In Appreciation of: David Bowie (1947-2016)

Karen: This is the sort of post you never want to have to write. Or you wish you had written it sooner, when the subject of your admiration was still alive. Instead, you find you've waited too long, and now you have to come at it from an angle of loss and regret. Inevitably, it colors what you have to say.

Karen: David Bowie, the artist who had perfected the ability to transform himself and his music in strange and unpredictable ways, is gone. It almost seems impossible -is it another metamorphosis? -but no, even he could not find a way to mutate and change to avoid death. And yet even though he was struck down by cancer, he utilized the knowledge of his impending death to craft his last album, Blackstar, which was just released, mere days before his passing. It seems so calculated and so completely Bowie.

Karen: He was always an artist in complete control, quite aware of what he wanted and unafraid to take risks and try new things. "Try new things" -that's putting it mildly. He would race from one style of music to the next, not as a lark, but as a sincere student/admirer, immersing himself fully and working at his craft until he mastered it. The term genius is thrown around perhaps too casually  but the man deserves to be called that, and a large part of 'genius' is putting in the work.

Karen: You can't separate Bowie from the stage personas he created and in some ways,  he always seemed like an actor playing a part; he was always a little distant. Did we ever really know the man or were we always seeing some carefully crafted creation? I think there were times the man was glimpsed and certainly the themes found in his songs -of alienation, longing, striving -gave us some small access to him. 

Doug: About the only things I can add, that wouldn't simply duplicate some of Karen's thoughts, are two distinct memories of Bowie from my childhood. The first was the initial time I laid eyes on Bowie, which was also my introduction to his androgyny - it was somewhat alarming to young Doug. But just a few years later, there he was singing "Little Drummer Boy" with Bing Crosby, looking normal. But as Karen has remarked, that was part of the chameleon nature of David Bowie.

Karen: He leaves us his songs which is a huge gift. So much to listen to, to enjoy and to ponder. His lyrics typically offer a lot of room for interpretation. I've been listening to "The Bewlay Brothers" (below) for years and I go back and forth on what I think it means.

Karen: I haven't listened to Blackstar yet. I don't think I'll be ready to for a while. But I have been listening to some of my favorite Bowie songs today, and I am posting a few below. 

Discuss: Glam

It Takes Two - Favorite Duets

Doug: Since today is Valentine's Day, we're going to bring the love through song.  And not just any genre of songs -- nope, today's discussion will center around the collaborations of two voices coming together to make a memorable song.  Of course, just like love doesn't always work out for some couples, neither is success guaranteed to recording artists merging their talents in a recording studio!  We'll talk about the songs you loved, as well as some you may even have loathed -- as long as there were two stars spinning under the needle, it's fair game.

Doug:  Stevie Nicks was all over the duet map in the 1970s-'80s, wasn't she?  From Kenny Loggins to Tom Petty to Don Henley, our Fleetwood Mac siren sang with all sorts of pop and rock icons.  I was reminded of this a few weeks ago when two songs in row came across my shuffled playlist and both featured her distinctive vocals.  So of course I thought to myself -- I'll bet our music-loving BAB playmates would have something to say about all the duets they've loved before (evokes Julio and Willie, right?).

Doug:  Today you can discuss any duets in your catalog -- the Motown song by Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston gives today's post its title, and of course Gaye had a string of hits with Tammi Terrell.  And for fun, how about those oddball pairings (Julio and Willie, as previously mentioned), such as the one below:

BAB Classic: 5 Perfect Albums to Love

NOTE:  This post was originally published on 27 January 2010.

Karen:  In the days of vinyl, and even when CDs were the newest format for music recordings, the concept of the album meant much more than it does today. Now music can be bought and sold ala carte; songs can be purchased and downloaded separately. You can make playlists that conveniently omit songs that are less worthy. But there was a time when you really had to take a chance and plop down your hard-earned bucks on a whole album. Oh sure, you might be able to buy a single off the album, but in general you were stuck buying the whole thing, mostly sight unseen. If you were lucky, you might have heard two, maybe even three, songs off of said album. Hopefully they were representative of the entire work. But often, this would not be the case. I don’t know how many times I got burned by purchasing an album after only hearing one or two tracks. I’d get home only to discover that those were the only songs I liked off the whole thing! Most of the time, an album might have three really good songs, then maybe another 3 that were ok, and the rest would be filler or stinkers. I would estimate that the vast majority of albums I have bought have had about 33% junk.

But then every once in awhile, the stars align, and you get that rarest of things: the perfect album. This is an album with no filler, no garbage – an album that hangs together and is worth playing all the way through. Sure, some songs are better than others, but even your least favorite ones are still very listenable. I’d like to share below five of my favorite perfect albums.

