Free Pin Ups Radio Show with Five Years pre-order

“Five Years, stuck on my eyes”

Available exclusively from the Official David Bowie Online Store free with your pre-order is The David Bowie Pin Ups Radio Show 10" or CD. The 10" vinyl is available with the vinyl box while a CD version is available with the CD box.

Previously only available on Spotify, this program was issued to mark the 40th Anniversary of the album Pin Ups in 2013. 

This extremely limited collectable, one-sided EP or CD, features snippets from the Pin Ups album interspersed with observations from David Bowie regarding the bands he covers on the album.

Below are links to the pre-order page and the David Bowie (Five Years 1969 – 1973) unboxing video.

Official David Bowie Online Store pre-order page

David Bowie (Five Years 1969 – 1973) unboxing video

Read more about the David Bowie Pin Ups Radio Show here.

Life On Mars? single is 42 today

“As I ask you to focus on” 

David Bowie’s Life On Mars? single was released forty two years ago today in the UK. (June 22nd, 1973) Though taken from the 1971 classic, Hunky Dory, it wasn’t released in its own right until 1973 in the UK, capitalising on its popularity as a live number during the Aladdin Sane Tour of the same year. It reached #3 on the official UK singles chart.

Pictured here is a still from Mick Rock’s beautiful Life On Mars? promotional video and the original US trade advert for Hunky Dory, wherein David had scribbled a few notes on a piece of headed hotel stationary from The Warwick in New York regarding each of the tracks on Hunky Dory.

Taking into account the insertion and crossing out that David made to his original annotation, the entry for Life On Mars? read: “Life on Mars - This is a sensitive young girl’s reaction to...The Media.”.

However, a bit of close quarter scrutiny reveals what he had originally written: “Life on Mars - This is a sensitive young girl’s reaction to songs like My Way, films like Love Story and newspapers”

This is kind of ironic considering the note Bowie scribbled for Life On Mars? on the back sleeve of Hunky Dory read: “INSPIRED BY FRANKIE”, a reference to My Way being a part of the song’s history. But that’s a whole other story.

See more Life On Mars? memorabilia on the official David Bowie Instagram page.

#HunkyDory  #LifeOnMars

FIVE YEARS 1969 – 1973 box set due September

“Five Years, what a surprise”

Press release below, scroll/swipe images for pack shots. Stay tuned for updates, pre-order links and more shortly.

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Commencing countdown, engines on, check ignition and may God's love be with you…

DAVID BOWIE

FIVE YEARS 1969 – 1973

The first in a series of David Bowie Box Sets to be released on September 25th.

June 23rd 2015 London

On this day in 1971, David Bowie performed for the first time at what was then known as the ‘Glastonbury Fair’. Today in 2015 as the Glastonbury Festival approaches once more, Parlophone Records are proud to announce DAVID BOWIE FIVE YEARS 1969 – 1973, the first in a series of box sets spanning his career.

The ten album / twelve CD box, ten album / thirteen-piece vinyl set and digital download featurs all of the material officially released by Bowie during the nascent stage of his career from 1969 to 1973. All of the formats include tracks that have never before appeared on CD/digitally as well as new remasters.

Exclusive to the box sets will be Re:Call 1, a new 2-disc compilation of non-album singles, single versions & B-sides. It features a previously unreleased single edit of All The Madmen, which was originally set for a US release but was never actually issued. Also included is the original version of Holy Holy, which was only ever released on the original 1971 Mercury single and hasn’t been available on any official release since.

Also exclusive to all versions of Five Years 1969 – 1973 will be a 2003 stereo remix of ‘The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars’ by the album’s original co-producer, Ken Scott, previously only available on DVD with the LP/DVD format of the 40th anniversary edition of the album.

The vinyl box set has the same content as the CD set pressed on audiophile quality 180g vinyl.

The box set’s accompanying book, 128 pages in the CD box and 84 in the vinyl set, will feature rarely seen photos as well as technical notes about each album from producers Tony Visconti and Ken Scott, an original press review for each album and a short foreword by legendary Kinks front man Ray Davies.

