Mountain Studios was a commercial recording studio founded by American singer and composer Anita Kerr and her husband Alex Grob in 1975 within the Montreux Casino in Montreux , Switzerland . The studio was under the ownership of Queen and then long-time Queen producer David Richards from 1979 until 2013, after which it became the charity museum/exhibition Queen: The Studio Experience , benefitting the Mercury Phoenix Trust .
162-778: Black Tie White Noise is the 18th studio album by the English musician David Bowie , released on 5 April 1993 through Savage Records in the United States and Arista Records in the United Kingdom. Conceived following Bowie's marriage to model Iman and the disbandment of his rock band Tin Machine , it was recorded throughout 1992 between studios in Montreux , Los Angeles and New York City. Bowie co-produced with his Let's Dance (1983) collaborator Nile Rodgers , who voiced dissatisfaction with
324-489: A Grafton saxophone in 1961. He was soon receiving lessons from baritone saxophonist Ronnie Ross . He received a serious injury at school in 1962 when his friend George Underwood punched him in the left eye during a fight over a girl. After a series of operations during a four-month hospitalisation, his doctors determined that the damage could not be fully repaired and Bowie was left with faulty depth perception and anisocoria (a permanently dilated pupil), which gave
486-464: A sumo wrestling loincloth or simulating oral sex with Ronson's guitar. Bowie toured and gave press conferences as Ziggy before a dramatic and abrupt on-stage "retirement" at London's Hammersmith Odeon on 3 July 1973. Footage from the final show was incorporated for the film Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars , which premiered in 1979 and commercially released in 1983. After breaking up
648-571: A "cult of Bowie" that was "unique—its influence lasted longer and has been more creative than perhaps almost any other force within pop fandom." The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (1972), combining the hard rock elements of The Man Who Sold the World with the lighter experimental rock and pop of Hunky Dory , was released in June and was considered one of the defining albums of glam rock . " Starman ", issued as an April single ahead of
810-636: A "stultifying yet annoying" record save for "Miracle Goodnight" and "I Know It's Gonna Happen Someday". Veteran critic Robert Christgau said in The Village Voice that the music was Bowie's "most arresting" because of its dance beats and electronic textures , but reacted negatively towards the lyrics. Bowie did not tour in support of Black Tie White Noise , telling Record Collector that it "takes up so much time". He also declined an invitation to perform on MTV 's Unplugged programme. Instead, he made small appearances on American television and released
972-555: A 1991 Tin Machine concert, first recorded " Real Cool World " for the animated film Cool World . Released as a single in August 1992, it appeared on the film's accompanying soundtrack album and featured a sound that foreshadowed Bowie's direction for his next solo record, his first since Never Let Me Down six years earlier. In October 1990, Bowie met Somali model Iman in Los Angeles as he resumed recording with Tin Machine following
1134-426: A 2016 retrospective ranking all of Bowie's 26 studio albums from worst to best, Bryan Wawzenek of Ultimate Classic Rock placed Black Tie White Noise at number 25 (above Never Let Me Down ). In a 2018 list which included Bowie's two albums with Tin Machine , the writers of Consequence of Sound ranked Black Tie White Noise number 18 out of 28. David Sackllah wrote that the record holds up "fairly well" and, as
1296-590: A Bowie record was 1975's Young Americans , plays on "Looking for Lester". Bowie told Record Collector in 1993: "He really has a gift. He kind of plops those jewels on the track and they're quite extraordinary, eccentric pieces of piano playing." Trinidadian guitarist Tony Springer (credited as "Wild T" Springer) appears on a cover of Morrissey's Your Arsenal track "I Know It's Gonna Happen Someday". Bowie had met Springer in Canada during Tin Machine's It's My Life Tour and invited him to record. Bowie recalled that "he
1458-625: A collection of American 45s by artists including the Teenagers , the Platters , Fats Domino , Elvis Presley and Little Richard . Upon listening to Little Richard's song " Tutti Frutti ", Bowie later said that he had "heard God". Bowie was first impressed with Presley when he saw his cousin Kristina dance to " Hound Dog " soon after its release in 1956. According to Kristina, she and David "danced like possessed elves" to records of various artists. By
1620-744: A collection of covers of his 1960s favourites, followed in October, producing a UK number three hit in his version of the McCoys 's " Sorrow " and itself peaking at number one, making Bowie the best-selling act of 1973 in the UK. It brought the total number of Bowie albums concurrently on the UK chart to six. Bowie moved to the US in 1974, initially staying in New York City before settling in Los Angeles. Diamond Dogs (1974), parts of which found him heading towards soul and funk ,
1782-510: A contract with Mercury Records and its UK subsidiary Philips , who issued "Space Oddity" as a single on 11 July 1969, five days ahead of the Apollo 11 launch. Reaching the top five in the UK, it was his first and last hit for three years. Bowie's second album followed in November. Originally issued in the UK as David Bowie , it caused some confusion with its predecessor of the same name, and
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#17331041689491944-405: A departure from the acoustic guitar and folk rock style established by his second album, to a more hard rock sound. Mercury financed a coast-to-coast publicity tour across the US in which Bowie, between January and February 1971, was interviewed by media. Exploiting his androgynous appearance, the original cover of the UK version unveiled two months later depicted Bowie wearing a dress. He took
2106-420: A disagreement with EMI, left the label. Like his audience and his critics, Bowie himself became increasingly disaffected with his role as just one member of a band. Tin Machine began work on a second album, but recording halted while Bowie conducted the seven-month Sound+Vision Tour , which brought him commercial success and acclaim. In October 1990, Bowie and Somali -born supermodel Iman were introduced by
2268-451: A false impression of a change in the iris' colour, erroneously suggesting he had heterochromia iridum (one iris a different colour to the other); his eye later became one of Bowie's most recognisable features. Despite their altercation, Bowie remained on good terms with Underwood, who went on to create the artwork for Bowie's early albums. Bowie formed his first band, the Konrads, in 1962 at
2430-421: A film to accompany the album. Directed by Bowie's long-time video director David Mallet , David Bowie: Black Tie White Noise (1993) is a hybrid of interviews, footage shot during the recording sessions and mimed performances of six tracks shot by Mallet on 8 May 1993 at Hollywood Center Studios . Pegg calls it a "useful companion" to the album but finds Mallet's material uninspired. Sandford also considers
2592-461: A free festival in a local park, the subject of his song " Memory of a Free Festival ". Pitt attempted to introduce Bowie to a larger audience with the Love You till Tuesday film, which went unreleased until 1984. Feeling alienated over his unsuccessful career and deeply affected by his break-up, Bowie wrote " Space Oddity ", a tale about a fictional astronaut named Major Tom . The song earned him
2754-401: A fundraising single, which went to number one in the UK and number seven in the US; its video premiered during Live Aid. Bowie took an acting role in the 1986 film Absolute Beginners , and his title song rose to number two in the UK charts. He also worked with composer Trevor Jones and wrote five original songs for the 1986 film Labyrinth , which he starred in. His final solo album of
2916-412: A group with Bowie and guitarist John Hutchinson named Feathers; between September 1968 and early 1969 the trio gave a small number of concerts combining folk, Merseybeat , poetry and mime. After the break-up with Farthingale, Bowie moved in with Mary Finnigan as her lodger. In February and March 1969, he undertook a short tour with Marc Bolan 's duo Tyrannosaurus Rex , as third on the bill, performing
3078-448: A hybrid of Eurocentric soul, but there were also pieces like "Pallas Athena" and "You've Been Around", which played more with ambience and funk . Black Tie White Noise features a wide variety of musical influences and styles, including soul , hip-hop , disco , pop , avant-garde jazz and gospel . Author James E. Perone also found references to Bowie's plastic soul work of the 1970s. Rolling Stone ' s Jason Newman described
3240-426: A limited-edition single release version of Placebo 's track " Without You I'm Nothing " with Bowie's harmonised vocal added to the original recording. Bowie, with Gabrels, created the soundtrack for Omikron: The Nomad Soul , a 1999 computer game in which he and Iman also voiced characters based on their likenesses. Released the same year and containing re-recorded tracks from Omikron , his album Hours featured
