David Bowie
David Robert Jones was born on the 8th of January 1947 in Brixton, London. His mother worked as a waitress at a cinema while his father managed promotions for the children's charity Barnardo's. The family lived at 40 Stansfield Road on the boundary between Brixton and Stockwell. He attended Stockwell Infants School until he was six years old. Teachers described him as a gifted child who was also a defiant brawler. At age nine, his dancing impressed instructors with vivid artistic interpretations. That same year, his father brought home American records by artists like Elvis Presley and Little Richard. Bowie later said hearing Little Richard's song Tutti Frutti made him feel he had heard God. By the end of 1956, he played ukulele and tea-chest bass with friends. He performed numbers by Chuck Berry to his local Wolf Cub group with mesmerizing gyrations. In 1962, a fight over a girl resulted in a punch to his left eye from friend George Underwood. Four months of hospital operations could not fully repair the damage. He was left with faulty depth perception and a permanently dilated pupil known as anisocoria. This physical trait became one of his most recognizable features throughout his career.
Bowie launched his Ziggy Stardust stage show on the 10th of February 1972 at the Toby Jug pub in Tolworth. His hair was dyed reddish-brown and he wore striking costumes alongside band members Mick Ronson, Trevor Bolder, and Mick Woodmansey. The tour created what biographer David Buckley called a cult of Bowie that lasted longer than almost any other force within pop fandom. The album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars arrived in June 1972. It combined hard rock elements with lighter experimental rock and pop. The single Starman cemented his UK breakthrough after a Top of the Pops performance in July. The album remained in the charts for two years while Hunky Dory joined it there. Bowie toured the United States and contributed backing vocals to Lou Reed's Transformer album. In 1973, his album Aladdin Sane reached number one in the UK. Songs like The Jean Genie and Drive-In Saturday became top five singles. On the 3rd of July 1973, he performed a dramatic retirement at London's Hammersmith Odeon. Footage from this final show premiered as the film Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars in 1979. He later admitted acting the role made him doubt his sanity because the character would not leave him alone.
In August 1976, Bowie and Iggy Pop moved to West Berlin to escape drug addictions and the spotlight. They lived at Hauptstraße 155 in Schöneberg until 1978. His interest in German krautrock and Brian Eno's ambient works led to three albums known as the Berlin Trilogy. Low was recorded in France and completed in November 1976 before release in January 1977. It featured short song fragments alongside ambient instrumentals. The single Sound and Vision reached number three on the UK chart. The second album Heroes arrived in September 1977 and was recorded entirely in Berlin. It incorporated white noise generators, synthesisers, and koto sounds. The title track reached number 24 in the UK but became one of his best-known tracks. Bowie promoted it extensively by performing on Marc Bolan's television show. The third piece Lodger followed in 1979 and was recorded in Switzerland and New York City. It returned to drum and guitar-based rock while incorporating Hijaz non-Western scales. Some tracks used Eno's Oblique Strategies cards to dictate composition methods. All three albums reached the UK top five and received critical praise.
Bowie reached peak commercial success in 1983 with the album Let's Dance. Co-produced by Nile Rodgers, it went platinum in both the UK and US. The title track reached number one while Modern Love and China Girl made number two in the UK. Music videos for these songs activated key archetypes in the pop world. The video for China Girl included a bare-bummed beach lovemaking scene that guaranteed heavy rotation on MTV. Stevie Ray Vaughan guested on the album featuring prominently on the title track. The Serious Moonlight Tour ran for six months following the release. At the 1984 MTV Video Music Awards, he received the inaugural Video Vanguard Award. His next album Tonight found him collaborating with Iggy Pop and Tina Turner. The single Blue Jean became a transatlantic top 10 hit. A short film Jazzin' for Blue Jean won Bowie his only non-posthumous Grammy Award. In July 1985, he performed at Wembley Stadium for Live Aid. He duetted with Mick Jagger on Dancing in the Street which went to number one in the UK.
Bowie appeared in over 30 films throughout his career but chose projects selectively. He described his film work as splashing in the kids pool rather than swimming in the deep end. His first major role was Thomas Jerome Newton in Nicolas Roeg's The Man Who Fell to Earth released in 1976. Severe cocaine addiction left him in such a fragile state he barely understood the filming process. Critics praised this performance as his most significant acting role. In 1981, he starred as Prussian officer Paul von Przygodski in Just a Gigolo which failed commercially. That same year he played Joseph Merrick in the Broadway production of The Elephant Man without stage makeup. In 1983, he appeared as Major Jack Celliers in Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence set during World War II. Pegg places this among his finest performances despite mixed reviews for the film itself. He also voiced characters in Jim Henson's Labyrinth playing the Goblin King Jareth. The film initially performed poorly before growing into a cult classic. He declined the villain role in A View to a Kill and took supporting parts instead.
On the 8th of January 2013, Bowie announced a new studio album titled The Next Day on his website. It marked his return after a decade-long recording hiatus. The single Where Are We Now? topped the UK iTunes Chart within hours. Recorded between 2011 and 2012, twenty-nine songs were created with twenty-two released officially. The album debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart. In mid-2014, he was diagnosed with liver cancer but kept it private. He continued working throughout 2015 secretly recording his final album Blackstar in New York. The theme song for the television series The Last Panthers became the title track for Blackstar. On the 7th of December 2015, his musical Lazarus debuted in New York where he made his final public appearance. Blackstar was released on the 8th of January 2016 on his sixty-ninth birthday. He died two days later after which producer Tony Visconti revealed the album was planned as a swan song. Most lyrics revolve around his impending death according to CNN reporting. Online viewing of his music broke Vevo records the day following his death. Blackstar debuted at number one on charts worldwide including Australia France Germany Italy New Zealand and the US Billboard 200.
Up Next
Continue Browsing
Common questions
When and where was David Robert Jones born?
David Robert Jones was born on the 8th of January 1947 in Brixton, London. He lived at 40 Stansfield Road on the boundary between Brixton and Stockwell.
How did David Bowie lose his eye sight?
A fight over a girl resulted in a punch to his left eye from friend George Underwood in 1962. Four months of hospital operations could not fully repair the damage, leaving him with faulty depth perception and a permanently dilated pupil known as anisocoria.
What albums make up the Berlin Trilogy by David Bowie?
The Berlin Trilogy consists of Low recorded in France and completed in November 1976 before release in January 1977. The second album Heroes arrived in September 1977 and was recorded entirely in Berlin. The third piece Lodger followed in 1979 and was recorded in Switzerland and New York City.
Which album gave David Bowie peak commercial success in 1983?
Bowie reached peak commercial success in 1983 with the album Let's Dance which went platinum in both the UK and US. The title track reached number one while Modern Love and China Girl made number two in the UK.
When did David Bowie die and what was his final album called?
David Bowie died on the 10th of January 2016 after Blackstar was released on the 8th of January 2016 on his sixty-ninth birthday. He had been diagnosed with liver cancer in mid-2014 but kept it private until after his death.