The CD box set will include faithfully reproduced mini-vinyl versions of the original albums and the CDs will be gold rather than the usual silver.

An alternate cover has been created for the 2003 mix of Ziggy Stardust by Ken Scott, which features an outtake from the original Heddon Street photo session. There is also newly originated artwork for Re:Call 1 featuring a 1973 in-studio image from renowned photographer Mick Rock.

DAVID BOWIE FIVE YEARS 1969 – 1973

6 Original Studio Albums:

David Bowie AKA Space Oddity*

The Man Who Sold The World*

Hunky Dory*

The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars

Aladdin Sane

PinUps*

*New 2015 Remasters.

2 Live Albums:

Live Santa Monica ‘72

Ziggy Stardust: The Motion Picture Soundtrack

Exclusive to the Box Sets:

The Rise and Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars (2003 Ken Scott mix)

Re:Call 1 (2CD set)

Re:Call 1 tracklisting

CD1

Space Oddity (original UK mono single edit)*

Wild Eyed Boy From Freecloud (original UK mono single version)*

Ragazzo Solo, Ragazza Sola

The Prettiest Star (original mono single version)*

Conversation Piece*

Memory Of A Free Festival (Part 1)

Memory Of A Free Festival (Part 2)

All The Madmen (mono single edit)* previously unreleased

Janine*

Holy Holy (original mono single version)* only ever issued on original ‘71 Mercury single

Moonage Daydream (The Arnold Corns single version)*

Hang On To Yourself (The Arnold Corns single version)*

CD 2

Changes (mono single version)*

Andy Warhol (mono single version)*

Starman (original single mix)

John, I’m Only Dancing (original single version)

The Jean Genie (original single mix)

Drive-In Saturday (German single edit)

Round And Round

John, I’m Only Dancing (sax version)

Time (U.S. single edit)

Amsterdam

Holy Holy (Spiders version)

Velvet Goldmine

All tracks stereo except *mono.

The vinyl box set has the same content as the CD box set pressed on audiophile 180g vinyl.

Formats:

CD Box Set 0825646284085 (UK Cat No: DBX 1)

Vinyl Box Set 0825646284092 (UK Cat No: DBXL 1)

Digital download 0825646070602

DAVID BOWIE FIVE YEARS 1969 – 1973 is released 25th September on Parlophone Records

Charlotte Church on why she’s proud to be British

“Bevan tried to change the nation” 

Charlotte Church, the Welsh singer-songwriter, actress and television presenter, gave a rousing speech at yesterday’s protest march through London against the Conservative government’s austerity measures.

Charlotte received loud cheers as she spoke to an assembled crowd of a quarter of a million at a rally at the end of the protest - the biggest in Britain for many years.

Here’s an excerpt from it...

“One aspect of this that really gets under my skin is that it’s all wrapped up in a proud-to-be-British package. I’m proud to be British because of our National Health Service, the welfare system, and David Bowie, not cos of the Union Jack! Nationalism has worked wonders for the Scots because it’s galvanised them against the Westminster elite. But rarely does pure nationalism have a positive effect, and more often than not it serves to veil racism. I’m not saying don’t be proud, I’m saying be proud for the right reasons.”

Naturally we concur that David Bowie is one of the right reasons to be proud to be British. Read the full speech here.

FOOTNOTE: Those of you outside of the UK may not know that Charlotte’s fellow Welshman, Aneurin Bevan (pictured), was best known for his accomplishment in July 1948, (during his time as Minister of Health), when he spearheaded the establishment of the National Health Service, which was to provide medical care free at point-of-need to all Britons.

Exclusive limited edition Fame 40th bundle

“Nein! It's mine!”

You should have received an email regarding a 40th Anniversary T-shirt/Pic Disc bundle pre-order offer, ahead of its release next month on Friday, July 24th. (Fame was originally released in the UK on July 18th, 1975)

These Tees are produced in very limited quantities and this one is no exception with just 200 pieces available to purchase.