3402-480: A low-key release, had almost no promotion and flopped commercially, reaching number 87 in the UK. Nevertheless, it later received critical praise as Bowie's "lost great album". Reuniting Bowie with Eno, the quasi-industrial Outside (1995) was originally conceived as the first volume in a non-linear narrative of art and murder. Featuring characters from a short story written by Bowie, the album achieved UK and US chart success and yielded three top 40 UK singles. In
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#17331041689493564-423: A melding of the persona of Iggy Pop with the music of Lou Reed , producing "the ultimate pop idol". A girlfriend recalled his "scrawling notes on a cocktail napkin about a crazy rock star named Iggy or Ziggy", and on his return to England he declared his intention to create a character "who looks like he's landed from Mars". The "Stardust" surname was a tribute to the " Legendary Stardust Cowboy ", whose record he
3726-630: A mime act. Continuing the divergence from rock and roll and blues begun by his work with Farthingale, Bowie joined forces with Finnigan, Christina Ostrom and Barrie Jackson to run a folk club on Sunday nights at the Three Tuns pub in Beckenham High Street. The club was influenced by the Arts Lab movement, developing into the Beckenham Arts Lab and became extremely popular. The Arts Lab hosted
3888-641: A more commercial record, while Bowie was trying to "make this artistic statement about this period in his life". During the sessions, Bowie signed a record contract with the American label Savage Records, affiliated with Arista Records and owned by BMG . Savage offered him the "artistic freedom" that he was craving: "[Studio head] David Nemran ... encouraged me to do exactly what I wanted to do, without any kind of indication that it would be manipulated, or that my ideas would be changed, or that other things would be required of me. That made me feel comfortable and that
4050-476: A mostly instrumental track reminiscent of the Berlin era, Bowie's most experimental work in a decade, combining "contemporary hip-hop dance rhythms" with the ambience of Low (1977). Bowie told NME in 1993 that he "[didn't] know what the fuck it's about". Both " Miracle Goodnight " and "Don't Let Me Down & Down" support the wedding theme. The former is laden with synthesisers and mimics 1980s pop. The latter
4212-511: A move that provoked mixed reactions from both fans and critics, Bowie chose Nine Inch Nails as his tour partner for the Outside Tour . Visiting cities in Europe and North America between September 1995 and February 1996, the tour saw the return of Gabrels as Bowie's guitarist. On 7 January 1997, Bowie celebrated his half century with a 50th birthday concert at Madison Square Garden at which he
4374-531: A mutual friend. He recalled, "I was naming the children the night we met ... it was absolutely immediate." They married in 1992. Tin Machine resumed work the same month, but their audience and critics, ultimately left disappointed by the first album, showed little interest in a second. Tin Machine II (1991) was Bowie's first album to miss the UK top 20 in nearly twenty years, and was controversial for its cover art. Depicting four ancient nude Kouroi statues,
4536-558: A number of cover songs, including three Pop covers and the 1966 Beach Boys hit " God Only Knows ". The album bore the transatlantic top 10 hit " Blue Jean ", itself the inspiration for the Julien Temple -directed short film Jazzin' for Blue Jean , in which Bowie played the dual roles of romantic protagonist Vic and arrogant rock star Screaming Lord Byron. The short won Bowie his only non-posthumous Grammy Award for Best Short Form Music Video . In early 1985, Bowie's collaboration with
4698-442: A one-off single release, " Under Pressure ". The duet was a hit, becoming Bowie's third UK number-one single. Bowie was given the lead role in the BBC 's 1982 televised adaptation of Bertolt Brecht 's play Baal . Coinciding with its transmission, a five-track EP of songs from the play was released as Baal . In March 1982, Bowie's title song for Paul Schrader 's film Cat People
4860-523: A positive review, BBC Music 's David Quantick recognised Black Tie White Noise as a continuation of Scary Monsters , wherein Bowie used aspects of his entire career in new, innovative ways. He credited the production and Bowie's "immense confidence" for an album that rose above its immediate predecessors. In AllMusic, Erlewine called it "an interesting first step in Bowie's creative revival", identifying ideas that Bowie further expanded with on later releases. In
5022-488: A prison riot than anything else. It felt as if innocent inmates of some vast prison were trying to break out, break free from their bonds." According to biographer Nicholas Pegg , both the wedding and racial divide influenced Bowie's next album. With Bowie and Rodgers co-producing, recording for Black Tie White Noise took place between April and November 1992, alternating between Mountain Studios in Montreux , Switzerland and
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5184-464: A professional career as a musician in 1963. He released a string of unsuccessful singles with local bands and a self-titled solo album (1967) before achieving his first top-five entry on the UK Singles Chart with " Space Oddity " (1969). After a period of experimentation, he re-emerged in 1972 during the glam rock era with the flamboyant and androgynous alter ego Ziggy Stardust . The character
5346-569: A promotions officer for the children's charity Barnardo's . The family lived at 40 Stansfield Road, on the boundary between Brixton and Stockwell in the south London borough of Lambeth . Bowie attended Stockwell Infants School until he was six, acquiring a reputation as a gifted and single-minded child—and a defiant brawler. From 1953, Bowie moved with his family to Bickley and then Bromley Common , before settling in Sundridge Park in 1955 where he attended Burnt Ash Junior School. His voice
5508-439: A radical shift in style that initially alienated many of his UK devotees. Young Americans was a commercial success in both the US and the UK and yielded Bowie's first US number one, " Fame ", a collaboration with John Lennon . A re-issue of the 1969 single "Space Oddity" became Bowie's first number-one hit in the UK a few months after "Fame" achieved the same in the US. He mimed "Fame" and his November single " Golden Years " on
5670-452: A song with lyrics by the winner of his "Cyber Song Contest" Internet competition, Alex Grant. Making extensive use of live instruments, the album was Bowie's exit from heavy electronica. Hours and a performance on VH1 Storytellers in mid-1999 represented the end of Gabrels' association with Bowie as a performer and songwriter. Sessions for Toy , a planned collection of remakes of tracks from Bowie's 1960s period, commenced in 2000, but
5832-432: A string of poorly received projects. An interactive CD-ROM based on the album was released in 1994. It was reissued by EMI in 2003 and remastered in 2021 as part of the box set Brilliant Adventure (1992–2001) . David Bowie began recording material with his former Let's Dance (1983) collaborator Nile Rodgers months after disbanding the rock band Tin Machine . The pair, who had reconnected in New York City after
5994-544: A suitable property, but found themselves confined to their hotel, under curfew: the 1992 Los Angeles riots began the day they arrived. They settled in New York instead. In 1993, Bowie released his first solo offering since his Tin Machine departure, the soul, jazz and hip-hop influenced Black Tie White Noise . Making prominent use of electronic instruments, the album, which reunited Bowie with Let's Dance producer Nile Rodgers, confirmed Bowie's return to popularity, topping
6156-694: A superstar, charting at number two in the UK and number eight in the US. It also spawned a UK number ten hit in a cover of Eddie Floyd 's " Knock on Wood ". After a break in Philadelphia , where Bowie recorded new material, the tour resumed with a new emphasis on soul. The fruit of the Philadelphia recording sessions was Young Americans (1975). Sandford writes, "Over the years, most British rockers had tried, one way or another, to become black-by-extension. Few had succeeded as Bowie did now." The album's sound, which Bowie identified as " plastic soul ", constituted
6318-418: A three-album deal, the label sued Bowie claiming substantial losses on Black Tie . The case was dismissed and the label was dissolved; Black Tie White Noise became a rarity in record stores until reissues later in the 1990s. The title track, backed by a remix of "You've Been Around", was released as the second single on 1 June 1993, credited to David Bowie featuring Al B. Sure! Charting at number 36 in
6480-489: A time during Station to Station 's recording sessions and later said he remembered "only flashes" of its making. His sanity—by his own later admission—had become twisted from cocaine; he referenced the drug directly in the album's ten-minute title track. The album's release was followed by a 3 + 1 ⁄ 2 -month-long concert tour, the Isolar Tour , of Europe and North America. The core band that coalesced to record
