“While tens of millions found me in demand…”
Wow! We’ve just reached 10 million followers of the David Bowie Official Spotify page.
Many thanks to every single one of you.
#BowieSpotify
“While tens of millions found me in demand…”
Wow! We’ve just reached 10 million followers of the David Bowie Official Spotify page.
Many thanks to every single one of you.
#BowieSpotify
“And me I’m on a radio show...”
To mark the 40th anniversary of David Bowie’s Pin Ups, the Pin Ups Radio Show was launched on Spotify ten years ago today.
Originally recorded as a promotional tool for the release of the record in 1973, but never used, the recording features snippets from Pin Ups interspersed with brief but nevertheless wonderful observations from Bowie regarding some of the bands he covers on the album.
Adopting his very best mockney to recall his days as a mod during the period, it's great fun and if you’ve not heard it, it’s still available here.
Vinyl and CD versions of the release were made available in very limited quantities and command fairly stiff prices these days.
The closest idea to this promotion back in 1973 was a 7" record sent to RCA Record Club members in New Zealand.
Featuring Rosalyn and Where Have All The Good Times Gone the disc introduced listeners to the very enthusiastic Tim, The RCA Stereo Club Disc Jockey. His interjections over each track ensured lucky recipients had to buy the album if they wished to hear the tracks uninterrupted.
📸 Mick Rock
#BowiePinUps50 #BowiePinUpsRadioShow
If you were ever lucky enough to catch David Bowie live in Japan, you have Japanese concert promoter Seijiro Udo, aka ‘Mr Udo’, to thank for that.
Sad to report that Mr Udo has died at the age of 92 following a long illness.
Launching Udo Artists, Inc. in 1967, Udo staged more than 10,000 concerts in Japan in a career spanning over fifty years.
Udo promoted Bowie’s Japanese shows right up to and including A Reality Tour in 2004.
It’s clear to see from reading other tributes that he was extremely well respected and that this honest, honourable gentleman will be sorely missed.
#BowieInJapan
“Singing old songs he loved...” *
As mentioned here last week, today (19th October) marks the 50th anniversary of David Bowie’s 1973 album of cover versions, Pin Ups.
When originally released, the David Bowie/Ken Scott produced LP was preceded by the only single from Pin Ups, Sorrow, which reached #3 on the UK chart. Pin Ups itself entered the UK album chart at #1 on the strength of pre-orders alone.
Joining Bowie on the sleeve for Justin de Villeneuve’s extraordinary photograph is Twiggy, name-checked earlier the same year on Aladdin Sane for Drive-In Saturday: “She’d sigh like Twig the Wonder Kid”. The image here is an alternative shot to the one used.
The photo session was shot in Paris for Vogue magazine, but, at Bowie's request, it was used for the Pin Ups cover instead. Bowie persuaded de Villeneuve that the album would have a considerably wider distribution than the magazine.
Here’s the note from the back cover where Bowie explained the Pin Ups concept :
+ - + - + - + - + - + - + - + - + - + - + - + - + - + - +
These songs are among my favourites from the '64–67' period of London.
Most of the groups were playing the Ricky-Tick (was it a 'y' or an 'i'?) - Scene club circuit (Marquee, eel pie island la-la)
Some are still with us. Pretty Things, Them, Yardbirds, Syd's Pink Floyd, Mojos, Who, Easybeats, Merseys, Kinks.
Love-on ya!
Bowie x
+ - + - + - + - + - + - + - + - + - + - + - + - + - + - +
Alan York and Jason Draper have pointed us at their in-depth piece which includes a track-by-track look at the album over on Dig!
📸 Justin de Villeneuve
* Original lyric from Scream Like A Baby: “Singing old songs we loved...”
#BowiePinUps #BowiePinUps50
“I couldn't sleep last night...”
DAVID BOWIE - PIN UPS 50th ANNIVERSARY HALF SPEED MASTERED LP
SPECIAL VINYL RELEASE TO CELEBRATE THE 50th ANNIVERSARY OF PIN UPS TO BE RELEASED 20th OCTOBER 2023 - Pre-order here
October 2023 marks the 50th anniversary of the release of David Bowie’s classic collection of cover songs, the #1 album Pin Ups, originally released 19th October 1973.