Pre-order yours here now and check out our pictorial celebration of Fame by clicking on the little dots in our picture or scrolling/swiping to reveal more.

Alternatively, leave comments on our newly launched Instagram page.

#DavidBowie #Fame40th

Less than a month to go for David Bowie is at ACMI

“He will have his sky down there below” 

With just under a month to go, The Australian Centre for the Moving Image (acmi) is really entering into the spirit with a whole load of wonderful Bowie related events and resources on their dedicated page, including the Bowie Channel which contains some great Australian archive Bowie interviews, keeping anticipation for the impending arrival high. 

For regular updates on general Bowie stuff happening down there, also keep an eye on Adam Dean’s superb bowiedownunder - The David Bowie Community of Australia and New Zealand.

David Bowie is visits The Australian Centre for the Moving Image (acmi) as part of Melbourne Winter Masterpieces, from July 16 to November 1, 2015.

#bowieACMI

Happy 43rd Birthday to Ziggy Stardust

“TO BE PLAYED AT MAXIMUM VOLUME”

It’s possible that some of you reading that headline may be thinking we’re ten days late with this particular celebration. Well, the shocking news is that we’re actually spot on.

Last year we didn’t even mention the release of David Bowie’s 1972 classic, The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars. Instead we opted to mark a date we were certain of, the day the album entered the UK album chart at #15. (July 1st)

Albums were pretty much always released on a Friday at this point and armed with this knowledge and reliable chart records, June 6th always seemed highly unlikely.

Our resident expert has been squawking “it has to be the 16th” for a long time now, and finally firm evidence of that release date has surfaced in the shape of a communication from RCA’s product manager written when the album charted upon release.

The letter was on the subject of the album’s availability in stores and clearly mentions the release date of the 16th and the record’s top 20 chart placing.

July 1st, 1972, was the first time a Bowie album had entered the official UK album charts, and it was at the same time as Starman was enjoying a second week in the Top 50 at #41. (Eventually peaking at #10)

With the success of the Bowie/Ken Scott produced Ziggy Stardust album (it eventually reached #5), Ziggymania had begun in earnest in the UK and after the Top Of The Pops broadcast of Starman the following week, David Bowie’s fate was sealed.

In the unlikely event that you’ve not heard this timeless recording, go listen here on Spotify, but please bear in mind that this LP is “TO BE PLAYED AT MAXIMUM VOLUME”!

Remembering Bowie on TFI Friday

“I’ve got TFI Friday on my mind”

Tonight sees a one-off return of Chris Evans’ TFI Friday at 9pm on Channel 4 in the UK.

Despite the original studio where the popular show was filmed having since been demolished, the programme makers have done their best to recreate the look and feel of the studio as it was back in its heyday.

However, one obvious addition is a large picture of David Bowie (see inset in our montage) in the bar area, from his last appearance on the show in June 2000 when he performed Wild Is The Wind, Starman, Absolute Beginners and Cracked Actor. (Only Wild Is The Wind and Starman were broadcast at the time)

Our man also appeared on the show in October 1999 when he took part in the regular 'In The Chair' interview slot and performed Survive, Rebel Rebel and China Girl. (If memory serves, Rebel Rebel was shown at a later date and China Girl has yet to be shown)

That 'In The Chair' interview with Chris Evans was a great bit of TV with Bowie at his hilarious best. Check it out on YouTube now.

TFI Friday is on Chanel 4 at 9pm this evening in the UK. 

DeLaria’s HOUSEOFDAVID cover and tracklist reveal

“The jazz of life”

We told you about Orange Is the New Black star Lea DeLaria’s (Carrie “Big Boo” Black), new album of jazz renditions of the greatest hits of David Bowie, back at the start of February.

Now Lea has revealed the tracklisting foe HOUSEOFDAVID along with a new cover for the album, a spoof of Bowie’s own CHANGESONEBOWIE sleeve which featured an iconic black and white Tom Kelley shot.

Keep an eye on Lea’s FB page for updates.

