Month: September 2001

gave their pledge….

Bowienet member Kris aka Starla asked the membership of Bowienet to donate to a fund called ARTI (American Rescue Team International) to help with the NYC and Washington DC relief funds. Together, our donors raised nearly $600! That’s fantastic! The money will be used to buy a new casualty locator, and to help the families of the victims. ARTI’s leader, Doug Copp, has been a volunteer rescue team leader for about 16 years and was actually the head of the first American rescue team to help in international disasters. He phoned Starla to thank her and all of the Bowienet members for the donation. You can see footage of the team at WTC ground zero on their website.

In addition, Ultrastar has made its own donation, on behalf of the members of Bowienet.

As well as the donations mentioned above, it has been obvious from message board posts and chat room chats, that we have many members who have dug deep in their pockets and hearts in response to those terrible events. Those in New York have contributed everything from flowers, to food and clothing, and there was a very moving post about a squeamish member giving blood for the first ever time, as did many more of you. Those further afield made donations to many diverse organisations, including Save the Children who are making every effort on behalf of those who lost a parent ..

Thanks to all of you who have helped! You know who you are…

But I’ll be there for you-oo-oo…

There is yet another feature related to David Bowie in the current edition of SFX magazine, it seems there really must be a Bowie fan on the editorial staff of this publication. This issue (October 2001) has a three page feature on Labyrinth, and I know how popular this film is with a lot of you second-generation Bowie fans. Actually, I know too, how popular it is with a few of us first-generation fans who’d just rather not admit such a thing.

It seems that David Bowie as Jareth in Labyrinth had the same sort of effect on the awakening puberty of young girls all over the world, as Ziggy performing ‘Starman’ on TOTPs did for similarly emotionally unbalanced teenagers all over the UK…I blame the tights!

Anyway, the three-page article is part of the continuing SFX series of classic films in a feature called Past Perfect. While it’s short on Bowie pix, (just one in fact) the piece is an entertaining read with a few quotes worth mentioning here:

David Bowie: “Jim (Henson) gave me the script, which I found very amusing. It was Terry Jones, of Monty Python, and it has that kind of slightly inane insanity running through it. When I read the script and saw that Jim wanted to put music to it, it just felt as though it could be a really nice, funny thing to do. One feels that Jareth rather reluctantly inherited the position of being Goblin King as though he would really like to be, I don’t know, down in Soho or something.”

Jennifer Connelly on her favourite scene: “I wore a beautiful silver ballgown, which was a refreshing change from the blue jeans I wore in almost every other scene. It was a really gorgeous set, with masses of huge chandeliers and thousands of flickering candles, hundreds of silken cushions and curtains, and masses of people in strange masks and ornate dresses. There was the thrill of dancing with David Bowie to one of the songs he composed especially for the film. There wasn’t enough room – for technical reasons – to really dance around properly, but we just drifted slowly and gracefully (I hope!) to David’s music, and he looked fabulous! It’s all a sort of magical fantasy sequence inside a huge bubble.”

On a final note, we can be thankful that our mental image of the proud Jareth (no, I’m not talking tights again) wasn’t destroyed by the use of Terry Jones’ original script, wherein Jareth turns into a Goblin when defeated…Phew!

Thanx to young Alecz for the pointer, and to Susans for typing up the quotes…in fact I really had very little to do with this piece come to think of it.

I’m trying to decide

Cast your mind back to 09/22/01, just over one year ago today, when David gave us this journal entry about his cameo appearance in the Ben Stiller movie, Zoolander. “…there is a ‘fight-club’ style ‘walk-off’ between the two star models and I act as the ref.” (image of “ref” above)

The film is released today at theatres across the USA. Catch it if you can!

:))

Cast your mind back to 09/22/01, just over one year ago today, when David gave us this journal entry about his cameo appearance in the Ben Stiller movie, Zoolander. “…there is a ‘fight-club’ style ‘walk-off’ between the two star models and I act as the ref.” (image of “ref” above)

The film is released today at theatres across the USA. Catch it if you can!

:))

And I could have the faintest idea…

For this one we asked you to name the Puff Daddy & The Family recording that featured a sample of ‘Let’s Dance’. The title of the rather catchy ditty we are looking for is ‘Been Around The World’, which was taken from the ‘No Way Out’ album. Despite a 99% accuracy rate from the entries received, TRS? is programmed to randomly select but ten of you…so here’s the ten people who this marvel of modern technology has given us:

zigley@davidbowie.com
nessler@davidbowie.com
ivdf@davidbowie.com
sfenn@davidbowie.com
chihaya@davidbowie.com
cannibalkate@davidbowie.com
orjan@davidbowie.com
rara@davidbowie.com
jina@davidbowie.com
curlygirl@davidbowie.com

We’ve also managed to blag one extra copy of the soundtrack for that tinker Alecz, for the simple reason that he reckons ‘Been Around The World’ is the very track that got him into the music of David Bowie in the first place. So in a way we have Mr Diddy to thank for Alecz’s presence in this wonderful little community of ours…And yes, of course I’m being sincere you cynical things you!

