David Bowie and every other artist listed here are yours to rock out to whenever and however you want with your Rhapsody subscription. Take a free trial and see what we’re all about.
For a long time, the Classic Rock Crate Digger totally loathed David Bowie, particularly his golden period, 1970 to ’77. On so many of his so-called classic albums (Ziggy, Diamond Dogs, Heroes, et al.), he sounds like a glam-rock/New Wave charlatan constantly nicking tricks from far superior artists, including a few personal heroes: Scott Walker, Brian Eno and the perennially overlooked Peter Hammill. If that wasn’t enough, too many of his fans seem to possess a blind devotion that is more than a little annoying. I swear, at least 75% of the fanatics that I’ve met regard the guy as some kind of post-modern genius, the be-all and end-all of everything that's avant garde. Meanwhile, so few of these same people have ever even heard, say, Hammill’s Chameleon in the Shadow of Night or Walker’s Scott 4.
Then something happened. I watched the incredible documentary Scott Walker: 30 Century Man, and it changed my mind. Sort of.
Bowie, in addition to serving as executive producer, is one of the primary interviewees, and the guy really shines. First off, he doesn’t take himself seriously at all (no post-modern baloney dripping from his trap). What we've learned from Velvet Goldmine notwithstanding, he’s a rock 'n' roll fan boy, just like you and me and the little snot down the street snorting crushed Ritalin and cranking the White Stripes. That’s cool. More importantly, Bowie acknowledges the debt he owes the artists who have inspired him through the years. He wants his fans to track down all the cool underground stuff he digs.
Now, I still find his music dull as river rock, and I’ll explain why: in order to sell his art-rock vision to the mainstream, he had to cleanse his influences of their most volatile, and interesting, idiosyncrasies -- not pop enough for the masses, apparently. Yet those are the things I’m most into -- the weird stuff. Oh well. The important thing is that I no longer hate David Bowie. In fact, having a cocktail with him and talking jams sounds like it would be a total blast. Maybe Geraldo can come, too.
A lot of the artists Bowie has championed over the years (Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, T. Rex) are very nearly as famous as he is, nowadays. Nevertheless, I thought it would be cool to give a brief rundown of some of the musicians and records that inspired the, uh, Thin White Duke (always hated that phrase).
For a long time, the Classic Rock Crate Digger totally loathed David Bowie, particularly his golden period, 1970 to ’77. On so many of his so-called classic albums (Ziggy, Diamond Dogs, Heroes, et al.), he sounds like a glam-rock/New Wave charlatan constantly nicking tricks from far superior artists, including a few personal heroes: Scott Walker, Brian Eno and the perennially overlooked Peter Hammill. If that wasn’t enough, too many of his fans seem to possess a blind devotion that is more than a little annoying. I swear, at least 75% of the fanatics that I’ve met regard the guy as some kind of post-modern genius, the be-all and end-all of everything that's avant garde. Meanwhile, so few of these same people have ever even heard, say, Hammill’s Chameleon in the Shadow of Night or Walker’s Scott 4.
Then something happened. I watched the incredible documentary Scott Walker: 30 Century Man, and it changed my mind. Sort of.
Bowie, in addition to serving as executive producer, is one of the primary interviewees, and the guy really shines. First off, he doesn’t take himself seriously at all (no post-modern baloney dripping from his trap). What we've learned from Velvet Goldmine notwithstanding, he’s a rock 'n' roll fan boy, just like you and me and the little snot down the street snorting crushed Ritalin and cranking the White Stripes. That’s cool. More importantly, Bowie acknowledges the debt he owes the artists who have inspired him through the years. He wants his fans to track down all the cool underground stuff he digs.
Now, I still find his music dull as river rock, and I’ll explain why: in order to sell his art-rock vision to the mainstream, he had to cleanse his influences of their most volatile, and interesting, idiosyncrasies -- not pop enough for the masses, apparently. Yet those are the things I’m most into -- the weird stuff. Oh well. The important thing is that I no longer hate David Bowie. In fact, having a cocktail with him and talking jams sounds like it would be a total blast. Maybe Geraldo can come, too.