We’ll leave you with the tracklisiting

HOUSEOFDAVID 

01 - Fame

02 - Space Oddity

03 - Golden Years

04 - Suffragette City (duet with JANIS SIEGEL)

05 - Starman

06 - Boys Keep Swinging

07 - Rebel Rebel

08 - Let's Dance

09 - Life on Mars?

10 - The Jean Genie

11 - Modern Love

12 - Young Americans

Happy 23rd Anniversary to David And Iman

“Please be mine, Share my life”

Today is the twenty third anniversary of David and Iman’s official church wedding at Saint James Episcopal Church, in Florence, Italy in 1992.

They had already married in a civil ceremony in Lausanne, Switzerland on April 24, with just two witnesses present and no guests.

The wedding in Florence was an altogether different affair with an invited guest list of family and friends and hundreds of curious well-wishers outside the church.

For the bride’s entrance, the couple chose a beautiful Bulgarian folk song called Kalimankou Denkou (The Evening Gathering) by Le Mystère des Voix Bulgares (solo: Yanka Roupkina), a Bulgarian female choir.

Bowie composed the other music played during the service, some of which ended up on the Black Tie White Noise album.

Iman wore a white dress designed by Herve Leger for the ceremony and David a suit by Thierry Mugler.

We’re sure you will want to join us in wishing the couple a very happy anniversary with many more to follow.

Bowie’s first lady is 51 today

“Gotta get a word to Liza’s father”

No sorry, we’re not talking about Iman, we are celebrating 51 years since the release of David Bowie’s first ever 45. For it was on this day, Friday, June 5th 1964, that Vocalion Pop released a 45 with the catalogue number: V.9221.

That record, Liza Jane/Louie, Louie Go Home, was issued as Davie Jones with The King-Bees. Read more about the release in the piece we did for the 50th anniversary last year: http://smarturl.it/LJ50BNet

FOOTNOTE: The foreground images here were taken by Decca’s in-house photographer, David Wedgbury. Pictures from the session were used for the sheet music and for publicity stills at the time.

Bowie’s Deram debut is 48 today

Bowie’s Deram debut is 48 today

“Did you ever have a Deram?”

David Bowie released his first album this day in 1967, albeit lacking the fanfare of Sergeant Pepper reportedly released on the same day by The Beatles. In fact Pepper was actually released a couple of weeks earlier. But that’s for Beatles’ buffs to explain.

Pictured here are the original stereo US (top left) and UK vinyl pressings and the impossibly rare US 8-track cartridge.

Issued on the Decca subsidiary, Deram, David Bowie is an album that has been unfairly dismissed by some over the years, even by Bowie himself on occasion.

This is a disservice that belies the fact that the record contained some classic Bowie recordings, including the likes of There Is A Happy Land, When I Live My Dream and Silly Boy Blue.

If you’ve not delved this far back, go listen to the most complete collection of songs from the period (including Karma Man, Let Me Sleep Beside You, In The Heat Of The Morning and the sublime The London Boys), on the 55-track Deluxe version of the album on Spotify now.

FOOTNOTE: Since we posted an image of the Deram album 8-track on April 1st, we’ve had a fair few people contact us to say that they didn't fall for the April Fool joke and that they know there was no such thing. Well that was the twist in the tale. The 8-track is for real and it was manufactured in the USA. We posted it in a kind of reverse April Fool type doo dah.

David Bowie is film in France and New Zealand

“But I never wave bye-bye”

As Paris waves a sad adieu to David Bowie is (last day today), those of you that didn't manage to make the exhibition can still get a flavour of what you missed via screenings of Hamish Hamilton’s superb David Bowie Is documentary film throughout France tomorrow. (Monday June 1st)

Go here to check for local listings. (Those of you in Le Havre can enjoy a screening hosted by our good friend, Jérôme Soligny.)

Meanwhile, New Zealand has also been hosting the film and will continue to do so until June 3rd. Details and local listings here.

Signed Mike Garson biography and CD winners

“Who will guess Aladdin Sane?”

A few weeks back we set a contest to win copies of Bowie's Piano Man: the life of Mike Garson signed by author Clifford Slapper, along with a copy of Mike's CD, The Bowie Variations for Piano, which he has also signed. 