Recorded at Château d’Hérouville in France, a studio to which Bowie would later return to record Low, Pin Ups was a collection of cover songs paying tribute to bands and artists that had inspired Bowie and that he had seen at various clubs in London in the mid to late 60s. Artists he covered for the album included The Yardbirds, The Kinks, Pink Floyd, The Who, The Pretty Things, The Easybeats and more.
Just one single was issued from the album in the UK, a version of The McCoys’ song Sorrow, which later enjoyed wider recognition via The Mersey’s version which peaked at #4 in the UK.
The Bowie version reached #3 in the UK and the single also gave him his first #1 anywhere in the world when it hit the top spot in Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa.
On 20th October 2023, one day after its Golden Jubilee, Pin Ups will be issued as a limited edition 50th anniversary half-speed mastered LP. This new pressing was cut on a customised late Neumann VMS80 lathe with fully recapped electronics from 192kHz restored masters of the original master tapes, with no additional processing on transfer. John Webber cut the half-speed at AIR Studios.
#BowiePinUps50
“I'm happy, hope you're happy too...”
Some of you may have noticed that we’ve been running a poll for your favourite Bowie videos on the Bowie socials. The results are in and here is the top 26.
No surprises with this result. You have voted the David Bowie and David Mallet directed Ashes To Ashes your favourite Bowie video.
Hats off to David Mallet for achieving nine entries (more than a third of the winning videos), and they’re all in the top 20.
We’ll leave you with the full top 26.
#01 - Ashes To Ashes 1980 - David Bowie and David Mallet
#02 - Life On Mars? 1973 - Mick Rock
#03 - Boys Keep Swinging 1979 - David Mallet
#04 - Jump They Say 1993 - Mark Romanek
#05 - I'm Afraid Of Americans 1997 - Dom and Nic
#06 - ★ Blackstar - 2016 - Bo Johan Renck
#07 - DJ 1979 - David Mallet
#08 - The Hearts Filthy Lesson 1995 - Samuel Bayer
#09 - Lazarus 2016 - Bo Johan Renck
#10 - The Stars (Are Out Tonight) 2013 - Floria Sigismondi
#11 - The Next Day 2013 - Floria Sigismondi
#12 - Let's Dance 1983 - David Mallet
#13 - Look Back In Anger 1979 - David Mallet
#14 - Strangers When We Meet 1995 - Samuel Bayer
#15 - China Girl 1983 - David Mallet
#16 - Loving The Alien 1985 - David Bowie and David Mallet
#17 - Little Wonder 1997 - Floria Sigismondi
#18 - Blue Jean / Jazzin’ For Blue Jean 1984 - Julien Temple
#19 - Fashion 1980 - David Mallet
#20 - Wild Is the Wind 1981- David Mallet
#21 - Thursday’s Child 1999 - Walter Stern
#22 - Where Are We Now? 2013 - Tony Oursler
#23 - Absolute Beginners 1986 - Julien Temple
#24 - Space Oddity 1972 - Mick Rock
#25 - The Jean Genie 1972 - Mick Rock
#26 - Be My Wife 1977 - Stanley Dorfman
#MyFavouriteBowieVideos
Many happy returns of the day to Iman from everybody here at DBHQ, hope you’re having a wonderful celebration.
We know you’re a fan of the work of Rena Albo, so we thought we’d share their beautiful birthday greeting to you.
Fans of David and Iman should also check out @renalabo_art on Instagram if you’re not already familiar with it, some incredible images of both scattered throughout the gallery.
#ImanBirthday #imanhbd #BowieRenaAlboArt
“While tens of thousands found me in demand...”
136 thousand of you have already discovered the only official Bowie account on Threads since we launched on Thursday.
Threads is an online social media and social networking service owned by American technology company Meta Platforms. It functions similarly to other microblogging platforms like Twitter: users can post and share text, images, and videos; reply to, repost, and like posts by others. The app is available on iOS and Android with full functionality and on the web with limited functionality, soon to be expanded.