A lot of the artists Bowie has championed over the years (Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, T. Rex) are very nearly as famous as he is, nowadays. Nevertheless, I thought it would be cool to give a brief rundown of some of the musicians and records that inspired the, uh, Thin White Duke (always hated that phrase).
Scott Walker
Scott, Scott 2, Scott 3 and Scott 4
At the dawn of his career Bowie made some oddball symphonic pop (check out The Deram Anthology 1966-1968), but it was Scott Walker who defined the avant-pop crooner in the late 1960s. His first four studio albums are stone-cold brilliant and audacious. Bowie obviously worshiped all four.
The Stooges
Fun House
The Stooges are now in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, so they’re no longer outsiders. But if you want to understand why young Bowie ditched whimsical acoustica for heavy
jammers, then simply crank this beast 100
times in a row (if you haven’t already). It will sound like violent
slop at first, but eventually the snarling, rhythmic genius of the
guitar, bass and drums will reveal itself. Bowie dug it so much he
decided to become Iggy's babysitter for a few years.
Peter Hammill
Chameleon in the Shadow of Night
Though Bowie has acknowledged Peter Hammill’s influence, it hasn’t translated into widespread recognition for the founder of Van Der Graaf Generator. Hammill’s music is just too difficult and sci-fi driven, I think. Apparently, Chameleon in the Shadow of Night is the record that inspired Bowie to make his own difficult and sci-fi influenced album, 1974’s Diamond Dogs. It definitely sounds like it. If there’s just one record on this list the Classic Rock Crate Digger really wants you to dig into, it’s this tangled and dense masterwork. (While you're at it, you can also check out my playlist overview of Peter Hammill's killer solo career: Chameleon in the Shadow of Night: The Art of Peter Hammill.)
The Velvet Underground
Loaded
Lou Reed = the David Bowie of the 1960s, right?
Klaus Nomi
Bowie wasn’t necessarily influenced by Klaus Nomi’s music. He simply thought the sci-fi opera weirdo, who was the toast of New York’s New Wave/disco underground in the late 1970s, would make an awesome backup singer for his appearance on Saturday Night Live. It's a move that further reinforced the view that throughout the ’70s Bowie incessantly watched the underground for trends. He was always looking for some obscure fruit to pick and feed to mainstream pop audiences.
T. Rex
A Beard of Stars / T. Rex
Both Marc Bolan and David Bowie started off as mod dandies who then went into psych-folk and then on to riff-heavy glam. The only difference is that Bolan was always the first to shape-shift. Bowie then followed his lead.
Roxy Music
Country Life
Some time after Bowie grew tired of that silly red wig he turned chic. During his Young Americans phase (1975) he was all about Italian couture and funky blue-eyed soul-infused art pop. That was him playing the Bryan Ferry/Roxy Music card.
Alice Cooper
Easy Action
In 2006 I had the honor of interviewing Dennis Dunaway, bassist and composer for the original Alice Cooper band. He told me an interesting story. Dunaway once ran into a member of David Bowie’s camp, who revealed to him that Alice Cooper’s look from the late 1960s (gargantuan platforms and skin-tight space suits) was a big influence on Ziggy’s band, the Spiders From Mars. I’ll go a step further and say Alice, as exemplified on 1970’s Easy Action, invented the Ziggy concept, that of the androgynous rocker in makeup calling out society through satirical freak-rock, performance art and media-savvy shenanigans. Interesting note: Easy Action contains a song titled “Return of the Spiders,” and the Coop’s first garage-rock group was actually called the Spiders. Coincidences?
The Walker Brothers
Nite Flights
Actually, I have no idea if Bowie lifted any ideas from Nite Flights; I just think it’s one of the best proto-New Wave records ever made. Lots of pop critics cite Low and Heroes (also mid-’70s Roxy Music) as ground zero for the new romantics (Ultravox, O.M.D., Soft Cell, Human League, etc). But the movement’s coolest precursors are the first four tunes on this gem. Listen to “The Electrician” RIGHT NOW.
Brian Eno
Another Green World
Speaking of Low and Heroes, listen to Eno’s Another Green World, and you’ll understand why Bowie asked him to produce those two records.
