David Bowie, whose ground-breaking music inspired generations during a career spanning six decades, has died at the age of 69 after being diagnosed with cancer.
Advertisement
Long-time pr oducer Tony Visconti said the late singer’s final album, Blackstar – released two days before his death – was “his parting gift” to the world.
As he fought cancer unknown to the world, Bowie, an elusive rock star whose music has been as famously changeable as his image, had remained active, working and launching projects. “While many of you will share in this loss, we ask that you respect the family’s privacy during their time of grief”, the statement read.No more details were provided.
Remembering Bowie also comes tinged with the sad realization that, although we see him as a symbol – an immortal alien, an ageless Goblin King, a queer icon, a music idol – he is merely a human being, and hardly a ideal one. Below is a playlist of his tracks- old and new- ideal for the runner celebrating the life of this star.
In the video for his mournful new song “Lazarus,” David Bowie lies in what looks like a shabby hospital bed, bandages over his eyes, straining his frail body upward.
“Look up here, I’m in heaven”, he sings over the forlorn wail of a saxophone.
When he first came to prominence in the early 1970s Bowie had an army of teenage girl fans who swooned over him.
“I’m not a natural performer”, he said in the 2002 interview.
Weirdly, the first thing I think of when I think of Bowie as an actor is one of Christopher Nolan’s less-appreciated efforts, The Prestige (2006), in which the always-fascinating Bowie played another fascinating figure, Nikola Tesla.
Bowie’s 1975 song “Fame” was huge for Bowie’s career. “Added Madonna, who accepted the honor for Bowie: “Before I saw David Bowie live I was your normal dysfunctional, rebellious teenager from the Midwest”. He said: “As a young musician in Glasgow, going to see the original Ziggy and the Spider playing that album at the Glasgow Apollo was just phenomenal”.
He had some of his biggest successes in the early 1980s with the bombastic “Let’s Dance”, and a massive American tour.
Bowie was thought to have suffered a heart attack in 2004, after which he largely stopped making public appearances. “Blackstar”, which earned positive reviews from critics, represented yet another stylistic shift, as he gathered jazz players to join him. He’s easily in the top five songwriters of all time. “I don’t enjoy performing terribly much”.
Advertisement
Bowie married supermodel Iman Abdulmajid in 1992 and the pair had a daughter, Alexandria Zahra Jones.