However, many of you won’t have found us on the platform as the release of Threads in the European Union was postponed amid regulatory uncertainty about how the app will use personal data. We’ll let you know if this situation is resolved.
If you’ve not used Threads yet, you may like to know that each post on the platform can only be up to 500 characters long and will allow users to include links, photos (max 10 per post), as well as videos not exceeding five minutes in length. (QR code to download app on image)
📸 Jill Greenberg 1999
#BowieThreads #Bowie1999
“I keep a photograph, It burns my wall with time...“
Two Bowie calendars will be available to brighten your 2024 months. As is usual, there will be an A3 and a square album sized calendar.
The A3 calendar features classic images from throughout Bowie’s career, with a beautiful Mick Rock cover shot from 1972.
The square calendar is a Steve Schapiro special featuring photographs taken in 1975, including the cover image which was used for both Low and The Man Who Fell To Earth.
Available in the UK/EU, here’s the direct link.
#OfficialBowie2024Calendars #BowieCalendar
“To the seat with the clearest view...”
With the many celebrations posted today, you’ve no doubt noticed that 22nd June 2023 marks the 50th anniversary of the Life On Mars? single.
The song was originally released on the Hunky Dory album at the tail end of 1971 and by the following year Bowie had answered his own question by finding some Spiders on the Red Planet.
According to music press reports from the time, the single was issued due to the overwhelming positive audience response to the song during the current 1973 tour. Ironic then that Bowie didn’t perform it at Hammersmith on 3rd July when the single had entered the top five of the official UK charts.
Meanwhile, feast your eyes on this 4k upgrade of the Mick Rock directed promotional video over on YouTube.
A word of warning for those of you used to the oversaturated previous versions of the video, you’re in for a bit of a shock. This upgrade has finally been colour corrected to something approaching reality. Those of you who saw the Life On Mars? suit at the David Bowie Is exhibition will recognise that this version is a far more accurate representation of the original colouring.
And just for fun, we’ve also synced the video to the audio of the Life On Mars? Original Ending Version from Divine Symmetry.
For a more in-depth appreciation of the track, Alan York’s piece from November 2021: LIFE ON MARS?: HOW DAVID BOWIE CREATED AN OUT-OF-THIS-WORLD CLASSIC, is still well worth a read.
#BowieLOM #BowieLOM50 #BowieMickRock
“Ziggy really sang…”
Watch the newly restored performance of Ziggy Stardust from the 50th anniversary release of the Ziggy Stardust Motion Picture, available to see in cinemas around the world in July.
View it on YouTube now.
Find out more about how Bowie fans can take part in the 50th anniversary of Ziggy Stardust here.
#Ziggy50 #BowieHammersmithOdeon50th #ZiggyMoPi
“Waiting for the gift of sound and vision…”
DAVID BOWIE - ZIGGY STARDUST AND THE SPIDERS FROM MARS - THE MOTION PICTURE - 50th ANNIVERSARY
THE LEGENDARY LAST EVER ZIGGY STARDUST SHOW IS TO BE MADE AVAILABLE IN FULL FOR THE FIRST TIME DIGITALLY RESTORED WITH REMASTERED AUDIO
2CD & BLU-RAY, 2CD, 2LP LIMITED EDITION GOLD VINYL SET AND DIGITAL (STANDARD 44.1KHZ/16BIT AND 96KHZ/24BIT)
RELEASED 11TH AUGUST
AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER HERE NOW
“Of all the shows on this tour, this particular show will remain with us the longest, because not only is it the last show of the tour, but it's the last show that we'll ever do.” David Bowie, 1973
“A truly great star knows not only how to make a grand entrance, but a grand exit.”
Charles Shaar Murray 2023
3rd July, 1973 - David Bowie retired Ziggy Stardust, his most famous alter-ego, in front of 5000 stunned fans at London’s Hammersmith Odeon. Now, the fully restored film and soundtrack will be released for the first time for the 50th anniversary of the show. Renowned filmmaker D.A. Pennebaker (Monterey Pop, Bob Dylan - Don’t Look Back, Depeche Mode - 101) captured the momentous event by filming Bowie and The Spiders From Mars backstage and onstage. The digital restoration of the new version of the film has been overseen by his son, Frazer Pennebaker with remastered audio.