6642-467: A week his howls could be heard through the locked attic door." Michael Lippman, Bowie's lawyer during the negotiations, became his new manager; Lippman, in turn, was awarded substantial compensation when he was fired the following year. Station to Station (1976), produced by Bowie and Harry Maslin, introduced a new Bowie persona, the Thin White Duke of its title track . Visually, the character
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6804-509: A wide variety of musical styles, from art rock , electronic and soul , to jazz , pop and hip-hop influences. It also contains multiple instrumentals and cover versions . The album's lead single " Jump They Say " alludes to Bowie's step-brother Terry, who died in 1985. Released amidst the rise of Britpop in the UK, Black Tie White Noise initially received favourable reviews from music critics, who praised its experimentation but criticised its lack of cohesion. It debuted at number one on
6966-442: Is loosely based on David's step-brother Terry Burns, who died by suicide in 1985 after being hospitalised for schizophrenia . Bowie stated, "It's the first time I've felt capable of addressing it." Described by biographer David Buckley as "an eerie psychodrama", the song features prevalent backwards saxophone work from Bowie. " Nite Flights " was written by singer-songwriter Scott Walker (as Scott Engel) and originally recorded by
7128-400: Is primarily separated into two major themes: racial harmony and Bowie's marriage to Iman. Perone finds the "Black Tie" signifies "a wedding" while "White Noise" epitomises the "instrumentally focused, slightly experimental jazz pieces". For his wedding ceremony, he had composed an instrumental intended to fuse him and Iman's English and Somalian cultures. Writing the piece triggered Bowie to make
7290-474: Is said and done by the whites is white noise. 'Black ties' is because, for me, musically, the one thing that really turned me on to wanting to be a musician, wanting to write, was black music, American black music [...] I found it all very exciting – the feeling of aggression that came through the arrangements. By the end of 1992, the rise of Britpop bands such as Blur , the Auteurs and Suede had influenced
7452-473: Is the recipient of numerous accolades , including six Grammy Awards and four Brit Awards . Often dubbed the "chameleon of rock" due to his constant musical reinventions, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996. Rolling Stone ranked him among the greatest singers, songwriters and artists of all time. As of 2022, Bowie was the best-selling vinyl artist of the 21st century. David Robert Jones
7614-624: The Los Angeles Times considered it Bowie's "most committed-sounding music in years". Other reviewers were more negative. A reviewer for Vox magazine found the radio-friendly singles calculated and Bowie's saxophone playing inferior to his musical contributions on "Heroes" (1977), but felt its "bent, ethnic-sounding notes create the album's most atmospheric moments". Dave Thompson found it lacked innovation in The Rocket . Entertainment Weekly 's Ken Tucker described Black Tie as
7776-713: The A Reality Tour , with an estimated attendance of 722,000, grossed more than any other in 2004. On 13 June, Bowie headlined the last night of the Isle of Wight Festival 2004 . On 25 June, he experienced chest pain while performing at the Hurricane Festival in Scheeßel , Germany. Originally thought to be a pinched nerve in his shoulder, the pain was later diagnosed as an acutely blocked coronary artery , requiring an emergency angioplasty in Hamburg. The remaining fourteen dates of
7938-527: The Isolar II world tour , bringing the music of the first two Berlin Trilogy albums to almost a million people during 70 concerts in 12 countries. By now he had broken his drug addiction; Buckley writes that Isolar II was "Bowie's first tour for five years in which he had probably not anaesthetised himself with copious quantities of cocaine before taking the stage. ... Without the oblivion that drugs had brought, he
8100-614: The Pat Metheny Group , " This Is Not America ", for the soundtrack of The Falcon and the Snowman , was released as a single and became a top 40 hit in the UK and US. In July that year, Bowie performed at Wembley Stadium for Live Aid , a multi-venue benefit concert for Ethiopian famine relief. Bowie and Mick Jagger duetted on a cover of Martha and the Vandellas ' " Dancing in the Street " as
8262-636: The Paul Verhoeven film Showgirls was re-recorded for the album, and remixed by Trent Reznor for a single release. The heavy rotation of the accompanying video, also featuring Reznor, contributed to the song's 16-week stay in the US Billboard Hot 100 . Bowie received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on 12 February 1997. The Earthling Tour took place in Europe and North America between June and November. In November, Bowie performed on
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#17331041689498424-527: The Sound+Vision Tour . They married on 24 April 1992 in a private ceremony in Lausanne , Switzerland. Five days later, the two returned to Los Angeles on the day the 1992 Los Angeles riots began, forcing the newly-weds to stay in a hotel and witness the violence from inside. Bowie later reflected: "It was an extraordinary feeling. I think the one thing that sprang into our minds was that it felt more like
8586-590: The UK Albums Chart , with each of its three singles reaching the UK top 40. Its promotion in America was stalled following the dissolution of Savage Records, resulting in the album's rarity until later reissues. Instead of touring, Bowie released an accompanying film of the same name to support it. Despite mixed assessments from critics in subsequent decades, Black Tie White Noise marked the beginning of Bowie's commercial revival and improved critical standing following
8748-459: The title track , of which the two worked on the arrangement extensively, leading Bowie to quip "I've never worked longer with any artist than with Al B". Black Tie also features trumpet playing by Lester Bowie , whom David Bowie had wanted to work with throughout the 1980s. Lester, who played to tracks before he heard them, appears on six tracks; Pegg considers his contributions the album's "essential musical identity". A foil to Lester's trumpet
8910-818: The 1990s and 2000s, Bowie continued to experiment with musical styles, including industrial and jungle . He also continued acting; his roles included Major Jack Celliers in Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence (1983), Jareth the Goblin King in Labyrinth (1986), Phillip Jeffries in Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992), Andy Warhol in the biopic Basquiat (1996), and Nikola Tesla in The Prestige (2006), among other film and television appearances and cameos. He ceased touring after 2004 and his last live performance
9072-552: The Arts Lab, Visconti on bass and Mick Ronson on electric guitar. Known as Hype , the bandmates created characters for themselves and wore elaborate costumes that prefigured the glam style of the Spiders from Mars. After a disastrous opening gig at the London Roundhouse , they reverted to a configuration presenting Bowie as a solo artist. Their initial studio work was marred by a heated disagreement between Bowie and Cambridge over
9234-633: The BBC's Children in Need charity single " Perfect Day ", which reached number one in the UK. Bowie reunited with Visconti in 1998 to record "(Safe in This) Sky Life" for The Rugrats Movie . Although the track was edited out of the final cut, it was later re-recorded and released as "Safe" on the B-side of Bowie's 2002 single " Everyone Says 'Hi' " . The reunion led to other collaborations with his old producer, including
9396-577: The February 2001 and February 2003 concerts to support Tibet House US at Carnegie Hall in New York. In October 2001, Bowie opened the Concert for New York City , a charity event to benefit the victims of the September 11 attacks , with a minimalist performance of Simon & Garfunkel 's " America ", followed by a full band performance of " ' Heroes ' ". 2002 saw the release of Heathen , and, during
9558-456: The Hit Factory in New York City, with additional recording done at 38 Fresh studio in Los Angeles. According to biographer Chris O'Leary, Bowie composed beats and patterns at 38 Fresh, which he sent to Rodgers at the Hit Factory to transpose into songs. Rodgers described Bowie's attitude as calmer than Let's Dance , "a hell of a lot more philosophical and just in a state of mind where his music
9720-614: The King Bees, was not commercially successful. Dissatisfied with the King Bees and their repertoire of Howlin' Wolf and Willie Dixon covers, Bowie quit the band less than a month later to join the Manish Boys, another blues outfit, who incorporated folk and soul—"I used to dream of being their Mick Jagger ", he recalled. Their cover of Bobby Bland 's " I Pity the Fool " was no more successful than "Liza Jane", and Bowie soon moved on again to join
