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Bowie podcast klaxon: Reeves Gabrels

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When I was preparing for my chat with Reeves, I had the idea that over one or two episodes, we’d cover everything from Tin Machine to Hours. After the first two hours, we’d got as far as Tin Machine I and I was listening to one surreal monologue after another about topics ranging from Buck Owens, wedding party nightmares, Bowie’s flatulence, Bowie’s hair, male pattern baldness and various strategies for the hard-working alt-rock guitarist to deal with it, musical properties of vibrators and thoughts on the mercurial Sales brothers. I had to plead to pause after a couple hours to which he cheerfully replied “No problem, I’ll just probably sit here talking away to myself the next few hours!” The man can talk. I’ve edited down the first part of our chat here and more – much more – to come. Enjoy!

https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/davidbowie-albumtoalbum/id1355073030?i=1000547920678

Adam Buxton on Scary Monsters!

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Latest albumtoalbum is out now and it’s with family favourite Adam Buxton, with whom I waffled on for a few hours about Scary Monsters. We had aimed to get this done in time for the 40th anniversary but best laid plans and all that. Anyway, we did it, I think it came out nice and here it is! Should anyone be inclined to share or leave a review on Apple podcasts, or similar, I would be incredibly grateful. Thanks!

https://audioboom.com/posts/7751911-adam-buxton-on-scary-monsters

Donny McCaslin talks about working with Bowie on Blackstar

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On the new Albumtoalbum podcast. He was great to chat with, and lots of brilliant details about being in the studio with the Dame, Visconti and the band. We talked for ages, and I invited musician, writer and manager of the Visconti Studio at Kingston Uni, Leah Kardos to join in too. It made me re-listen to Blackstar and get over the loaded associations I had with it and really appreciate the joy and verve captured in the studio as Bowie and McCaslin’s band set each other off beautifully.

This is first of three episodes and hope you might enjoy!

https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/davidbowie-albumtoalbum/id1355073030#episodeGuid=tag%3Aaudioboom.com%2C2020-06-21%3A%2Fposts%2F7612878

Diamond Dogs tastes of Twiglets

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Bargepole’s recent review of Bowie’s Diamond Dogs album left a bad taste in my mouth. Nothing up with the review, it’s just that I remember ordering the record from Britannia Music as young pup and have clear memories of listening to it with my Dad, one evening. We had a little portable record player and I’d put it on the kitchen table once tea and homework had been cleared away. We sat listening, my dad explaining about George Orwell, Big Brother and 1984 to me. It must have been the festive season as there was one of those multi compartmentalised dishes around with various snacks in – peanuts, those little fish shaped salty biscuit things, and Twiglets. I’m not sure if I’d had them before but I was fascinated and repulsed by the taste. Now I can’t hear or read about Diamond Dogs without ‘tasting’ marmite nor can I eat the black stuff on toast without breaking in to a quick chorus of the Chant of the Ever Circling Skeletal Family. Anyone else got any sensory experiences triggered by music, or vice versa?

The Next Bowie Box Set….

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With the announcement of Bowie’s “Berlin” box set, A New Career In A New Town, I’m wondering what the next one will be called? Given they are named after songs, i’d hazard a guess at Dancing With The Big Boys? Which would contain:

Let’s Dance Tonight Never Let Me Down Black Tie White Noise Serious Moonlight live Glass Spider live Re:Call 4

Any other suggestions?

Your ideas for a better Bowie memorial than this, if you please

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It seems that “A crowdfunding campaign to erect a permanent memorial to David Bowie has been launched by a team of south London designers.”

Now I don’t like the idea myself – do they think prople are going to be interested enough in his work after seeing this that they’ll become fans?