Although filmed 50 years ago, the film was not widely seen for over a decade. However, the film and its soundtrack have been newly remastered with the medley of ‘The Jean Genie/Love Me Do’ medley and ‘Round And Round’ featuring the late legendary Jeff Beck reinstated - the latter track making its very first appearance anywhere. Both performances were newly mixed by long-time Bowie collaborator Tony Visconti.
The show featured Bowie’s famous speech just before the final encore, ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll Suicide’, where he revealed that he was retiring the Ziggy Stardust persona. The shocking announcement came as a surprise to all in attendance – including members of his band and was the first proclamation of its kind in rock and roll.
DAVID BOWIE
ZIGGY STARDUST AND THE SPIDERS FROM MARS: THE MOTION PICTURE
50th ANNIVERSARY
Blu-Ray
Opening Credits/Introduction
Hang On To Yourself
Ziggy Stardust
Watch That Man
Wild Eyed Boy From Freecloud
All The Young Dudes
Oh! You Pretty Things
Moonage Daydream
Changes
Space Oddity
My Death
Cracked Actor
Time
The Width Of A Circle
Let's Spend the Night Together
Suffragette City
White Light/White Heat
Medley: The Jean Genie / Love Me Do / The Jean Genie (feat. Jeff Beck)
Round And Round (feat. Jeff Beck)
Farewell Speech
Rock 'n' Roll Suicide
End Credits
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 – 48kHz/24bit, PCM Stereo – 48kHz/24bit, Aspect Ratio – 4:3. All Regions. Exempt from classification.
5.1 Surround sound music mix by Tony Visconti, assisted by Rich Tozzoli/Gizmo Enterprises. Stereo mix by Tony Visconti.
‘The Jean Genie/Love Me Do’ medley and ‘Round And Round’ stereo: mixed and engineered by Tony Visconti, 5.1: mixed by Tony Visconti, engineered by Jannek Zechner
CD
Disc 1
Introduction Part 1
Hang On To Yourself
Ziggy Stardust
Watch That Man
Wild Eyed Boy From Freecloud
All The Young Dudes
Oh! You Pretty Things
Moonage Daydream
Changes
Space Oddity
My Death
Disc 2
Cracked Actor
Time
The Width Of A Circle
Let's Spend the Night Together
Suffragette City
White Light/White Heat
Medley: The Jean Genie / Love Me Do / The Jean Genie (feat. Jeff Beck)
Round And Round (feat. Jeff Beck)
Farewell Speech
Rock 'n' Roll Suicide
Vinyl
Side 1
Introduction
Hang On To Yourself
Ziggy Stardust
Watch That Man
Wild Eyed Boy From Freecloud
All The Young Dudes
Oh! You Pretty Things
Moonage Daydream
Side 2
Changes
Space Oddity
My Death
Cracked Actor
Time
Side 3
The Width Of A Circle
Let’s Spend The Night Together
Suffragette City
Side 4
White Light/White Heat
Medley: The Jean Genie / Love Me Do / The Jean Genie (feat. Jeff Beck)
Round And Round (feat. Jeff Beck)
Farewell Speech
Rock ‘n’ Roll Suicide
Digital (standard 44.1kHz/16bit resolution and 96kHz/24bit resolution)
Hang On To Yourself
Ziggy Stardust
Watch That Man
Wild Eyed Boy From Freecloud
All The Young Dudes
Oh! You Pretty Things
Moonage Daydream
Changes
Space Oddity
My Death
Cracked Actor
Time
The Width Of A Circle
Let's Spend the Night Together
Suffragette City
White Light/White Heat
Medley: The Jean Genie / Love Me Do / The Jean Genie (feat. Jeff Beck)
Round And Round (feat. Jeff Beck)
Farewell Speech
Rock 'n' Roll Suicide
Mastering and remastering by John Webber at AIR Studios, London
#Ziggy50 #BowieHammersmithOdeon50th #DavidBowieTour1973 #ZiggyMoPi
“We played our songs and felt the London sky…”
On 3rd July, 1973 – with a little encouragement from David Bowie himself – pianist Mike Garson found himself opening what would be Ziggy and The Spiders’ last show on that fateful summer night, by playing a medley of four of David’s most celebrated songs, a medley which included Life On Mars? #4 in the UK chart at that precise moment.