To be in with a chance of winning, we asked you to tell us what was the first Bowie album on which Mr Garson played? The lucky random selections below were among the many who correctly answered Aladdin Sane.

Katherine Ellis

Julian Davis

James Lark

Could you all confirm your postal addresses and tell us if you want Clifford to personalise your copy of the book. Please email your preference to dbcontests@davidbowie.com with a subject line of: Garson Winner.

Meanwhile, scroll/swipe the images here to view an exclusive and previously unpublished shot of David Bowie with Clifford behind the scenes at the shooting of Extras, taken by photographer Ray Burmiston.

Bowie's Piano Man: the life of Mike Garson by Clifford Slapper is available now. (Fantom, 2015) 

Space Weird Thing by Alaska Robotics

“Ground Control to Top Space Man”

An outfit calling themselves Alaska Robotics have created a wonderful new take on David Bowie’s 1969 classic, Space Oddity, with one major difference to the original...they've limited themselves to words taken only from the thousand most common words in English. As you might imagine, that places some restrictions on the original Bowie lyric.

Here are a few before and afters...

“Take your protein pills and put your helmet on” becomes: “Take your small food rocks and put your head-safe on”

“Planet Earth is blue and there’s nothing I can do” is now: “Home space ball is blue and there’s nothing I can do”

“Though I’m past one hundred thousand miles” translates to: “Though I’m past five hundred hundred hundred hundred feet”

Despite the new lyric not scanning quite as well as Bowie’s original, the new recording works remarkably well.

Molly Lewis, Marian Call, and Seth Boyer modified the lyrics and performed the song. Patrick Race had the original idea, and he filmed the hilarious version of the video (based on the original Bowie promo), with help from Ben Soileau and Aaron Suring.

We’ll leave you with the Alaska Robotics version of the lyrics so you can sing along to the video here.

SPACE WEIRD THING

(David Bowie's "Space Oddity" translated into Up-go)

Ground control to top space man

Ground control to top space man

Take your small food rocks and put your head-safe on

Ground control to top space man

(ten, ten less one, ten less two, seven,

Start the numbers-down, big fires on

six, five, four, three, two, one, up-go!)

Check the start thing and may God's love be with you...

This is Ground Control to top space man,

you’re really first in class

and the papers want to know which person's shirts you wear

now it’s time to leave the space-house since you’re there

This is top space man to Ground Control,

I’m stepping through the door

and I’m relaxing in the air and it’s weird

and the stars look very different today

For here am I sitting in a lunch box, far above the world

Home space ball is blue, and there’s nothing I can do

Though I’m past five hundred hundred hundred hundred feet,

I’m feeling very cool

And I think my space car knows which way to go

Tell my wife I love her very much -- she knows

Ground Control to top space man,

your talk line’s dead, there's something wrong

Can you hear me, top space man? Can you hear me, top space man?

Can you hear me, top space man?

Can you....here -- I’m relaxing in my lunch box

Far above the space night light ball

Home space ball is blue, and there’s nothing I can do

Barney Hoskyns interviews Mick Rock

“Scanning life through the picture window”

TASCHEN has published a brief Mick Rock interview conducted by Barney Hoskyns, one of the contributors to The Rise of David Bowie. 1972-1973.

Here’s one of the Q&As from it...

BH: What appealed to you about Bowie?

MR: Initially I was inspired by his music, and then I was fascinated by his aura. I felt hypnotized by all the mutating and shifting around. In truth the persona interested me more than the personality, coupled with the naked ambition. It’s all there in the Ziggy lyrics. He wasn’t thinking about money, he was thinking about stardom. You’ve got to remember how young we all were. I first met David forty-two years ago, when the world was a very different place. Psychologically it was a very impressionable time. What everyone now accepts as modern pop culture was brand-new.

You can read the full thing here and perhaps pre-order one of the various editions while you’re there.

Bowie cover feature and poster in rockin’on

“Ain’t that poster love?”

