# David Bowie has died **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 11, 2016, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794 "2016-01-11T07:02:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![handsomeharry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e9c0ed/32.png) [@handsomeharry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handsomeharry)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/101 "2016-01-11T20:16:32Z")
> [@dada2fish](#): > > I’m gutted. He’s been the biggest part of my musical DNA since I was 8 years old. I feel like I got punched in the heart. Like a family member died. He almost had me believing he was immortal. Yep. Exactly this. I thought that he would far outlive me, and I’m 58 in perfect health. I thought that the post on Facebook was one of those stupid ads, like the “We say Goodbye to the Rock” kind of things. ---
**Author:** ![Count\_Blucher](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Count\_Blucher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Count_Blucher)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/102 "2016-01-11T20:20:26Z")
[♢](https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q=I+never+done+good+things+I+never+done+bad+things+I+never+did+anything+out+of+the+blue) ---
**Author:** ![scootergirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e99b99/32.png) [@scootergirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scootergirl)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/103 "2016-01-11T20:47:12Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Yes. Tell her it should have been his next album cover! The sketch is from an old image. Ziggy Stardust. It a good rendition of it. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Lobohan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lobohan/32/79_2.png) [@Lobohan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobohan)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/104 "2016-01-11T20:49:31Z")
Well shit. I was just thinking about what he’d be like when he’s really old. Fuck. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/105 "2016-01-11T21:23:50Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Fitting he should have a spider named after him: [Heteropoda davidbowie - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heteropoda_davidbowie) > > I was never his biggest fan, but I liked some of his songs very much - “Let’s Dance,” “China Girl,” “Modern Love” and his duet with Queen, “Under Pressure,” are particular favorites. He always impressed me as a multitalented, funny, wry, endlessly self-inventing pop star. May he rest in peace. I like a lot of his stuff, but I don’t think it is possible to like all of his songs as he reinvented himself so often. Speaking if duets, I love his Little Drummer Boy with of all people Bing Crosby, I remember watching that Christmas special with my parents when they first did it. He had of course the best song in _The Martian_, I use to have about 6 of his tapes, I seem to only have 1 CD though, [**ChangesBowie**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Changesbowie#Track_listing), which is a best of made of awesome. I have it blasting through the entire house and outside as I type this post in fact. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 9:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/106 "2016-01-11T21:43:57Z")
> [@TwoCarrotSnowman](#): > > He was a very talented musician, songwriter and singer. And knife inventor! 🙂 What? ---
**Author:** ![Chicken\_Fingers](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Chicken\_Fingers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chicken_Fingers)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/107 "2016-01-11T21:54:52Z")
> [@dada2fish](#): > > I’m gutted. He’s been the biggest part of my musical DNA since I was 8 years old. I feel like I got punched in the heart. Like a family member died. He almost had me believing he was immortal. Same here. And anything was possible. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/108 "2016-01-11T22:06:47Z")
So, I just listened to Lazarus and was wonder struck. Bowies’ entire life was defined by creativity, right up until the very end. It sure seems that he knew the end was nigh and wrote that into the last album. The timing of its release, so quickly followed by his death adds a level of surreality to his showmanship. ---
**Author:** ![Octarine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/22d042/32.png) [@Octarine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Octarine)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/109 "2016-01-11T22:16:47Z")
\*Ziggy played guitar . . . \* ---
**Author:** ![joyfool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/df788c/32.png) [@joyfool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/joyfool)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/110 "2016-01-11T22:20:52Z")
Having grown up in the 70s, he initially was just another of those larger-than-life rock gods (like Elton and his glasses) and I didn’t pay a lot of attention. By the time I hit high school in the 80s, he simultaneously fit multiple categories for me… a preppy dresser for me to swoon over because that was all the rage, and the long-haired hottie of **Labyrinth** that I’d end up loving for the rest of my life. Musically however, he never really clicked for me until I realized Major Tom was his sometime in my twenties. Then I was impressed as all hell with his ingenuity and boundary pushing. Which, in turn, led to _The Man who Fell to Earth_ and I was in awe. He really had so much talent it was astounding and, if he’d ever chose to follow it more as a main pursuit, he could’ve been an extremely good actor. Such a loss. ☹ Just the other day, I rented _The Hunger_ and enjoyed his performance enough to look for my own copy. Instead, I think I’ll spend that money on this latest album. Because if Blackstar is any indication, it’ll be just as brilliant as he was. I hope he rendezvous with my husband beyond the stars and gives him a one-on-one rendition of Angie. Jaceson loved that. Rest in peace, sir, and may all your legion of fans take comfort in how much you truly dominated being an icon. ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 10:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/111 "2016-01-11T22:26:34Z")
> [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > The timing of its release, so quickly followed by his death adds a level of surreality to his showmanship. His last artistic statement: make sure the release is left to when it is clear that he has very little time left, let his fans listen for a few days, and then do the ultimate _drops mic, and walks off stage_, thus revealing the true nature of the album. I wouldn’t put that past him, to be honest. ---