9882-522: The Konrads and joined another band, the King Bees. He wrote to the newly successful washing-machine entrepreneur John Bloom inviting him to "do for us what Brian Epstein has done for the Beatles —and make another million." Bloom did not respond to the offer, but his referral to Dick James 's partner Leslie Conn led to Bowie's first personal management contract. Conn quickly began to promote Bowie. His debut single, " Liza Jane ", credited to Davie Jones with
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#173310416894910044-832: The Lower Third after the single's release, partly due to Horton's influence, and released two more singles for Pye, " Do Anything You Say " and " I Dig Everything ", both of which featured a new band called the Buzz, before signing with Deram Records . Around this time Bowie also joined the Riot Squad ; their recordings, which included one of Bowie's original songs and material by the Velvet Underground , went unreleased. Kenneth Pitt , introduced by Horton, took over as Bowie's manager. His April 1967 solo single, " The Laughing Gnome ", on which speeded-up and high-pitched vocals were used to portray
10206-507: The Lower Third, a blues trio strongly influenced by the Who . " You've Got a Habit of Leaving " fared no better, signalling the end of Conn's contract. Declaring that he would exit the pop music world "to study mime at Sadler's Wells ", Bowie nevertheless remained with the Lower Third. His new manager, Ralph Horton, later instrumental in his transition to solo artist, helped secure him a contract with Pye Records . Publicist Tony Hatch signed Bowie on
10368-571: The Mallet-directed material inferior to the two men's prior collaborations. The film was included as part of EMI 's 2003 reissue campaign for the album, with a standalone DVD release following two years later. Although Bowie intended to resume the Tin Machine project following the release of Black Tie , the idea never came to fruition. His next effort was the solo The Buddha of Suburbia , released in November 1993. Black Tie White Noise marked
10530-532: The Nineties". To evoke the racial theme, the lyrics reference " We Are the World " by the supergroup USA for Africa (1985) and Marvin Gaye 's " What's Going On " (1971); Pegg says that the "black and white voices" of Al B Sure! assist in the theme's presentation. Musically, the track is funky, with prevalent saxophone and trumpet by David and Lester Bowie, respectively. " Jump They Say " discusses themes of mental illness , and
10692-607: The Queen singer's death the previous year. As well as performing " ' Heroes ' " and "All the Young Dudes", he was joined on "Under Pressure" by Annie Lennox , who took Mercury's vocal part; during his appearance, Bowie knelt and recited the Lord's Prayer at Wembley Stadium. Four days later, Bowie and Iman married in Switzerland. Intending to move to Los Angeles, they flew in to search for
10854-659: The Russian/Polish border for possessing Nazi paraphernalia. Matters came to a head in London in May in what became known as the " Victoria Station incident". Arriving in an open-top Mercedes convertible , Bowie waved to the crowd in a gesture that some alleged was a Nazi salute , which was captured on camera and published in NME . Bowie said the photographer caught him in mid-wave. He later blamed his pro-fascism comments and his behaviour during
11016-432: The Spiders, Bowie attempted to move on from his Ziggy persona. His back catalogue was now highly sought after: The Man Who Sold the World had been re-released in 1972 along with Space Oddity . Hunky Dory 's " Life on Mars? " was released in June 1973 and peaked at number three on the UK Singles Chart . Entering the same chart in September, his 1967 novelty record "The Laughing Gnome" reached number six. Pin Ups ,
11178-401: The Train". The gospel cover of "I Know It's Gonna Happen Someday" is reminiscent of Bowie's early 1970s ballads, including a direct reference to the climax of " Rock 'n' Roll Suicide " (1972). Pegg describes the track as "Bowie covers Morrissey parodying Ziggy Stardust in the style of Young Americans ". The album ends with "The Wedding Song", a vocal version of the opening track. Pegg considers
11340-605: The UK and number 20 in the US, and yielded the UK hit singles " Boys Keep Swinging " and " DJ ". Towards the end of the year, Bowie and Angie initiated divorce proceedings, and after months of court battles the marriage was ended in early 1980. The three albums were later adapted into classical music symphonies by American composer Philip Glass for his first , fourth and twelfth symphonies in 1992, 1997 and 2019, respectively. Glass praised Bowie's gift for creating "fairly complex pieces of music, masquerading as simple pieces". Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) (1980) produced
11502-489: The UK chart and spawning three top 40 hits, including the top 10 single " Jump They Say ". Bowie explored new directions on The Buddha of Suburbia (1993), which began as a soundtrack album for the BBC television adaptation of Hanif Kureishi 's novel The Buddha of Suburbia before turning into a full album; only the title track " The Buddha of Suburbia " was used in the programme. Referencing his 1970s works with pop, jazz, ambient and experimental material, it received
11664-410: The UK chart, where it reached number two. Bowie himself did not promote it, instead touring with Pop as his keyboardist throughout March and April before recording Pop's follow-up, Lust for Life . Echoing Low ' s minimalist, instrumental approach, the second of the trilogy, "Heroes" (1977), incorporated pop and rock to a greater extent, seeing Bowie joined by guitarist Robert Fripp . It
11826-426: The UK music scene. These artists, particularly Suede, acknowledged Bowie's influence in interviews and their music, with Buckley describing Suede's debut single " The Drowners " as an homage to Bowie's glam rock work of the early 1970s. Shortly before the release of Suede's debut album and Black Tie White Noise , NME ' s Steve Sutherland interviewed Bowie and Suede's lead singer Brett Anderson together, where
11988-448: The UK, it was supported by a Romanek-directed music video, featuring both Bowie and Al B. Sure! and displaying, in Pegg's words, "a deft bricolage of images against the backdrop of an urban ghetto." "Miracle Goodnight", backed by "Looking for Lester", was issued as the third and final single in October 1993, charting at number 40 in the UK. Pegg argues it would have been a bigger hit had it been
12150-559: The UK. Dressed in a striking costume, his hair dyed reddish-brown, Bowie launched his Ziggy Stardust stage show with the Spiders from Mars —Ronson, Bolder, and Woodmansey—at the Toby Jug pub in Tolworth in Kingston upon Thames on 10 February 1972. The show was hugely popular, catapulting him to stardom as he toured the UK over the next six months and creating, as described by David Buckley,
12312-586: The UK. The Ziggy Stardust Tour continued to the United States. Bowie contributed backing vocals, keyboards and guitar to Reed's 1972 solo breakthrough Transformer , co-producing the album with Ronson. The following year, Bowie co-produced and mixed the Stooges ' album Raw Power alongside Iggy Pop. His own Aladdin Sane (1973) was his first UK number-one album. Described by Bowie as "Ziggy goes to America", it contained songs he wrote while travelling to and across
12474-518: The US during the earlier part of the Ziggy tour, which now continued to Japan to promote the new album. Aladdin Sane spawned the UK top five singles " The Jean Genie " and " Drive-In Saturday ". Bowie's love of acting led to his total immersion in the characters he created for his music. "Offstage I'm a robot. Onstage I achieve emotion. It's probably why I prefer dressing up as Ziggy to being David." With satisfaction came severe personal difficulties: acting
12636-467: The US release was instead titled Man of Words/Man of Music ; it was reissued internationally in 1972 by RCA Records as Space Oddity . Featuring philosophical post- hippie lyrics on peace, love and morality, its acoustic folk rock occasionally fortified by harder rock, the album was not a commercial success at the time. Bowie met Angela Barnett in April 1969. They married within a year. Her impact on him
12798-497: The US variety show Soul Train , earning him the distinction of being one of the first white artists to appear on the programme. The same year, Bowie fired Defries as his manager. At the culmination of the ensuing months-long legal dispute, he watched, as described by Sandford, "millions of dollars of his future earnings being surrendered" in what were "uniquely generous terms for Defries", then "shut himself up in West 20th Street, where for
12960-514: The Walker Brothers for their 1978 album of the same name . Bowie was a huge fan of the album, first hearing it while recording 1979's Lodger , and decided to cover the song for Black Tie White Noise . Musically, Pegg describes it as a "Euro-disco/jazz-funk fusion" evocative of the Berlin Trilogy, while it lyrically predates the content found on Outside . Buckley considers "Pallas Athena",
13122-615: The accompanying video, renowned as one of the most innovative of all time. While Scary Monsters used principles established by the Berlin albums, it was considered by critics to be far more direct musically and lyrically. The album's hard rock edge included conspicuous guitar contributions from Fripp and Pete Townshend . Topping the UK Albums Chart for the first time since Diamond Dogs , Buckley writes that with Scary Monsters , Bowie achieved "the perfect balance" of creativity and mainstream success. Bowie paired with Queen in 1981 for