Pink Floyd
First Three Singles
Nearly every Brit who has ever played the psychedelic-joker role stole his/her shtick from Syd Barrett, Bowie included. But here’s the thing: The Piper at the Gates of Dawn and Barrett’s original two solo efforts, The Madcap Laughs and Barrett, are the albums usually hauled out when proving the man’s genius. While all three are great, it’s the songs comprising Floyd’s first three singles that, to me, truly nail his singular talents. Those are “Arnold Layne,” “Candy and a Currant Bun,” “See Emily Play,” “The Scarecrow,” “Apples and Oranges,” and the Richard Write composition “Paintbox.”
Jobriath
Jobriath / Creatures of the Street
Sadly, Rhapsody doesn’t offer Jobriath’s two magnificent albums: his self-titled debut from 1973 and Creatures of the Street, released in ’74. Hopefully, these will be made available to us someday, because the openly gay glam rocker from Philadelphia was like Ziggy's long-lost twin. Jobriath was doing everything Bowie was doing, only nobody knew he even existed. Sad.
Honorable Mention: The Cockettes!
If you want to check out some of the artists mentioned above, simply crank the accompanying playlist David Bowie: Post-Modern Chameleon or Rip-Off Artist? You can also listen to the abridged version below.
Scott, Scott 2, Scott 3 and Scott 4
At the dawn of his career Bowie made some oddball symphonic pop (check out The Deram Anthology 1966-1968), but it was Scott Walker who defined the avant-pop crooner in the late 1960s. His first four studio albums are stone-cold brilliant and audacious. Bowie obviously worshiped all four.
The Stooges
Fun House
The Stooges are now in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, so they’re no longer outsiders. But if you want to understand why young Bowie ditched whimsical acoustica for heavy
Peter Hammill
Chameleon in the Shadow of Night
Though Bowie has acknowledged Peter Hammill’s influence, it hasn’t translated into widespread recognition for the founder of Van Der Graaf Generator. Hammill’s music is just too difficult and sci-fi driven, I think. Apparently, Chameleon in the Shadow of Night is the record that inspired Bowie to make his own difficult and sci-fi influenced album, 1974’s Diamond Dogs. It definitely sounds like it. If there’s just one record on this list the Classic Rock Crate Digger really wants you to dig into, it’s this tangled and dense masterwork. (While you're at it, you can also check out my playlist overview of Peter Hammill's killer solo career: Chameleon in the Shadow of Night: The Art of Peter Hammill.)
The Velvet Underground
Loaded
Lou Reed = the David Bowie of the 1960s, right?
Klaus Nomi
Bowie wasn’t necessarily influenced by Klaus Nomi’s music. He simply thought the sci-fi opera weirdo, who was the toast of New York’s New Wave/disco underground in the late 1970s, would make an awesome backup singer for his appearance on Saturday Night Live. It's a move that further reinforced the view that throughout the ’70s Bowie incessantly watched the underground for trends. He was always looking for some obscure fruit to pick and feed to mainstream pop audiences.
T. Rex
A Beard of Stars / T. Rex
Both Marc Bolan and David Bowie started off as mod dandies who then went into psych-folk and then on to riff-heavy glam. The only difference is that Bolan was always the first to shape-shift. Bowie then followed his lead.
Roxy Music
Country Life
Some time after Bowie grew tired of that silly red wig he turned chic. During his Young Americans phase (1975) he was all about Italian couture and funky blue-eyed soul-infused art pop. That was him playing the Bryan Ferry/Roxy Music card.
Alice Cooper
Easy Action
In 2006 I had the honor of interviewing Dennis Dunaway, bassist and composer for the original Alice Cooper band. He told me an interesting story. Dunaway once ran into a member of David Bowie’s camp, who revealed to him that Alice Cooper’s look from the late 1960s (gargantuan platforms and skin-tight space suits) was a big influence on Ziggy’s band, the Spiders From Mars. I’ll go a step further and say Alice, as exemplified on 1970’s Easy Action, invented the Ziggy concept, that of the androgynous rocker in makeup calling out society through satirical freak-rock, performance art and media-savvy shenanigans. Interesting note: Easy Action contains a song titled “Return of the Spiders,” and the Coop’s first garage-rock group was actually called the Spiders. Coincidences?
