The London Boy Is Coming Home

Following on from a comment made during the excellent Jeremy Paxman 'Interview For TheMillennium' for Newsnight recently, (of which I plan to post a full transcript very soon) The SundayTimes and today's Daily Star have reported on the Bowie family's desire to relocate to London, on amore permanent basis and in the not too distant future. David and Iman have both made it clear thatnothing would make them happier than to have a child together and to raise it in Britain.

This from The Sunday Times: "I've lived abroad long enough," he said last week. "It's time to comehome. I have a number of prior commitments but I hope to be back in Britain within 18 months."

And according to The Sunday Times this is what others had to say on the matter: Paul Trynka,editor of the influential rock magazine Mojo, welcomes his return. "Bowie has always been a veryEnglish character...This decision to return to his roots signals a recognition on his part of hisintrinsic Englishness." Peter York, the social commentator, said: "I think his return will be good forBritain and for Bowie."

Commenting on the probable location being either Chelsea or Kensington, 'a friend' said: "As long asit's within easy reach of the art galleries, he'll be happy. He's not after anything too lavish."

The Sunday Times also gave db a mention in two of its supplements. Firstly in the STYLE section, ina piece about fashion and pop in New York, along with a gorgeous picture of Iman at the TommyHilfiger Rock Style party, there is a quote from Hilfiger himself: "It's not just the mass marketers whomake fashion, it's the stars: Bowie and Madonna are geniuses at this...they are the ones who make usall try harder."

David's other mention is from the 'doors' section of The Sunday Times Culture magazine, theobjective: "The Doors team selects 20 landmark people, gizmos and events of the year that shifted allour lives further towards the digital." David is pictured (same picture as in today's Daily Staractually) with the caption: "David Bowie, one of MP3's many new stars"...a reference to the winningcategory: PUNK AMONG FORMATS: MP3. In the same row of pictures as db, illustrating thewinner of INTERNET IDOL, is lady-killing Mahir 'I kiss you!' Cagri... which leads us nicely on to theSite Of The Week.

Site of the Week

From our European Correspondent ~ Total Blam Blam and Spaceface

Glastonbury Festival

Following the success of the Astoria London gig, and rumours of the Bowie family's desire to relocate to London, it is almost a lock that Bowie will perform the Glastonbury Festival this year, for the first time in 30 years.

Here is a bit of history about the last time Bowie played at the Glastonbury Festival in June 1971:

"It was in this year that the first 'pyramid' stage was constructed out of scaffolding and expanded metal covered with plastic sheeting, built on a site above the Glastonbury-Stonehenge ley line. The musicians who performed recorded a now very rare album. The festival is also captured 'a la Woodstock' by a film crew that included Nick Roeg and David Puttnam. This film was called 'Glastonbury Fayre'."

Acts included: Hawkwind, Traffic, Melanie, David Bowie, Joan Baez and Fairport Convention.

Attendance: estimated at 12,000.

Price: free

go to the Glastonbury Festival webpage

Special Announcement: Next Chat Guest This Thursday!

Check back tomorrow to find out WHO will be our next chat guest! Scheduled for THIS THURSDAY at 8:00 p.m. EST!

You won't want to miss this one. Mark your calender and check with us tomorrow!!

Db On The Bb

Television man is crazy

December the 30th sees what is probably David Bowie's last tele-visual appearance in the UK thismillennium. The wonderfully irreverent Big Breakfast show on Channel 4 makes the most of Mr B byutilising him throughout the programme, and indeed throughout the house.

David is seen having much fun and exchanging lots of silly banter with the shows hosts, JohnnyVaughan, Liza Tarbuck and Sarah Cox, the latter even managing some time in bed with our man. Thisall makes for some hilarious viewing and David enters into the spirit of things like a thing that reallylikes to enter into the spirit of things.

The show climaxes with...well let's hear it from David himself: "It all culminates with a quick game ofbaseball, or rather, me smashing the **** out of a small Santa and a small snowman, both of which Idisintegrate in a first hit professional manner."

Follow this link for an exclusive preview of scenes from David's appearance on The Big Breakfast,including some of his own pictures, all captioned by the baseball-wielding maniac himself!

pix from Big Breakfast

From our European Correspondent ~ Total Blam Blam

Merry Christmas!!!

Well, it's that time of year again! But this year,we're going to kick off the holiday season with someBowieNet cheer. Ladies, and gentlemen, we at BowieNet present to you:

The 12 Days of BowieNet Christmas

Into The Beyond

After the amazing mini-tour, David and best pal Coco motor off into the future. The quietly confident look on Coco's face is probably from knowing how many fans she and Eric got into the gigs around Europe, through the back door. (Shhhh! Don't tell Dave - Yea! Like he and Coco didn't plan it together)

Original Photo by Electric Blue, with some hot dang enhancement by Total Blam Blam

Astoria Pix

For your viewing pleasure, the final round of Astoria pix from Total Blam Blam.

go to Total Blam Blam's Astoria Pix

Omikron Best Of '99 And More

Now is the time of year when we look back over the past 12 months and figure out how it all fits together. Well, this year must be The Year of The Nomad Soul what with all the press attention and awards. Here are 4 more reviews and honors by some of the most acclaimed news and media companies in the world. These reviews will be made available (with all the others) in our Nomad Soul section.