So, if all eleven of you would like to send your real name and address to me at MrTotalBlamBlam@AOL.Com with a subject heading of: ‘Training Day’ soundtrack competition winner, you will receive your disc shortly.

popular musics and aftershocks…

Sandwiched between Blondie and Boy George (oooer..), David Bowie is the main feature in the latest instalment of the Daily Mail’s ‘A-Z of Rock and Pop’ (22nd September issue of the WEEKEND magazine). Though the feature is not always 100% accurate…left eye brown, right eye blue…its heart is in the right place:

“No British singer has had anything like the impact and influence on music, fashion and popular culture as that of David Bowie.”

and:

“HIGH: The 18-month period in which Hunky Dory, Ziggy Stardust and Aladdin Sane reinvented British rock music. STAR QUALITY: The lightning-bolt make-up, the amazing outfits, the 30 years of super-cool superstardom.”

A couple more illustrations, as if they were needed, that justify our pride in being Bowie fans.

You’ve really made the grade

Space Oddity : Yahoo : 9/25/01 XM satellite radio is celebrating its launch with 71 great songs representing the spirit and passion of each of its music channels. …..each disc jockey and music director was tasked with identifying that one song that summarized the spirit and passion of their respective channel. The 70’s channel chose David’s Space Oddity to represent its entire output.

Tribute Night : Cinema Classics : 09/29/01 ‘Cinema Classics’ will be holding a David Bowie tribute of live-music performances featuring material from various phases of his career. The program will also include rare footage of television-appearances, interviews, and videos! September 29th @ 11pm. Cinema Classics, 332 E 11th St, New York City. (starla)

OGWT : Observer : 09/23/01 James Walsh, lead singer of Starsailor, was interviewed about his influences. ‘I’ve been criticised for only being interested in stuff recorded before 1975, but then you watch all the reruns of The Old Grey Whistle Test and you’ve got David Bowie in full regalia performing live…..

Labyrinth : Popbitch.com : 09/27/01 SH writes :”New residents to my home town are Bryan McFadden (Westlife) and Kerry Katona (ex Atomic Kitten). A guy I know who works in the local Chartbusters video shop said that one evening Bryan came in looking for the old 80s film Labyrinth. They didn’t have it – so Bryan got the guy who worked there to write a note to Kerry saying ‘We do not have Labyrinth in the shop, from XXXX, who works in Chartbusters’ because she wouldn’t believe Bryan otherwise.” (alecz)

(contributors : alecz, starla, spaceface)

:))

(Image courtesy of Blammo’s archives.)

Space Oddity : Yahoo : 9/25/01 XM satellite radio is celebrating its launch with 71 great songs representing the spirit and passion of each of its music channels. …..each disc jockey and music director was tasked with identifying that one song that summarized the spirit and passion of their respective channel. The 70’s channel chose David’s Space Oddity to represent its entire output.

Tribute Night : Cinema Classics : 09/29/01 ‘Cinema Classics’ will be holding a David Bowie tribute of live-music performances featuring material from various phases of his career. The program will also include rare footage of television-appearances, interviews, and videos! September 29th @ 11pm. Cinema Classics, 332 E 11th St, New York City. (starla)

OGWT : Observer : 09/23/01 James Walsh, lead singer of Starsailor, was interviewed about his influences. ‘I’ve been criticised for only being interested in stuff recorded before 1975, but then you watch all the reruns of The Old Grey Whistle Test and you’ve got David Bowie in full regalia performing live…..

Labyrinth : Popbitch.com : 09/27/01 SH writes :”New residents to my home town are Bryan McFadden (Westlife) and Kerry Katona (ex Atomic Kitten). A guy I know who works in the local Chartbusters video shop said that one evening Bryan came in looking for the old 80s film Labyrinth. They didn’t have it – so Bryan got the guy who worked there to write a note to Kerry saying ‘We do not have Labyrinth in the shop, from XXXX, who works in Chartbusters’ because she wouldn’t believe Bryan otherwise.” (alecz)

(contributors : alecz, starla, spaceface)

:))

You’ve really made the grade…

The current edition of Guitar Techniques has four tracks on a cover mounted CD and twelve pages of editorial dedicated to the guitar work on the Bowie classic ‘Space Oddity’. The song is neatly dissected into it’s component parts, from David’s original 12-string acoustic backing to Tim Renwick’s electric embellishments. Dave Kilminster is the chap that takes us through a song close to his heart:

“I have a bit of a soft spot for the tune as it’s the first single I ever bought (my Mum thought he looked weird so that was good enough for me) and I’m sure you will get a lot out of studying it.”

But there’s no gain without pain (or something like that), as Dave explains:

“Although the tune uses mostly standard chord shapes throughout, it takes a lot of strength and stamina to play this on a 12-string (especially the F minor chord. Ouch!)”

So now you know how David has suffered just for you…a lot of strength and stamina? Have to admit he does look pretty butch when he plays that bit that goes: dum de dum de dum de doo doo!

};-)

Thanx to SusanS for the first pointer, and to a good few of you since.

The book, entitled “I AM IMAN” will be on the shelves this November 2001.have a look at the book coverCheck out the Iman book site as well…