13284-425: The age of 15. Playing guitar-based rock and roll at local youth gatherings and weddings, the Konrads had a varying line-up of between four and eight members, Underwood among them. When Bowie left the technical school the following year, he informed his parents of his intention to become a pop star. His mother arranged his employment as an electrician's mate. Frustrated by his bandmates' limited aspirations, Bowie left
13446-458: The album and tour—rhythm guitarist Carlos Alomar , bassist George Murray and drummer Dennis Davis —continued as a stable unit for the remainder of the 1970s. Bowie performed on stage as the Thin White Duke. The tour was highly successful but mired in political controversy. Bowie was quoted in Stockholm as saying that "Britain could benefit from a Fascist leader", and was detained by customs on
13608-425: The album as a whole subpar. Pegg summarises: "It's a supremely confident, professional and commercial piece of work, and its best moments are exceptional." Some also felt the production aged poorly, with Trynka saying that its "overpolite, airbrushed sheen" meant that following the fall of Savage Records, "little bemoaned its passing". Others praised Lester Bowie's trumpet playing and David Bowie's vocal performances. In
13770-440: The album explored more serious subjects, and found Bowie paying unusually direct homage to his influences with " Song for Bob Dylan ", " Andy Warhol " and " Queen Bitch ", the latter a Velvet Underground pastiche. His first release through RCA, it was a commercial failure, partly due lack of promotion from the label. Peter Noone of Herman's Hermits covered the album's track " Oh! You Pretty Things ", which reached number 12 in
13932-529: The album went platinum in both the UK and the US. Its three singles became top 20 hits in both countries, where its title track reached number one. " Modern Love " and " China Girl " each made number two in the UK, accompanied by a pair of "absorbing" music videos that Buckley said "activated key archetypes in the pop world... 'Let's Dance', with its little narrative surrounding the young Aboriginal couple, targeted 'youth', and 'China Girl', with its bare-bummed (and later partially censored) beach lovemaking scene...
14094-534: The album, stating, "I don't think I've hit this peak before as a performer and a writer." The album was a commercial success in the UK, entering the UK Albums Chart at number one and dethroning Suede's debut album; it was Bowie's final UK number one album until The Next Day in 2013. In America, it charted at number 39 on the Billboard 200 , although its promotion was affected when Savage Records filed for bankruptcy shortly after its release. Although Bowie had signed
14256-525: The album, was to cement Bowie's UK breakthrough: both single and album charted rapidly following his July Top of the Pops performance of the song. The album, which remained in the chart for two years, was soon joined there by the six-month-old Hunky Dory . At the same time, the non-album single " John, I'm Only Dancing " and " All the Young Dudes ", a song he wrote and produced for Mott the Hoople , were successful in
14418-425: The album: Writing [the music for the wedding] brought my mind around to, obviously, what commitment means and why I was getting married at this age and what my intentions were and were they honorable? [laughs] And what I really wanted from my life from now on. I guess it acted as a watershed to write a lot of quite personal things, putting together a collection of songs that illustrated what I'd been going through over
14580-568: The basis that he wrote his own songs. Dissatisfied with Davy (and Davie) Jones, which in the mid-1960s invited confusion with Davy Jones of the Monkees , he took on the stage name David Bowie after the 19th-century American pioneer James Bowie and the knife he had popularised . His first release under the name was the January 1966 single " Can't Help Thinking About Me ", recorded with the Lower Third. It flopped like its predecessors. Bowie departed
14742-470: The beginning of Bowie's commercial revival and improved critical standing, with one reviewer later calling it a perfect way to begin the next chapter of his career. Despite its initial success—Pegg arguing it may have initially been "over-praised"—the album's critical standing in later decades has been mixed. Although several agreed it was his best since Scary Monsters at the time, critics remain divided on its cohesiveness, praising individual tracks but finding
14904-479: The beginning of an experimental era, Black Tie "stood as one of his better works from the decade". In 1994, an interactive CD-ROM based on Black Tie White Noise was developed by ION and released by MPC . The CD-ROM, which Bowie intended to be "fully interactive", gave users a chance to remake the "Jump They Say" video using pre-existing footage and view excerpts from the Black Tie White Noise film. It
15066-430: The beginnings of a relationship." Comparing its arrangement to 1984's Tonight , O'Leary calls it the "most obscure" cover of Bowie's entire career. On its lyrics, Pegg says it recalls the "romantic balladry" of "Win" and " Can You Hear Me? " from Young Americans . The jazz instrumental "Looking for Lester" features David and Lester Bowie soloing on saxophone and trumpet. The title is a play on John Coltrane 's "Chasing
15228-485: The chords from Bowie's early composition "All the Young Dudes" played backwards, and "Red Money" took backing tracks from The Idiot 's "Sister Midnight". The album was recorded in Switzerland and New York City. Ahead of its release, RCA's Mel Ilberman described it as "a concept album that portrays the Lodger as a homeless wanderer, shunned and victimized by life's pressures and technology." Lodger reached number four in
15390-479: The cult film The Man Who Fell to Earth and released Station to Station . In 1977, he again changed direction with the electronic -inflected album Low , the first of three collaborations with Brian Eno that came to be known as the Berlin Trilogy . "Heroes" (1977) and Lodger (1979) followed; each album reached the UK top five and received lasting critical praise. After uneven commercial success in
15552-508: The decade was 1987's Never Let Me Down , where he ditched the light sound of his previous two albums, instead combining pop rock with a harder rock sound. Peaking at number six in the UK, the album yielded the hits " Day-In Day-Out ", " Time Will Crawl " and " Never Let Me Down ". Bowie later described it as his "nadir", calling it "an awful album". He supported the album on the 86-concert Glass Spider Tour . The backing band included Peter Frampton on lead guitar. Contemporary critics maligned
15714-459: The dress with him and wore it during interviews, to the approval of critics – including Rolling Stone ' s John Mendelsohn , who described him as "ravishing, almost disconcertingly reminiscent of Lauren Bacall ". During the tour, Bowie's observation of two seminal American proto-punk artists led him to develop a concept that eventually found form in the Ziggy Stardust character:
15876-500: The end of the following year, Bowie had taken up the ukulele and tea-chest bass , begun to participate in skiffle sessions with friends, and had started to play the piano; meanwhile, his stage presentation of numbers by both Presley and Chuck Berry —complete with gyrations in tribute to the original artists—to his local Wolf Cub group was described as "mesmerizing ... like someone from another planet". Having encouraged his son to follow his dreams of being an entertainer since he
16038-490: The establishment of Rock Against Racism . In August 1976, Bowie moved to West Berlin with his old friend Iggy Pop to rid themselves of their respective drug addictions and escape the spotlight. Bowie's interest in German krautrock and the ambient works of multi-instrumentalist Brian Eno culminated in the first of three albums, co-produced with Visconti, that became known as the Berlin Trilogy . The album, Low (1977),
16200-855: The film Stealth . He returned to the stage on 8 September 2005, appearing with Arcade Fire for the US nationally televised event Fashion Rocks, and performed with the Canadian band for the second time a week later during the CMJ Music Marathon. He contributed backing vocals on TV on the Radio 's song "Province" for their album Return to Cookie Mountain , and joined with Lou Reed on Danish alt-rockers Kashmir 's 2005 album No Balance Palace . Mountain Studios Singer and composer Anita Kerr and her husband, Swiss businessman Alex Grob, hired Westlake Audio and studio designer Tom Hidley to build
16362-481: The fusion of American and British musical styles Bowie was experimenting with. It was also in debt to the cut-up technique Bowie had discussed in an interview with writer William S. Burroughs in the mid-1970s. A working title for the album was The Wedding Album . On the title, Bowie told Record Collector in 1993: White noise itself is something that I first encountered on the synthesiser many years ago. There's black noise and white noise. I thought that much of what