**Author:** ![Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maggie_the_Ocelot)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/112 "2016-01-11T22:36:19Z")
So. About 1997, my friend Di called me up all excited. The local radio station had announced that the next morning, the Tower Records in Burbank would be giving out 25 pairs of tickets to a secret, super-exclusive same-day Bowie show to the first 25 Bowie mega-fans to show up. She’s just as big a fan as I am, but she couldn’t get there - I, however, was working fairly close by and might be able to do it. After work, I had my ride drop me off at the record store and I spent the night camped out in front (as one did, back then.) I was I think 10th in line. By the time the store opened at 8:00 AM there were well over 100 people there. I got the tickets, called Di, and the two of us skived off work and went to Universal Studios/CityWalk, where the concert was being held in one of the backstage areas. 51 people at that concert, one of whom was The Man. I was maybe 15 feet away from him, he was sitting on a chair and the rest of us were sitting on the ground. It was awesome. I grew up with his music all around - Mom says that I was singing along with Changes before I was two (though I didn’t quite get it - I would sometimes say “You’re driving your momma and poppa to the store” or “up the wall” instead of “insane”). She saw him live when he played L.A. on the Diamond Dogs tour; I didn’t get to see him until the Glass Spider tour when I was 16. I have nearly all his albums, though I’m missing a bunch from the 90’s (not his best period). His recent albums are damn good. I wish he was still alive. ---
**Author:** ![Mona\_Lisa\_Simpson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ce7236/32.png) [@Mona\_Lisa\_Simpson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mona_Lisa_Simpson)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/113 "2016-01-11T23:47:14Z")
Tapatalk timed out my post. I would have been about 5th in this thread. So I will skip the shock and comment on the responses everywhere… news, facebook, papers, twitter, etc etc etc. When Lemmy died I commented to my partner that ok, I get it he died, and yeah, good musician. But really does the whole world stop because of a musician? Yesterday were you posting videos and quoting lyrics all the damn time. Partner commented that with our group of friends, yes, this is probably true. So, today I am eating my own words almost before they’ve had a chance to cool down. There are only two news items I give a damn about, both are about a tragic break. (The other is the Nipigon Bridge, if you care google it or read the Canadoper thread in MPSIMS) The media is obliging me. I am soaking it all up. Last week I told my son that while I don’t have a “favourite” song anymore my answer will always be “Changes” by David Bowie. It was my favourite song by my favourite artist when that was important to me. Now that time has changed me, well I guess Changes is a constant. What is interesting is, at least in what I see, there is no _one_ song that is going to get played over and over as a tribute…except Space Oddity. Deep album cuts are being posted, and quoted. Here is mine “Things that happened in the past, only happened in your mind… so forget your mind and you’ll be free!” There are worse songs to have played at my funeral. ---
**Author:** ![betterlifethroughchemistry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/betterlifethroughchemistry/32/3094_2.png) [@betterlifethroughchemistry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betterlifethroughchemistry)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/114 "2016-01-11T23:52:52Z")
Awesome…Rest in peace, David, and thank you… [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/bnXZ3R3OWpg/hqdefault.jpg "David Bowie - Oh You Pretty Things") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bnXZ3R3OWpg) ---
**Author:** ![betterlifethroughchemistry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/betterlifethroughchemistry/32/3094_2.png) [@betterlifethroughchemistry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betterlifethroughchemistry)\ **Post date:** [January 11, 2016, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/115 "2016-01-11T23:58:53Z")
I only saw him three times - once during the “Serious Moonlight” tour and twice during the “Glass Spider” tour. I wished I had seen some of the later shows as the ones I saw were dominated by theatrics, great music, but David was an amazing musician… ---
**Author:** ![betterlifethroughchemistry](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/betterlifethroughchemistry/32/3094_2.png) [@betterlifethroughchemistry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betterlifethroughchemistry)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2016, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/116 "2016-01-12T00:14:34Z")
Wish I had seen this…one of his best songs and he gave it to his friend Ian Hunter to perform with Moot the Hoople… [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/VwXY_qpyc5k/hqdefault.jpg "All the Young Dudes | David Bowie | Mott the Hoople | Queen | Def Leppard | Freddie Mercury Tribute") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VwXY_qpyc5k) ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2016, 1:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/117 "2016-01-12T01:02:45Z")
Very sad. I was at best a medium Bowie fan. But my old roommate back in West Texas was a huge fan, so I heard him a lot and did appreciate him. I wasn’t even aware he had heart surgery 15 years ago, which BBC just mentioned, and I was used to him dropping out of the spotlight for years at a time. RIP, David. ☹ Heh, I remember being in elementary school when _The Monkees_ was big, then I think I was in junior high when Bowie broke out, and everyone kept saying Bowie was the Davy Jones on the show.I was puzzled by the lack of resemblance, but everyone seemed so sure. ---
**Author:** ![scootergirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e99b99/32.png) [@scootergirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scootergirl)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2016, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/118 "2016-01-12T02:09:13Z")
> [@Locrian](#): > > It did, and it is an EXCELLENT sketch! She says, “Thank you.” And reported that her high school played Bowie over the school radio today. That certainly made me smile. ---
**Author:** ![Banquet\_Bear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banquet_bear/32/373_2.png) [@Banquet\_Bear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banquet_Bear)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2016, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/119 "2016-01-12T02:26:11Z")
[…David Bowie. Rock God.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cYeIqneQKA0) ---
**Author:** ![Biggirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/biggirl/32/3294_2.png) [@Biggirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biggirl)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2016, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794/120 "2016-01-12T03:38:40Z")
[Buzzfeed takes a look at Iman’s recent Instagram posts over the last weeks.](http://www.buzzfeed.com/ellievhall/imans-recent-instagram-posts-are-heartbreaking#.sbojoRer4W) Be prepared for a lot of dust in your room all of a sudden. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/david-bowie-has-died/742794.md?page=7)