The June 2015 edition of Japanese magazine, rockin’on, boasts a Mick Rock Bowie cover, along with a great live ’73 shot by Gijsbert Hanekroot as a fold out poster, just over 20” wide, or 51.5cm to be precise for all you metric freaks.

The 8-page feature inside (by Tom Howard of NME) has another striking two-page Hanekroot live '73 photo, along with one of Sukita’s beautiful mirror shots of Bowie at Radio City Music Hall, New York, in February 1973.

Elsewhere there are bits on Aphex Twin, Bauhaus, Björk, Blur, The Cure, Daft Punk, Lady Gaga, Noel Gallagher, Marilyn Manson, My Chemical Romance and Slipknot...all self-confessed Bowie fans as it happens.

Diamond Dogs album is 41 today

“It’s all I ever wanted”

David Bowie’s Diamond Dogs album was unleashed on a very expectant public in the UK on May 24, 1974.

Anticipation was high because the album had already been delayed for a month and images of the human/dog hybrid on the cover had featured heavily in the music press.

Preceded by the Top 5 single Rebel Rebel, Diamond Dogs entered the UK album chart at #1 where it remained for three weeks.

In North America (where it also went Top 5), the publicity was even more intense ahead of the ambitious Diamond Dogs Tour extravaganza.

Along with the scene-setting opener, Future Legend, the title track offered a vision of a post-apocalyptic Hunger City, wherein Halloween Jack and the Diamond Dogs roamed the streets and the rooftops.

Though constructed from Bowie’s own imagination and various literary influences, George Orwell’s 1984 flavoured side two of the LP with the tracks We Are the Dead, 1984 and Big Brother.

The album was produced by Bowie himself who also provided much of the instrumentation.

Aside from Rock 'N' Roll With Me, the ominous closing Chant Of The Ever-Circling Skeletal Family and the aforementioned tracks, Diamond Dogs also contained the epic, nine minute Sweet Thing/Candidate/Sweet Thing (Reprise), an astonishing recording that you’ll find in the top ten of many Bowie fans' favourites.

If you’ve managed to resist the charms of this canine beauty thus far, let the dogs lick you to death over on Spotify now.

Pictured here is a print of Guy Peellaert's original artwork and the withdrawn RCA sleeve before the poor pooch’s emasculation.

FOOTNOTE: In Diamond Dog years, the album is in fact 287 today!

Tin Machine’s first album is 26 today

“Are you sure that it really was him?”

The first Tin Machine album was released on this day in 1989. Criminally overlooked, a reappraisal is long overdue.

If it’s a release you've avoided to date, have a taste via these promos on YouTube, you may be pleasantly surprised.

And if that whets your appetite, listen to the full album on Spotify now.

More than a quarter of a century later, we hope you’ll agree that Tin Machine mainly still kicks bottom somewhat.

Mick Rock’s TASCHEN Bowie book available to pre-order

“Oh! You pretty thing”

We mentioned this one back in September of last year, it’s TASCHEN’s beautiful volume of Mick Rock’s photographs: The Rise of David Bowie. 1972-1973.

TASCHEN are known for their limited edition high-end art books and this one, which includes approximately 50% previously unpublished photographs, continues their great tradition of quality and exclusivity.

With texts by Barney Hoskyns and Michael Bracewell, The Rise of David Bowie. 1972-1973, is published in September and is available to pre-order now in three different versions.

Limited to a total of 1,972 numbered copies signed by David Bowie and Mick Rock, this book is available as a Collector’s Edition and also in two Art Editions of 100 copies each, with a pigment print signed by Mick Rock.

Collector's Edition: (201-1,972) ($700)

Art Edition A: 100 copies with a print signed by photographer Mick Rock. (1-100) ($1,800)

Art Edition B: 100 copies with an alternative print by Mick Rock. (101-200) ($1,800)

Each edition comes with 3 foldouts in a 12.4 x 17.3 inch clamshell box with lenticular cover and all are signed by David Bowie and Mick Rock.

Scroll/swipe the images here to view some of the content.

Visit the TASCHEN site for further details and pre-order links.