Not only is it considered one of the best games of 1999, The Nomad Soul ranked in the top 10 in Time.com's feature "The Best and Worst of 1999: Tech". Here's what they had to say:

#8 OMIKRON
What other game boasts a virtual David Bowie? French designer Quantic Dream drops you into a parallel world that owes much to Blade Runner and 1984. With more than 400 locations--including the club where Bowie's character sings--Omikron is a game you don't so much play as live.

go to Time.com

---

In the "Adventure Games" category, Omikron nailed the runner-up spot for "The Best Holiday Games". To be honest, the game that took the #1 spot doesn't sound half as interesting as Omikron, but it's not for us to decide. Oh well. Here is the write-up:

"An enthusiastic honorable mention goes out to Omikron, an adventure game set in a moody, atmospheric future dystopia. It features cameos and music by, of all people, pop legend David Bowie."

go to Time Digital

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The first ever commercial games site on the WWW, Happy Puppy takes a look at Omikron:

"If you've ever longed to enter supermodel Iman's silk-skinned body, here's an opportunity of sorts. Serving as the model for one of the characters in Omikron: The Nomad Soul, David Bowie's famously bodacious wife appears as Iman 1631, a bodyguard for hire whose outer shell you can inhabit using your conveniently transferable soul and a hefty dose of magic. Bowie also appears in the game to perform numerous songs off his new album hours... with guitarist Reeves Gabrels in the fictional band The Dreamers. He also appears as Boz, a virtual deity who guides the Awakened, an underground cult opposed to the oppressive governing forces of the world of Omikron. Bowie and Gabrels also provided the atmospheric musical score, which is by turns majestic, trippy, and subtle, adding emotional depth to what is already a sufficiently engrossing game."

go to HappyPuppy.com

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MSN gets into the act with their own review of The Nomad Soul

"On top of his new album, his Bowie Bonds, his Website and his movie career, the erstwhile Ziggy Stardust is taking a spin in the virtual world with his new PC video game Omikron: The Nomad Soul.

The legendary rocker and his guitarist, Reeves Gabrels, have joined with Eidos Interactive to create the futuristic 3-D action game, complete with its own original soundtrack (which was also the partial inspiration for his latest album, hours...)."

go to MSN Entertainment and the full article

Dee Bee Cover Projec

Attention musicians (or wannabe musicians)! Announcing the DeeBee Cover Project, the official David Bowie cover album made wholly by Bowie fans. The idea is to record our own versions of David Bowie songs for submission to BowieNet for audio streaming. Go to the Dee Bee Cover Project homesite, read the rules, pick 3 songs, then email Ramsey.

The contest closes February 29, 2000.

Go to the Dee Bee Cover Project

Il Fanclub Italiano

Are you Italian? Do you speak or read Italian? Do you want to learn to speak or read Italian? Are you a David Bowie fanatic? If you can answer "yes" to any of these questions, proceed immediately to Velvet Goldmine, the Italian Bowie Fanclub.

go there now

The Snowman

This Sunday, December 19th, the Disney Channel is showing The Snowman at 10:00am EST. The show lasts 30 minutes, and is narrated by the one and only, David Bowie.

Here is a brief description of the Disney "special":

"Times are hard for Jamie and his family. But his fortune changes after he builds an unusual snowman--a snowman that talks and offers advice. Narrated by David Bowie."

Rolling Stone Century Poll

Well, it's the last poll of the century, so you know what that means... it's the most important poll of the century!! Go Represent!

VOTE FOR BOWIE!!!

Under Pressure Enters Uk Top 20

The arrival at #14 of the Queen and David Bowie 1999 'Rah' mix of Under Pressure on the UK chart this week gives David Bowie his 39th Top 20 and 57th Top 40 hit in the UK, and Queen their 33rd Top 20 hit. Today also sees the release of the limited 7" picture disc single of the song bringing the format variations up to four. The full listing for all of the formats follows:

CD1 = (Slimline jewel case)

1. Under Pressure (Rah Mix) Album Version ~ Queen + David Bowie

2. The Song Of The Millennium - Bohemian Rhapsody ~ Queen

3. Thank God It's Christmas ~ Queen

CD2 = (Card gatefold sleeve)

1. Under Pressure (Rah Mix) Radio Edit ~ Queen + David Bowie

2. Under Pressure (Mike Spencer Mix) ~ Queen + David Bowie

3. Under Pressure (Knebworth Mix) ~ Queen

4. Enhanced Section - The DoRo version of the Under Pressure Rah Mix video and a short piece about the making of this extraordinary video

MC = (Card case cassette)

As CD1 ~ Plays same tracks both sides

7" = Limited edition picture disc

1. Under Pressure Rah Mix (Radio Edit) ~ Queen + David Bowie

2. The Song Of The Millennium - Bohemian Rhapsody ~ Queen

This record would make an excellent Yuletide gift for someone close to you, we can still get 'Under Pressure' to number one. Please Remember David Bowie is for life, Cliff Richard is just for Christmas.