The Walker Brothers
Nite Flights
Actually, I have no idea if Bowie lifted any ideas from Nite Flights; I just think it’s one of the best proto-New Wave records ever made. Lots of pop critics cite Low and Heroes (also mid-’70s Roxy Music) as ground zero for the new romantics (Ultravox, O.M.D., Soft Cell, Human League, etc). But the movement’s coolest precursors are the first four tunes on this gem. Listen to “The Electrician” RIGHT NOW.
Brian Eno
Another Green World
Speaking of Low and Heroes, listen to Eno’s Another Green World, and you’ll understand why Bowie asked him to produce those two records.
Pink Floyd
First Three Singles
Nearly every Brit who has ever played the psychedelic-joker role stole his/her shtick from Syd Barrett, Bowie included. But here’s the thing: The Piper at the Gates of Dawn and Barrett’s original two solo efforts, The Madcap Laughs and Barrett, are the albums usually hauled out when proving the man’s genius. While all three are great, it’s the songs comprising Floyd’s first three singles that, to me, truly nail his singular talents. Those are “Arnold Layne,” “Candy and a Currant Bun,” “See Emily Play,” “The Scarecrow,” “Apples and Oranges,” and the Richard Write composition “Paintbox.”
Jobriath
Jobriath / Creatures of the Street
Sadly, Rhapsody doesn’t offer Jobriath’s two magnificent albums: his self-titled debut from 1973 and Creatures of the Street, released in ’74. Hopefully, these will be made available to us someday, because the openly gay glam rocker from Philadelphia was like Ziggy's long-lost twin. Jobriath was doing everything Bowie was doing, only nobody knew he even existed. Sad.
Honorable Mention: The Cockettes!
If you want to check out some of the artists mentioned above, simply crank the accompanying playlist David Bowie: Post-Modern Chameleon or Rip-Off Artist? You can also listen to the abridged version below.
This kind of debate, like those on Soundcheck are really non-starters. Tell me what artist works in a vacuum? Scott Walker's influences are well documented, and there was nothing particularly original about Syd Barrett, and Bowie cites Anthony Newley as more of an influence during that period anyway, which is fair enough. As for following Roxy Music into a smoother feel in the mid 70s, well they were all jumping on the New York club scene bandwagon, as Ferry acknowledged in a recent BBC documentary. This happens all the time in music, it's called evolving and trying to broaden ones scope. Lou Reed and Iggy Popp, as well as John Lennon and Marc Bolan all worked quite happily with Bowie: it's called cross-fertilization. Bowie never tried to hide his influences in interviews and has always actively encouraged his audience to investigate them, (he turned me on to Joy Division when they'd just started.) I realise that die-hard Bowie fans can be really tiresome, but then so can die-hard Scott Walker fans (I'm one) and Peter Hammil fans (me too), there just aren't as many of us. Bowie is a great artist, as if I needed to say it. His vocals on the "Stage" version of "Heroes" are in my opinion some of the best ever committed to vinyl. Stop these silly, fruitless discussions. BTW you did yourself absolutely no favours by including Klaus Nomi and Alice Cooper in the mix. Really?
Maggie, thanks for reading and thanks for the killer reply. Really, I love your thoughtful points. I totally agree: everybody cops something from somebody. Look at Robert Johnson; he was the Bowie of the Delta Blues! Though I didn't make your point explicit in my piece, it is one of the prime reasons why I've surrendered by loathing. In Bowie's case, my main issue is with his music. Yes, he, like everybody, else borrowed ideas from other musicians. But unlike, say, Robert Johnson, I find Bowie's music dreadfully boring. Of course, that's just a matter of taste, but I feel as though his music lacks the bite of those whom he has borrowed from.
At the same time, I don't think a piece like this is a "non-starter" in the sense that maybe it can turn somebody on to Peter Hammill or even Klaus Nomi (whom I think is super cool). I think Hammill's 1970s output in particular is ripe for a major revision. It's simply brilliant.
