad at Killing Joke, that I thought it was another band altogether. It was so good at Peter Murphy that I pulled out my ear plugs for a few songs, just to get a full blast. His band was tight, and workmanlike.

What I liked best about the Peter Murphy show was his lack of pretension. The man just called it like it is. He skipped songs, added others, and even sang a couple cover tunes. As I was thinking that this guy is like a gritty David Bowie, he starts to sing Space Oddity.

His band was playing their last North American show on this tour, and Peter Murphy had the entire crew come out and take a bow. That was a nice touch. They work just as hard as the band, so why not give them props.

As the lights went up and the crowd cleared out, I ran a friend who we walked to her car. We got the usual aggressive demands for cigarettes when we got to our car, and after paying off the street hustlers with tobacco, we drove over to the Sugar Cane on Forest Home. Crazy, that Sugar Cane.