16524-457: The gnome, failed to chart. Released six weeks later, his album debut, David Bowie , an amalgam of pop, psychedelia and music hall , met the same fate. It was his last release for two years. In September, Bowie recorded " Let Me Sleep Beside You " and " Karma Man ", both rejected by Deram and left unreleased until 1970. The tracks marked the beginning of Bowie's working relationship with producer Tony Visconti which, with large gaps, lasted for
16686-405: The hard rock quartet Tin Machine . The line-up was completed by bassist and drummer Tony and Hunt Sales , who had played with Bowie on Iggy Pop's Lust for Life in 1977. Although he intended Tin Machine to operate as a democracy, Bowie dominated, both in songwriting and in decision-making. The band's 1989 self-titled debut album received mixed reviews and, according to author Paul Trynka ,
16848-555: The high-budget stage production was filmed by Alan Yentob . The resulting documentary, Cracked Actor , featured a pasty and emaciated Bowie: the tour coincided with his slide from heavy cocaine use into addiction, producing severe physical debilitation, paranoia and emotional problems. He later commented that the accompanying live album, David Live , ought to have been titled "David Bowie Is Alive and Well and Living Only in Theory". David Live nevertheless solidified Bowie's status as
17010-399: The late 1970s, Bowie had three number-one hits: the 1980 single " Ashes to Ashes ", its album Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) and " Under Pressure " (a 1981 collaboration with Queen ). He achieved his greatest commercial success in the 1980s with Let's Dance (1983). Between 1988 and 1992, he fronted the hard rock band Tin Machine before resuming his solo career in 1993. Throughout
17172-445: The latter's drumming style, leading to his replacement by Mick Woodmansey . Not long after, Bowie fired his manager and replaced him with Tony Defries . This resulted in years of litigation that concluded with Bowie having to pay Pitt compensation. The studio sessions continued and resulted in Bowie's third album, The Man Who Sold the World (1970), which contained references to schizophrenia, paranoia and delusion. It represented
17334-492: The lead single. "Nite Flights" was intended as the fourth single, but was cancelled by Arista Records following the performances of the two previous singles. Meanwhile, "Pallas Athena" was remixed by numerous DJs and anonymously became a popular club track in London and New York. Black Tie White Noise received generally favourable reviews from music critics on release. Some reviewers considered it Bowie's finest since Scary Monsters . Biographer Christopher Sandford states it
17496-411: The minimalist, ambient nature of its two predecessors, making a partial return to the drum- and guitar-based rock and pop of his pre-Berlin era. The result was a complex mixture of new wave and world music , in places incorporating Hijaz non-Western scales . Some tracks were composed using Eno's Oblique Strategies cards: "Boys Keep Swinging" entailed band members swapping instruments, "Move On" used
17658-493: The music as "a blend of Euro-disco, techno -rock, freestyle jazz , Middle Eastern riffs and hip-hop", while AllMusic 's Stephen Thomas Erlewine considered Black Tie an "urban soul record" that balances styles of the "commercial dance rock " of Let's Dance with the art rock of the late 1970s Berlin Trilogy . A writer for The Economist later categorised the record as art rock and electronic . In 1993, Bowie told Rolling Stone that his intent for Black Tie White Noise
17820-542: The new record label, Victory , deemed the cover "a show of wrong, obscene images" and airbrushed the statues' genitalia for the American release. Tin Machine toured again, but after the live album Tin Machine Live: Oy Vey, Baby (1992) failed commercially, Bowie dissolved the band and resumed his solo career. He continued to collaborate with Gabrels for the rest of the 1990s. On 20 April 1992, Bowie appeared at The Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert , following
17982-438: The new version "effectively erased...Reeves Gabrels". Pegg states the lyrics foreshadow the "fractal images" Bowie used for his next studio album, Outside (1995). Bowie's cover of "I Feel Free" is musically different from Cream's original, being described by Pegg as "techno-funk" and likened by Perone to "1990s dance music". Bowie's recorded the title track with a rougher edge to avoid ending up like "an ' Ebony and Ivory ' for
18144-471: The number one single " Ashes to Ashes ", featuring the textural guitar-synthesiser work of Chuck Hammer and revisiting the character of Major Tom from "Space Oddity". The song gave international exposure to the underground New Romantic movement when Bowie visited the London club "Blitz"—the main New Romantic hangout—to recruit several of the regulars (including Steve Strange of the band Visage ) to act in
18306-505: The past three or four years. Black Tie White Noise opens with the instrumental "The Wedding", a funk adaptation of the instrumental Bowie composed for his wedding. It's a piece that, in Pegg's words, "fuses dance beats, distant backing vocals and Eastern-influenced saxophone cadences" that set the stage for the remaining tracklist. The Black Tie version of "You've Been Around" blends contemporary dance music with elements of jazz . Although Bowie and Gabrels wrote it together, O'Leary says
18468-577: The period (such as "Real Cool World"), and the original Black Tie White Noise film. In 2021, the album was remastered and included as part of the box set Brilliant Adventure (1992–2001) . All tracks are written by David Bowie , except where noted Notes According to the liner notes and biographer Nicholas Pegg . Production Shipments figures based on certification alone. David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 1947 – 10 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( / ˈ b oʊ i / BOH -ee ),
18630-563: The period on his cocaine addiction, the character of the Thin White Duke and his life living in Los Angeles, a city he later said "should be wiped off the face of the Earth". He later apologised for these statements, and throughout the 1980s and 1990s criticised racism in European politics and the American music industry. Nevertheless, his comments on fascism, as well as Eric Clapton 's alcohol-fuelled denunciations of Pakistani immigrants in 1976, led to
18792-440: The project in later decades. The album features several guest appearances, including previous collaborators Mike Garson and Mick Ronson , and new arrivals Lester Bowie and Chico O'Farrill . Inspired to write the title track after witnessing the 1992 Los Angeles riots , Black Tie White Noise is primarily separated into themes of racial harmony and David's marriage to Iman. It features prevalent saxophone work from Bowie and
18954-524: The rest of Bowie's career. Studying the dramatic arts under Lindsay Kemp , from avant-garde theatre and mime to commedia dell'arte , Bowie became immersed in the creation of personae to present to the world. Satirising life in a British prison, his composition "Over the Wall We Go" became a 1967 single for Oscar ; another Bowie song, " Silly Boy Blue ", was released by Billy Fury the following year. Playing acoustic guitar, Hermione Farthingale formed
19116-619: The same role over an extended period, it became impossible for him to separate Ziggy Stardust—and later, the Thin White Duke—from his own character offstage. Ziggy, Bowie said, "wouldn't leave me alone for years. That was when it all started to go sour ... My whole personality was affected. It became very dangerous. I really did have doubts about my sanity." His later Ziggy shows, which included songs from both Ziggy Stardust and Aladdin Sane , were ultra-theatrical affairs filled with shocking stage moments, such as Bowie stripping down to
19278-475: The school's most gifted pupils to the arts, a regime so liberal that Frampton actively encouraged his own son, Peter , to pursue a musical career with David, a partnership briefly intact thirty years later. Bowie's maternal half-brother, Terry Burns, was a substantial influence on his early life. Burns, who was 10 years older than Bowie, had schizophrenia and seizures , and lived alternately at home and in psychiatric wards; while living with Bowie, he introduced
19440-569: The second half of the year, the Heathen Tour . Taking place in Europe and North America, the tour opened at London's annual Meltdown festival, for which Bowie was that year appointed artistic director. Among the acts he selected for the festival were Philip Glass, Television and the Dandy Warhols . As well as songs from the new album, the tour featured material from Bowie's Low era. Reality (2003) followed, and its accompanying world tour,
19602-416: The studio from Kerr and Grob, and subsequently utilized the studio for several subsequent Queen albums, as well as solo projects from band members Freddie Mercury , Brian May , and Roger Taylor . In 1993, the long-time Queen producer David Richards bought the studio. Upon Richards' death in 2013, the location of the former studio became the charity museum/exhibition Queen: The Studio Experience , with
