Bowie

I’ve lost track of the number of times I’ve realized that a song I’ve heard on and off for years (on the radio, in movies, in cover versions from other artists, …) was actually by David Bowie.

A few years ago, I spent six weeks listening through his studio albums in chronological order. It was pretty awe-inspiring how one person could dabble in so many genres over the decades, yet always have something interesting to contribute—how, independent of genre, he was always so clearly himself. This multifacetedness makes it almost impossible to pick a favourite song. I like the sci-fi weirdness of Space Oddity, sure; but I equally enjoy the crooning in “Heroes”, the theatricality of Life on Mars, the glam rock of Moonage Daydream, and so many others. Yet, perhaps my real favourite is Hallo Spaceboy, from 1995’s 1. Outside album: It completely blew my mind right from the start—Bowie is doing Industrial?—and then blew my mind a second time at the awkward queer yearning of the lyrics.

This week, ten years after his final album release and his death, feels like a good time to re-listen to this old Incomparable episode celebrating Bowie’s life and career.