David Bowie

I was gutted this morning to hear that David Bowie had died, days after celebrating his 69th birthday.  He has been suffering with cancer for the last 18 months and only his family and close working friends knew about it. and that is how it should be.  Too the rest of us he was working on a new album Blackstar, released on his birthday, this is obviously his swan song his parting gift to us.

At school in 1972 - 74, everybody loved Mark Bolan, these fitted in well with the long hair and flairs of the 70's, then their was Bowie, with his styled short hair and his Oxford bags style trousers and the slim fitting jackets that barely hit the waist line. Not very flattering for chubby teenager girls, but none the less it was a look soon adopted by many.  In our school it was very much Bowie or Bolan and you couldn't sit on the fence as the styles in fashion as well as music was wide apart. 

I loved Bowie he was so individual and was not afraid to try out different musical genre and fashion styles, different persona's, and as soon as I started working I was able to buy his albums Hunky Dory Aladdin Sane, and others. They are still in my collection so I will be dragging out the old turn table for a crackle and a sing a long with 'The man who ruled the world', at least my world. 

Bowie's producer Tony Visconti wrote:

He always did what he wanted to do. And he wanted to do it his way and he wanted to do it the best way.  His death was no different from his life - a work of art. He made Blackstar for us his parting gift. I knew for a year this was the way it would be. I wasn't, however, prepared for it. He was an extraordinary man, full of love and life. He will always be with us. For now, it is appropriate to cry.

The legend that is David Bowie R.I.P

8th January 1945 - 10th January 1947