19764-588: The studio in the Montreux Casino, where it recorded all live performances of the Montreux Jazz Festival . Additionally, the tax advantages of the studio's location in Switzerland proved popular, with British artists such as David Bowie , the Rolling Stones , Yes , Rick Wakeman , Emerson, Lake & Palmer , and Queen recording at Mountain Studios over the first few years. In 1979, Queen acquired
19926-552: The time David arrived in 1958, as rich in arcane ritual as any [English] public school . There were houses named after eighteenth-century statesmen like Pitt and Wilberforce . There was a uniform and an elaborate system of rewards and punishments. There was also an accent on languages, science and particularly design, where a collegiate atmosphere flourished under the tutorship of Owen Frampton . In David's account, Frampton led through force of personality, not intellect; his colleagues at Bromley Tech were famous for neither and yielded
20088-465: The title track on Marc Bolan's television show Marc , and again two days later for Bing Crosby 's final CBS television Christmas special, when he joined Crosby in " Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy ", a version of " The Little Drummer Boy " with a new, contrapuntal verse. RCA belatedly released the recording as a single five years later in 1982, charting in the UK at number three. After completing Low and "Heroes" , Bowie spent much of 1978 on
20250-476: The tour as overproduced, saying it pandered to the current stadium rock trends in its special effects and dancing, although in later years critics acknowledged the tour's strengths and influence on concert tours by other artists, such as Prince , Madonna and U2 . Wanting to completely rejuvenate himself following the critical failures of Tonight and Never Let Me Down , Bowie placed his solo career on hold after meeting guitarist Reeves Gabrels and formed
20412-424: The tour were cancelled. In the years following his recuperation from the heart attack, Bowie reduced his musical output, making only one-off appearances on stage and in the studio. He sang in a duet of his 1971 song " Changes " with Butterfly Boucher for the 2004 animated film Shrek 2 . During a relatively quiet 2005, he recorded the vocals for the song "(She Can) Do That", co-written with Brian Transeau , for
20574-437: The track, a trend that continued in Bowie's work throughout the rest of the 1990s. The single became the artist's biggest hit since " Absolute Beginners " seven years earlier, peaking at number nine on the UK Singles Chart . It was supported by a Mark Romanek -directed music video featuring numerous references to Bowie's prior work. Pegg calls it one of his finest videos, praising its "non-linear" imagery. Black Tie White Noise
20736-450: The two discussed influences and exchanged compliments. The interview generated a large amount of publicity for the two artists' upcoming albums in the UK. Additionally, author Paul Trynka states that Ronson's guest appearance earned Black Tie White Noise more attention. The lead single , "Jump They Say" backed by a remix of "Pallas Athena", was released on 15 March 1993. It came in numerous formats that contained various remixes of
20898-420: The two tracks throwbacks to " It's No Game ", which bookends Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) (1980). The cover artwork was taken by photographer Nick Knight. The inlay photography depicts Bowie in attire from the " Never Let Me Down " music video (1987): shirtsleeves with a Bogey hat holding a 1940s microphone. According to Buckley, the title was a comment on the racial mix of Bowie and Iman's marriage and
21060-596: The younger man to many of his lifelong influences, such as modern jazz , Buddhism , Beat poetry and the occult . In addition to Burns, a significant proportion of Bowie's extended family members had schizophrenia spectrum disorders , including an aunt who was institutionalised and another who underwent a lobotomy ; this has been labelled as an influence on his early work. Bowie studied art, music and design, including layout and typesetting. After Burns introduced him to modern jazz, his enthusiasm for players like Charles Mingus and John Coltrane led his mother to give him
21222-764: Was David's saxophone , which appears more prominently on Black Tie than any other David Bowie album. Rodgers found his saxophone playing challenging, telling Rolling Stone : "I think David would be the first to admit that he's not a saxophonist in the traditional sense. [...] He uses his playing as an artistic tool. He's a painter. He hears an idea, and he goes with it. But he absolutely knows where he's going." The album's horn arrangements were composed by Afro-Cuban jazz player Chico O'Farrill . Black Tie also features several backing vocalists from Let's Dance and Labyrinth (1986), while pianist Philippe Saisse and producer David Richards returned from Never Let Me Down . I wanted to experiment on Black Tie , I love doing
21384-509: Was a toddler, in the late 1950s David's father took him to meet singers and other performers preparing for the Royal Variety Performance , introducing him to Alma Cogan and Tommy Steele . After taking his eleven-plus exam at the conclusion of his Burnt Ash Junior education, Bowie went to Bromley Technical High School . It was an unusual technical school, as biographer Christopher Sandford wrote: Despite its status it was, by
21546-458: Was also positive, describing it as a whole "trail-blazing and brilliant", further noting "inspired covers" and echoes of Let's Dance , Scary Monsters and Ziggy Stardust (1972). Meanwhile, Rolling Stone ' s Paul Evans hailed it "one of the smartest records of a very smart career", finding references to the artist's previous works as well as new innovations that "point the way to future risk, to brave changes yet to come". Richard Cromelin of
21708-477: Was an English singer, songwriter, musician and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, particularly for his innovative work during the 1970s. His career was marked by reinvention and visual presentation, and his music and stagecraft has had a significant impact on popular music . Bowie developed an interest in music from an early age. He studied art, music and design before embarking on
21870-417: Was an absolute delight", comparing his guitar style to Jimi Hendrix . Gabrels plays lead guitar on "You've Been Around", although his contribution was placed low in the mix. The song was first attempted by Tin Machine during the sessions for their 1989 debut album , but Bowie was dissatisfied with the result so it was shelved, eventually rerecording it for Black Tie . Singer Al B. Sure! duets with Bowie on
22032-419: Was an extension of Thomas Jerome Newton, the extraterrestrial being he portrayed in the film The Man Who Fell to Earth the same year. Developing the funk and soul of Young Americans , Station to Station ' s synthesiser-heavy arrangements were influenced by electronic and German krautrock . Bowie's cocaine addiction during this period was at its peak; he often did not sleep for three to four days at
22194-424: Was at a charity event in 2006. He returned from a decade-long recording hiatus in 2013 with The Next Day and remained musically active until his death from liver cancer in 2016. He died two days after both his 69th birthday and the release of his final album, Blackstar . During his lifetime, his record sales, estimated at over 100 million worldwide, made him one of the best-selling musicians of all time . He
22356-565: Was born on 8 January 1947 in Brixton , London. His mother, Margaret Mary "Peggy" (née Burns), was born at Shorncliffe Army Camp near Cheriton , Kent. Her paternal grandparents were Irish immigrants who had settled in Manchester . She worked as a waitress at a cinema in Royal Tunbridge Wells . His father, Haywood Stenton "John" Jones, was from Doncaster , Yorkshire, and worked as
22518-418: Was considered "adequate" by the school choir, and he demonstrated above-average abilities in playing the recorder . At the age of nine, his dancing during the newly introduced music and movement classes was strikingly imaginative: teachers called his interpretations "vividly artistic" and his poise "astonishing" for a child. The same year, his interest in music was further stimulated when his father brought home
22680-406: Was expecting another success following Young Americans and Station to Station . Bowie's former manager Tony Defries, who maintained a significant financial interest in Bowie's affairs, had tried to prevent the album from being released. Upon its release in January 1977, Low yielded the UK number three single " Sound and Vision ", and its own performance surpassed that of Station to Station in
22842-439: Was given during the tour. Bowie later covered "I Took a Trip on a Gemini Space Ship" on 2002's Heathen . Hunky Dory (1971) found Visconti supplanted in both roles by Ken Scott producing and Trevor Bolder on bass. It again featured a stylistic shift towards art pop and melodic pop rock , with light fare tracks such as " Kooks ", a song written for his son, Duncan Zowie Haywood Jones , born on 30 May. Elsewhere,