Now, 50 years to the day, Mike will return to that same stage to open the global premiere of the newly restored version of Ziggy Stardust & The Spiders From Mars: The Motion Picture.
Mike will fly in to London specially to perform and will then take part in a panel conversation preceding the screening of the film, which will also be shown in over 600 cinemas throughout Europe simultaneously. Further screenings will also be shown throughout July in the US, Australia, and Latin America.
Stay tuned for further updates shortly.
📸 by Terry O'Neill / Iconic Images
#Ziggy50 #BowieGarson #BowieHammersmithOdeon50th #AladdinSane50 #DavidBowieTour1973 #ZiggyMoPi
“I will see you in the sky tonight...”
Sad to hear of the passing of Tina Turner, the legendary singer whose career dated back to 1960 with the release of her first recording: A Fool in Love as Ike and Tina Turner.
In a statement released this evening, her publicist Bernard Doherty said: “Tina Turner, the ‘Queen of Rock ’n Roll’ has died peacefully today at the age of 83 after a long illness in her home in Kusnacht near Zurich, Switzerland. With her, the world loses a music legend and a role model.”
Bowie fans will be aware of the duet she recorded with David for the title track of 1984’s Tonight LP. The Bowie/Iggy Pop penned track was released as a single later that year.
On 23rd March, 1985, at a Tina Turner concert at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham in the UK, Bowie performed the song live with Tina along with a section of the Chris Montez hit, Let’s Dance, segueing into Bowie’s song of the same name.
This live duet of Tonight was released as a single becoming a #1 hit in the Netherlands.
We’ll finish with some words Tina said to The Guardian newspaper in 2020 that despite having some serious health problems, the last 10 years of her life had embodied her ideal vision of happiness.
“True and lasting happiness comes from having an unshakeable, hopeful spirit that can shine, no matter what,” she said. “That’s what I’ve achieved, and it is my greatest wish to help others become truly happy as well.”
#TinaTurnerRIP #BowieTurner
“And the clock waits so patiently on your song…”
As you know, fifty years to the day, Ziggy Stardust returns to The Eventim Apollo Hammersmith (formerly the Odeon) on 3rd July for one night only.
Cinema tickets for the 50th anniversary ‘Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars: The Motion Picture’ are now available for the UK and Ireland.
The 50th anniversary event will include live conversation with Bowie associates and fans, streamed from Eventim Apollo.
There will also be further screenings available soon across Europe, North America, Australia, Asia and Latin America. Stay tuned for updates on the release of tickets.
All tickets available here on davidbowie.com
Direct link for Eventim Hammersmith Apollo tickets here.
#Ziggy50 #DavidBowieTour1973 #ZiggyMoPi #BowieHammersmithOdeon50th
“Not only is it the last show…”
Ziggy Stardust: The Global Premiere
Fifty years to the day since Bowie’s last show as his famous alter-ego, Ziggy Stardust returns to The Eventim Apollo Hammersmith (formerly the Odeon) on 3rd July for one night only.
For the 50th anniversary, ‘Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars: The Motion Picture’ is digitally restored with never-before-seen footage. The film will be unveiled at a red-carpet global premiere and the screening will be preceded by conversation live on stage with some of Bowie’s famous friends.
Fans will relive that iconic night in music history in the venue where it all happened exactly fifty years ago. The film features the complete set, including a performance by late guitarist Jeff Beck, which was cut from D A Pennebaker’s original version.
The event will be live streamed to cinemas across the UK and Europe, with screenings in cinemas worldwide throughout July.