As for Alice Cooper, well, I must admit: I am a HUGE Alice Cooper fan, and I think A.C. in the late 1960s and '70s is as vital as any of these artists we're talking about. In terms of glam and art rock, his group was definitely exploring those ideas several years before just about any Brit, save possibly The Move. If you recall, he got his start on Zappa's Bizarre/Straight imprints, also the home of Captain Beefheart and Tim Buckley at one time. Yes, Alice destroyed his rep as an art rocker with too much pop metal in his later years, but the first five albums are seriously awesome. It's just that A.C. isn't taken seriously because his fanbase didn't consist of alternative kids.
But again, thanks for reading ad starting this dialog!
Anyone who rips Bowie, just doesn't know music, or at least claims to. I suppose the same folks would totally write off Frank Zappa, KISS, Alice Cooper, Iggy Pop, etc. There will never ever be another David Bowie, period. Nobody can come close to what this guy has accomplished over the years. Albums like Ziggy, Aladdin Sane, Pin-Up's, Diamond Dogs, David Live, Station To Station will live forever, standing the test of time. Rock n' Roll chameleon, absolutely, genius, hell yes!!!!!!!
if you think bowie is a rip off artist your a very stupid person, thats like saying john mayer ripped off dave mattthews band. bowie is an artist of extreme talent and deserves all of our respect.
Although the references made are valid, the conclusions leave a lot to be desired. If you don't like Bowie's music, that's one thing, each to their own, but to dismiss it out of hand because of his influences is purile, name one artist that has never had any outside influence. David Bowie has always acknowledged the artists mentioned and if you watch the BBC documentary "Cracked Actor", you'll see that Bowie acknowledges the influences on him from all areas, not just music.
I could go on about how David Bowie called Bryan Ferry the greatest British songwriter ever, in the early 1970's, long before Roxy recorded Country Life, and how Alice occassionly breaks into Suffragette City during Under My Wheels when playing live, but that would be just getting into a tit for tat argument.
Since the 1960's David Bowie has been pushing the boundaries and exploring new paths, be it in fashion or music, and this should be his legacy to the die hard Bowie fans, and music fans at large, to always be looking for something new. Having first seen David Bowie live in 1973 and countless other times since I could probably be classed as a die hard fan, and if I ever felt that I was not looking for something new to listen to on a daily basis, literally, then I would hang up my headphones and roll over.
I think that the point you have missed in the article is that the new artists that Bowie works with want to work with him, he is perhaps the most influential solo artist of all time. So when he works with somebody like Klaus Nomi or Arcade Fire I don't think that it is him hanging onto their coat tails, but more a mutual respect born out of an ability to look further than the end of their nose.
The main thing about David Bowie is that he can look at himself and have a laugh, and he can discover and work with new emerging talent, just ask Bing Crosby.
Justin,
You have not done your work thoroughly. Anyone who would set themselves up as an authoritiy/expert/critic of anybody else should first know all the details. One glaring ommission in your information on the Bowie blog is the song "Nite Flights" orginally by the Walker Brothers. David Bowie not only titled an earlier song "Africal Night Flight" but, also recorded the same actual "Nite Flights" track a la Walker Brothers on Davids' "Black Tie White Noise" album. This is as clear as the nose on your face to anybody who has listened to the work of David Bowie. It helps to have the facts before going online. Also, David Bowie's catalog contains music from the softest acoustic melodies to the thickest, loudest rock plus ethereal instumentals and some of the funkiest songs and sounds ever. You hate them all? Woo! That's not critical thinking, by any definition. Goodbye and start learning your job.
Dear Ustinovia,
Thanks for reading!
I just want to clarify something. The question I raise in regards to the Walker Brothers' 'Nite Flights' has to do with this: Did Bowie borrow anything from that album in terms of style and sound? I didn't mention his cover of the title track, which was recorded in the early 90s, because that's not relevant to the question I pose. And don't forget, my column focuses on Bowie's work in the late '60s and 1970s, not the '90s.
I just want to clarify that because I don't believe it's an omission on my part.
Thanks!