1. Lust for Life by Iggy Pop. Like a strange, scary butterfly bursting from his mouldering cocoon, Iggy re-invents himself on this album and creates a classic. Many will point to the involvement of David Bowie on the album and claim that this is the reason for such a brilliant work, but let’s give the Ig some credit too. Although I am annoyed with the cruise line commercials that utilize the title song (how come they never play the part that talks about “of course I’ve had it in the ear before” ?), this album is as fresh as ever, alive and vibrant. Songs like Lust for Life, The Passenger, Some Weird Sin, and Neighborhood Threat all have an aura of genuineness. Iggy’s emotional ups and downs are spread for all to see. The band features the Sales brothers as the rhythm section (who would go on to work again with Bowie as Tin Machine) and the sound is full and bouncy. Iggy’s lyrics are probably the most inspired of his career.

      2. Back in Black by AC/DC. Of course, anyone with any rock acumen knows that this was the first AC/DC album produced after the death of original frontman Bon Scott. Thank god the boys did not decide to pack it in with his death! Back in Black is a monster of an album, all meat, no filler. Brian Johnson stepped into the "singer" role -hey, so he can't sing, who cares, neither could Scott - and the band created some of their best songs, including Back In Black, You Shook Me All Night Long, Have A Drink on Me, and Rock and Roll Ain't Noise Pollution. After many years this album is like that really comfortable pair of old worn jeans that you love to pull out of the closet and put on. It may not look pretty but damn it feels good.

3. Girlfriend by Matthew Sweet. "Who?" you are probably asking. I'll admit that Matthew Sweet is a more obscure artist, but that doesn't diminish his gift for crafting perfect power-pop songs. Girlfriend, with its Tuesday Weld album cover, was his big break back in 1991. It was also helped by an early anime video on MTV. But the music on this album is what's important, and every song on this album is just perfect. From rockers like Girlfriend to melancholy beauties like Winona, there's just not a wrong step on this album. The musicians, particularly guitarists Robert Quine and Richard Lloyd, are superb. Sweet's voice is, well, sweet - haunting, angry, mournful - a very expressive instrument. I can't recommend this album enough.


4. Appetite for Destruction by Guns N' Roses. I don't think I'm the only person who thought, upon first hearing this album, that these guys were the next great rock and roll band. I still think they could have been, if drugs and personalities hadn't gotten in the way. This is just a tour de force album; it grabs you by the throat with the opening track, Welcome to the Jungle, and never lets go. Personally, I always liked that track, as well as Mr. Brownstone and It's So Easy, best of all. Because of the massive airplay of both Paradise City and Sweet Child O' Mine, I was sick of them for a number of years, but have recently begun to enjoy them again. I just still shake my head in disbelief over how the band disintegrated -and how ugly it was- whenever I hear their music. But this album just sounds better and better as time goes on, and makes one wonder, "what if?"


5. IV by Led Zeppelin. I refuse to call this 'Zoso'! This fourth album by what I personally consider the greatest rock band of all time only has eight songs, but what an amazing set of songs they are. The song I would consider the weakest, The Battle of Evermore, is still a fine tune, if a bit airy-fairy for me. But this is the album that gave us such monsters as Stairway to Heaven, Rock and Roll, Misty Mountain Hop - I used to play this disc over and over. And all these years later, I still love it. It's Zeppelin showcasing all their skills; they can rock with the best of them (Rock and Roll, Black Dog), get bluesy (When the Levee Breaks), and do sweet ballads (Going to California) all on one album, and do them better than anyone else. Zeppelin at the peak of their powers -nuff said.

TV Party Tonight! -Christmas Specials

Karen: Well, it's that most wonderful time of the year. We put out the eggnog, hot chocolate, and cookies, so let's sit down by the fire and watch some of our favorite Christmas shows!

First, to get the juices going, let's start with that beloved classic, A Charlie Brown Christmas. I've seen it a million times but I can never get enough of it. There's so much to love here, especially the incredible music of Vince Guaraldi. Charlie Brown's valiant stand against the commercialization of the holiday is a classic. There are so many great moments - the ice skating, the kids dancing during rehearsal, Snoopy's prize-winning decorated doghouse, and of course, Linus' moving speech about the true meaning of Christmas. An absolute gem.



How about a little musical number before we get to our movie? This is an odd little bit from the 1977 Bing Crosby Christmas Special. Bing Crosby and David Bowie?! You couldn't get two more diametrically opposed personalities. And yet...it's a beautiful performance. Check it out.



And of course, what would a Christmas special be without a commercial? I know, it would be much better! But this is a pretty cute commercial:



Let's get to our main feature, shall we? While there have been many, many film versions of Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol, my favorite one is the 1951 movie with Alastair Sim as Scrooge. I think what gets me the most about this version is the time spent showing Scrooge the child; it's easy to see how such a lonely, unhappy child could turn into such a cold, distant creep later on. But the possibility of redemption exists, and we get our happy ending, as Scrooge attempts to make up for the past and become a good man. Whenever I see this I always feel acutely my own short-comings toward my fellow men. It's a good reminder that we only have so much time in this world - we should strive to do well with it.