My idea is a Black Star (yes!) in some form or other, perhaps on the pavement somewhere significant. Heddon Street for example, the place where the coer for Ziggy was shot. Any better ideas?

http://ichef.bbci.co.uk/news/660/cpsprodpb/29A2/production/_94785601_1bba5282-eb10-4e3c-b5be-e56dc0c347d0.jpg http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-39044933

He’d like to get a letter – Everyone says Hi

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So the Royal Mail are producing Bowie Stamps in March. I seem to remember buying Bowie stamps a few years ago. I’ve also been a little dissapointed by the number of Bowie merchandise popping up on various websites over the last year. I suppose it was to be expected but it made me think about Bowie turning down Royal honours and yet the ‘Royal Mail’ is very happy to sell Bowie stamps. They would probably sell Jack the ripper stamps if they thought they had a market. Maybe they should have stuck with a second class edition!

http://www.royalmail.com/davidbowiestamps?iid=PEVU_MGProjectDJ_DD_05

Sex crime c-c-c-crime….it’s 1984 on the Afterword Almanac

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And so we arrive at the dark heart of the eighties. Much maligned as the era of bland corporate rock, it was soundtracked in my student world anyway by New Order, The Sisters of Mercy, The Smiths, The Cramps,The Fall and The Pogues. I think in the original Word magazine I mentioned in the obits to Lux Interior about club The Coven next to Oxford Ice Rink, when on goth night we would tot up the Cramps v Sisters plays. Happy days indeed for indie fans, and for Def Leppers (see below). Oh and a certain Prince Rogers Nelson became a global superstar with Purple Rain. Frankie goes to Hollywood ruled the UK charts and scandalised the nation. Some headlines from the NME Rock N Roll Years to get you going, and the rules as ever are anything and everything from the year in question.

And finally, people who appeared on the Band Aid single included Jody Watley and Kool and the Gang. David Bowie provided a spoken-word message on the B-side.

As Christmas approaches, the British charts become a battle ground for television-promoted albums. Mega-labels CBS and WEA alone are promoting ten albums between them this year, while » Continue Reading.

Bowie At The Beeb vinyl bargain

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The 4-disc Bowie Radio Sessions vinyl box set is currently at the bargain price of just £29.99 on Amazon UK. I snagged one a couple of hours ago with a gift voucher, and have just checked and it’s still the same price, so probably not a mistake, just a good bargain. It’s £75 on HMV!

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bowie-Radio-Sessions-68-72-VINYL/dp/B019PJII6O/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1476520184&sr=8-1&keywords=bowie+bbc+vinyl

Late Vintage

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The two most romantic stories in art are surely the Young Gun(s) from Nowhere Change Everything With their Debut; and the Late Vintage: or the Gang Get It Together, Despite all they’ve /he’s/she’s been through, for One Last Time.

From Shakespeare’s Late Plays to Kurosawa’s Ran and Matisse’s cut-outs there’s been a poignancy and mystique attached to final works that seem to possess a simplicity and clarity that can only have been achieved after a substantial creative career. Often they allude or overtly deal with the vexed problem of Leaving The Stage, age and mortality – or conversely are a joyous celebration of what made them so Insanely Great in the first place.

The Beatles, as in so many other ways, set the rock template here with Abbey Road – when they asked George Martin to make one last record with them ‘the way we used to do it’ after the mess of the Let It Be sessions and the experimentalism of The White Album. David Bowie of course made what might be the most astonishing Late Vintage albums ever with The Next Day and Blackstar.

I’ve recently been listening to the last two Sonic Youth albums, Rather Ripped » Continue Reading.

Bowie Klaxon

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The Guardian has details this morning of unreleased 1974 soul and funk lp The Gouster that became Young Americans coming in the next box set of reissues:

A previously unreleased David Bowie album is set to be released. The Gouster, recorded in 1974, was Bowie’s experiment in soul and funk, which later morphed into Young Americans, released in 1975. It will appear later this year in a box set, Who Can I Be Now? (1974-1976).

Below the line is an entertaining commentary on cash-ins/its not unreleased/was on the 1991 CD reissues/there’s real unreleased stuff not included still

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/jul/22/david-bowie-unreleased-album-box-set-who-can-i-be-now-the-gouster