The Stars Look Very Different Today.....

The   Stars  Look  Very  Different Today.....

Blackstar - The last album from artist David Bowie

This is a personal post. Last night I couldn't sleep, and I was working on a new project. I checked Twitter, and was saddened to see the news of the passing of David Bowie.

His music was the soundtrack of my life, beginning in 1973 when I saw him on the Midnight Special tv show that was on Friday nights. He sang the song, Sorrow, and I was hooked. My parents were mortified. Here was this thin man, wearing makeup, his eyebrows shaved, and his hair was dyed a shocking shade of red. I was in love. He was different, wild, edgy, and magical.

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It was a love affair that would take me through high school, college, and beyond.

Way beyond. Every album was unique. In the days before social media, and cd's, our albums came in large cardboard sleeves, with artwork, lyrics you didn't need a magnifying glass to read.

This is the cover art for his Pinups album. Twiggy is the model posing with him Sorrow is featured on this album.

I'd have Bowie weekends, when I would stay in my room, and paint or draw, while playing all of his albums in chronological order.   There were too many! I'd run out of time.

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I read those liner notes and studied the cast of characters.

I became familiar with his musicians, and producers, and I just couldn't get enough. Each album experience was a new version of the man.  Brian Eno, Tony Visconti, Luther Vandross, Niles Rogers, Peter Frampton, Mick Ronson, Ava Cherry, Carlos Alomar, and Earl Slick.

I had heard that his concerts were theatrical productions, and for my 13th birthday, my parents gave me tickets to his concert. It was the Diamond Dogs tour. I was so excited, and anxious to see one of those amazing productions.

Much to my surprise, he had decided to do the last leg of the tour, with a stripped down version. Just the man, and his band. No costume changes. Just the man and his music. At one point he forgot the lyrics, and he just started to laugh. He sat down on the edge of the stage, and laughed it off. Again, I was in love. This man was human.

Notice those two silver bracelets. They were a trademark. I always wondered the significance of those bracelets.

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I will miss him, but he will live on in my memories, and we fans are blessed to have thousands of hours of recordings of video and audio. There are so many ways we can keep him alive in our hearts. 

Tonight I think of his beautiful wife Iman, and their daughter Alexandria, and their loss. They have such a beautiful love story and a lovely daughter.

So tonight, as we look to the heavens, there's a new star, shining brightly.

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