23004-407: Was immediate—he wrote his 1970 single " The Prettiest Star " for her —and her involvement in his career far-reaching, leaving Pitt with limited influence which he found frustrating. Having established himself as a solo artist with "Space Oddity", Bowie desired a full-time band he could record with and could relate to personally. The band Bowie assembled comprised John Cambridge, a drummer Bowie met at
23166-509: Was issued shortly after on 5 April 1993 on different LP and CD formats. The LP release removed "The Wedding" and "Looking for Lester", while the CD edition featured a remix of "Jump They Say" and the outtake "Lucy Can't Dance". Meanwhile, the Japanese and Singaporean CDs contained a remix of "Pallas Athena" and "Don't Let Me Down & Down", respectively. Before its release, Bowie expressed love for
23328-720: Was joined in playing his songs and those of his guests, Lou Reed, Dave Grohl and the Foo Fighters , Robert Smith of the Cure , Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins , Black Francis of the Pixies , and Sonic Youth . Incorporating experiments in jungle and drum 'n' bass , Earthling (1997) was a critical and commercial success in the UK and the US, and two singles from the album—" Little Wonder " and " Dead Man Walking "—became UK top 40 hits. The song " I'm Afraid of Americans " from
23490-408: Was making a new type of house record that brought back the "strong melodic content" of the 1960s, finding "the new R&B [of today]" a mixture of "hip-hop and house". He commented: "I think this album comes from a very different emotional place. That's the passing of time, which has brought maturity and a willingness to relinquish full control over my emotions." Lyrically, Black Tie White Noise
23652-525: Was more difficult to produce and took longer to record than Let's Dance . In the ensuing years, Rodgers expressed disappointment in Black Tie , brushing it off as "an exercise in futility" that was not as good as Let's Dance . Tin Machine member Reeves Gabrels later said Bowie felt coerced into hiring Rodgers, who was intent on creating a Let's Dance follow-up, while Bowie wanted to pursue other musical directions. Decades later, Rodgers commented that he wanted
23814-422: Was not well received, although Perone considered it innovative for its time. Bowie initially expressed excitement in the project, but it ultimately did not live up to his expectations, stating in 1995 that he "absolutely loathed it". In August 2003, Black Tie White Noise was reissued by EMI in a 3-CD deluxe edition to mark its tenth anniversary. It featured the original album, a CD of remixes and other tracks from
23976-453: Was now in a healthy enough mental condition to want to make friends." Recordings from the tour made up the live album Stage , released the same year. Bowie also recorded narration for an adaptation of Sergei Prokofiev 's classical composition Peter and the Wolf , which was released as an album in May 1978. The final piece in what Bowie called his " triptych ", Lodger (1979), eschewed
24138-450: Was on 1973's Pin Ups , reconnected with Bowie after the latter was impressed by the former's production work on Morrissey 's Your Arsenal (1992). Bowie praised Ronson's contributions on Black Tie while the latter commented, "I hope David's album does well. He's put everything into it." Ronson died of cancer shortly after the album's release. Pianist Mike Garson , whose last appearance on
24300-458: Was originally recorded in Arabic by Mauritanian singer Tahra Mint Hembara (a friend of Iman's) in 1988 as "T Beyby"; her producer Martine Valmont wrote English lyrics and retitled it "Don't Let Me Down & Down". Bowie discovered it while browsing through Iman's CD collection and decided to cover it as a wedding gift. He stated, "[It was] one of those tracks that sort of in a diary-like way records
24462-480: Was praised for its experimentation but criticised for an overall lack of cohesion. David Sinclair of Q magazine argued Black Tie "picks up where Scary Monsters left off" and "if any collection of songs could reinstate [Bowie's] godhead status, then this is it." He primarily criticised the lack of "obvious" hit singles, but felt the record was full of "imagination and charm" and deemed Bowie's saxophone performances some of his best to date. A reviewer for Billboard
24624-461: Was quickly dismissed as "pompous, dogmatic and dull". EMI complained of "lyrics that preach" as well as "repetitive tunes" and "minimalist or no production". It reached number three in the UK and was supported by a twelve-date tour . The tour was a commercial success, but there was growing reluctance—among fans and critics alike—to accept Bowie's presentation as merely a band member. A series of Tin Machine singles failed to chart, and Bowie, after
24786-435: Was really, really making him happy". Both Bowie and Rodgers gave positive statements regarding the sessions in contemporary interviews. Speaking with Rolling Stone , both said they were not looking to do Let's Dance II , Bowie remarking they "would have done [that] years ago". Nevertheless, Rodgers made several unfavourable comparisons between the two records, including statements about Bowie's involvement and how Black Tie
24948-483: Was recorded in France and took influence from krautrock and experimental music and featured both short song-fragments and ambient instrumentals. Before its recording, Bowie produced Iggy Pop's debut solo album The Idiot , described by Pegg as "a stepping stone between Station to Station and Low ". Low was completed in November, but left unreleased for three months. RCA did not see the album as commercially viable and
25110-610: Was released as a live album in November 2018. On 27 June, he performed a concert at the BBC Radio Theatre in London, which was released on the compilation album Bowie at the Beeb ; this also featured BBC recording sessions from 1968 to 1972. Bowie and Iman's daughter, Alexandra, was born on 15 August. His interest in Buddhism led him to support the Tibetan cause by performing at
25272-546: Was released as a single. A collaboration with Giorgio Moroder , it became a minor US hit and charted in the UK top 30. The same year, he departed RCA, having grown increasingly dissatisfied with them, and signed a new contract with EMI America Records for a reported $ 17 million. His 1975 severance settlement with Defries also ended in September. Bowie reached his peak of popularity and commercial success in 1983 with Let's Dance . Co-produced by Chic 's Nile Rodgers ,
25434-514: Was shelved due to EMI/ Virgin 's lack of faith in its commercial appeal. Bowie and Visconti continued their collaboration, producing a new album of completely original songs instead: the result of the sessions was the 2002 album Heathen . On 25 June 2000, Bowie made his second appearance at the Glastonbury Festival in England, playing almost 30 years after his first. The performance
25596-461: Was spearheaded by the success of " Starman " and its album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (both 1972), which won him widespread popularity. In 1975, Bowie's style shifted towards a sound he characterised as " plastic soul ", initially alienating many of his UK fans but garnering his first major US crossover success with the number-one single " Fame " and the album Young Americans (both 1975). In 1976, Bowie starred in
25758-561: Was sufficiently sexually provocative to guarantee heavy rotation on MTV". Then-unknown Texas blues guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan guested on the album, featuring prominently on the title track. Let's Dance was followed by the six-month Serious Moonlight Tour , which was extremely successful. At the 1984 MTV Video Music Awards Bowie received two awards including the inaugural Video Vanguard Award . Tonight (1984), another dance-oriented album, found Bowie collaborating with Pop and Tina Turner . Co-produced by Hugh Padgham , it included
25920-438: Was the deciding factor." Nemran replied that Bowie would be the label's breakthrough: "He's everything that I would use to describe us." Black Tie White Noise features an array of guest musicians, some of whom had not collaborated with Bowie for decades. Guitarist Mick Ronson , a member of the Spiders from Mars backing band from 1971 to 1973, appears on a cover of Cream 's " I Feel Free " (1966). Ronson, whose last appearance
26082-456: Was the only album recorded entirely in Berlin. Incorporating ambient sounds from a variety of sources including white noise generators, synthesisers and koto , the album was another hit, reaching number three in the UK. Its title track was released in both German and French and, though only reached number 24 in the UK singles chart, later became one of his best-known tracks. In contrast to Low , Bowie promoted "Heroes" extensively, performing
26244-531: Was the product of two distinct ideas: a musical based on a wild future in a post- apocalyptic city, and setting George Orwell 's Nineteen Eighty-Four to music. The album went to number one in the UK, spawning the hits " Rebel Rebel " and " Diamond Dogs ", and number five in the US. The supporting Diamond Dogs Tour visited cities in North America between June and December 1974. Choreographed by Toni Basil , and lavishly produced with theatrical special effects,
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