From our European Correspondent, Total Blam Blam

New Iman Postcards

What's goin' on?! I'll tell ya! Iman has got it goin' on with 2 new postcards for the holiday season. Go see them and send them at http://www.i-iman.com. Happy Millenium everyone!

Send one today

Uk 'survive' Formats

BowieNet can now reveal that the third format for the UK release of 'Survive' in the UK on January 17th 2000 will be avery limited edition 7" picture disc (pictured above). See below for the tracks that appear on the picture disc and thetwo CDs.

There is a two track promo (pictured above) doing the rounds in the UK which is exchanging hands for silly moneydue to the fact that it makes available the exclusive 'Marius de Vries Mix' of 'Survive', one whole month before it isactually available for public consumption. If you are approached by somebody willing to sell you a copy of thisinstant rarity, then I would point out the text on the reverse of the CD which clearly states: 'For Promotional Use Only- Not For Sale'. You never know, the seller may hand it over for nothing.

All of you are by now familiar with this song, so I won't bother to give you my interpretation of the ideas hiddenwithin the words of this most melancholic of recordings. There is only one person who really knows...and he'sprobably lying! But, I shall attempt to give you an idea of how this remix sounds.

I was suffering from a slight feeling of trepidation about the thought of a new version of what is my second favouritesong from 'hours...', but I needn't have worried. This new mix really is a thing of beauty, almost an "omaarge" (Frenchfor homage) to the ghost of Ziggy. ("Darveed, why you did keel Ziggy?"...French for...)

Because of the stripped-back nature of the album version, de Vries has managed to add quite a few extra ingredientsto the soup without making it too filling. The track begins with darkly atmospheric noises that have a cinematicquality about them, and it quickly becomes apparent that this mix has been done by somebody who understands thesound of classic Bowie. Immediately conspicuous by it's absence is the lead guitar hook of the original. Havinggotten used to the album version with its already subdued guitar, (by Reeves Gabrels' standards at least) I have tosay that this mix doesn't suffer any from the even greater reduction of guitar, and this from somebody who is a fan ofthe mans work.

There are far more of Mike Garson's wonderful jazzy piano strolls here than on the album version, giving it a flavourof 'Aladdin Sane', but pitching it somewhere between that and 'The Buddha Of Suburbia'... except it ain't Mike Garson.Whoever it is playing that piano, they do a pretty fair impersonation of the smooth-headed one's technique.

Seventies science fiction warblings permeate throughout the piece, and the gradual build of strange keyboard noisesand reverbed vocals climax in an orgasm of fade-out la, la, la's (oooh..er) that those among you who witnessed any ofthe live performances of this song since the Jools Holland show will be familiar with. Again the decade is definitelythe seventies, and the vocal is evocative of the type of backing that Bowie supplied for Mott The Hoople and LouReed in '72, and indeed, the phrase itself is almost a slowed down version of the la, la, la's from the US remix versionof 'Rebel Rebel'.

I do love this mix of 'Survive', and I hope it catches the ear of radio producers nationwide. Perhaps Marius de Vriesshould pick up some of the buried treasures from the eighties' Bowie back-catalogue that were smothered byunsympathetic producers. A tick and a gold star!

Oh, it's 'Something In The Air' by the way, for those of you still wondering.

CD1

1. Survive (Marius de Vries Mix)
2. Survive (Album Version)
3. The Pretty Things Are Going To Hell (Stigmata Version)
4. Survive (Video)
Release Date: 17th January 2000

CD2 (Live In Paris Collector's Edition)

1. Survive (Live)
2. Thursday's Child (Live)
3. Seven (Live)
4. Survive (Live Video)
Release Date: 17th January 2000

7" (Limited edition picture disc)

1. Survive (Marius de Vries Mix)
2. Seven (Live)
Release Date: 17th January 2000

From our European Correspondent, Total Blam Blam

Gq Names Hours One Of The Best

This months GQ Magazine names "hours..." one of the best albums of the year. To quote the recap - "Melancholy has never been so upbeat".

Fun With Hours...

Just a bit of fun here. KelMarSuperVixen, Bowienet Columnist Extraordinaire ;) has written an alternative review of "Hours..."

go check out KelMarSuperVixen's Hours Review.

Bing And Bowie

CheckoutMusic at Checkout.com has a feature about the collaboration of Bowie and legendary crooner Bing Crosby. The duo recorded the seasonal classic "Peace On Earth/Little Drummer Boy" and a never released version of Bowie's "Scary Monsters"

According to Bowie, Crosby toured with him briefly, but was sacked for "hanging out every night with his posse" and allowing dozens of "busty babes" to gather backstage.

go to the article

More Pics From Denmark

From Total Blam Blam, here are a few more photos taken in Denmark.

Denmark pics part 1.
Denmark pics part 2.
Denmark pics part 3.
Denmark pics part 4.

Great Interview

Don't miss the Danish radio interview with David Bowie on the P3 Radio website.

Bowie talks about Future projects, including a new album with Tony Visconti, and spends some "quality time" talking about BowieNet, painting and more.

Listen to the interview. (IN ENGLISH)

go to the P3 Radio website.