Tickets for The Eventim Hammersmith Apollo on sale now here at davidbowie.com and cinema tickets on sale from Thursday 18 May also from: davidbowie.com
#Ziggy50 #DavidBowieTour1973 #ZiggyMoPi #BowieHammersmithOdeon50th
“Yeah, alright, that’ll do...” *
DAVID BOWIE
GOLDEN YEARS (TOKiMONSTA REMIX)
AVAILABLE NOW AS A DIGITAL SINGLE
Parlophone Records proudly announces the digital release of “DAVID BOWIE GOLDEN YEARS (TOKiMONSTA REMIX)”. “GOLDEN YEARS” was initially released in late November 1975 as the lead track from Bowie’s tenth studio album, the seminal STATION TO STATION. Musically, the song continued the ‘plastic soul’ sound of 1974’s YOUNG AMERICANS and was a top ten hit on both sides of the Atlantic. The song has been covered by artists such as James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem. It also appeared in the memorable dance scene in the movie A Knight’s Tale and on the Vol #2 soundtrack for Danny Boyle’s Trainspotting.
“GOLDEN YEARS (TOKiMONSTA REMIX)” was created as part of a trio of new Bowie remixes for a Peloton celebration of Bowie’s legacy and enduring influence around his 75th birthday 2022. TOKiMONSTA, aka Jennifer Lee, a Grammy-nominated Los Angeles based producer and DJ, has collaborated with artists such as Anderson .Paak, and has remixed tracks for Beck, Duran Duran, Disclosure, Sia and worked on the Netflix phenomenon Squid Game.
“DAVID BOWIE GOLDEN YEARS (TOKiMONSTA REMIX)” was mixed in 360 Reality Audio, a new immersive music experience driven by Sony’s spatial sound technology. The content is the latest David Bowie music to be mixed in 360 Reality Audio, following "Heroes", Space Oddity, Reality, A Reality Tour (Live), Heathen, The Next Day, And ★.
Of Bowie, TOKiMONSTA says: “To me, I connect with Bowie as an amazing innovator. He was always reinventing himself and pushing the envelope of music, while somehow never ceasing to be authentically himself. His experimental fashion choices are always a beacon for me to challenge my style and look.”
ABOUT 360 REALITY AUDIO
360 Reality Audio is a new immersive music experience that uses Sony’s object-based 360 Spatial Sound technologies. Individual sounds such as vocals, chorus, piano, guitar, bass and even sounds of the live audience can be placed in a 360 spherical sound field, giving artists and creators a new way to express their creativity. Listeners can be immersed in a field of sound exactly as intended by artists and creators. Music content created in this new format for 360 Reality Audio can be enjoyed through compatible music streaming services Amazon Music HD, Deezer, nugs.net and TIDAL.
* Dialogue at the end of the track
#BowieTOKiMONSTA #Bowie360RA #360RA
On April 24th, 1992, David and Iman married at a registry office civil ceremony in Lausanne, Switzerland. Iman marked the 31st anniversary of that event today with a previously unpublished image from the day along with the following online message:
“April 24th You & me... it's a forever kind of thing. #BowieForever”
#imandaily #DavidAndImanAnniversary #EternalLove
“I had so many dreams...”
Today we celebrate the 50th anniversary of Aladdin Sane.
Regular contributor and all-round good egg, Jason Draper, has pointed us in the direction of another in-depth piece he’s published with Alan York over on thisisdig.
Alan wrote the main feature: ALADDIN SANE: HOW BOWIE KILLED ZIGGY STARDUST FOR HIS FOLLOW-UP ALBUM and Jason is responsible for the track-by-track assessment of the album, and you can read the full thing here.
Good work chaps.
Listen to Aladdin Sane here.
FOOTNOTE: The image we’ve used today is one of the 1973 American adverts making full use of the punning title.
#AladdinSane50 #Bowie2023Anniversaries
“It's just the power to charm...”
Today we celebrate the 40th anniversary of Let’s Dance.
Once again, Jason Draper has kindly given us the heads up on another in-depth piece he’s written with Joe Tiller regarding the release over on thisisdig.
It’s a track-by-track assessment of the album titled: ‘LET’S DANCE’: HOW DAVID BOWIE CAME OUT FIGHTING WITH A PURE POP ALBUM, and you can read the full thing here.
#BowieLetsDance40 #Bowie2023Anniversaries