Month: May 2003

You shall own a Cambridge shirt…

The June/July edition of Blender magazine has a short piece by Rob Kemp which includes a few quotes from David, and the above photograph of him in the recording studio. The general thrust of the piece is, erm, “thrusty”, which according to the magazine is apparently how David describes the new album: “This album is a bit thrusty. I’m not sure if being thrusty is a great thing at age 56, but I suppose it’s better than being dead… or limp.”

Elsewhere in the piece, David hints further at the flavour of the record: “The irrational feelings that you get on a day-to-day basis living here since 9/11, have left a decided mark on this record.” He continues to suggest a certain urgency to the recording when he quotes an old friend: “John Lennon’s idea of rock & roll was ‘Say what you mean, make it rhyme and then put a backbeat to it,’ That’s precisely what this album is all about.”

When I asked David about the equipment he was using in the shot, he explained: The guitar is my 1956 Supro Dual Tone, and the amp is a Supro Tremo-Verb (model S6422TR). Tech heads may like to know that he also told me that the rather tasty looking mic is apparently: A MANLEY Gold Reference Multi Pattern Microphone.

For those of you just as interested in David’s clothing as his equipment (Oooer), you may be pleased to learn that the rather sporty top he is wearing is in fact a Cambridge University Rugby Union Football Club shirt… which, if you fancy one for yourself, is purchasable here.

BowieNet members can view a larger version of the above pic by clicking on it.

New York’s a go-go and everything tastes nice…

David and Iman were invited guests last night when Anna Wintour hosted a dinner for British couple Victoria and David Beckham. The event took place at SoHo House in New York, and DB had this to say about the evening and the charming young Mr Beckham:

Becks is a lovely man. I had not met him before, though we have a couple of mutual mates. He’s easy going and a thoroughly good egg. Dinner was at the newly opened Soho House private club, part of the London Soho House operation. Six floors with everything from sleep-over rooms to a cinema. Cool place. Calvin was there, also Damon Dash who is inked to do a Posh album.

Becks wore an extraordinary watch that a small family could crouch on. Designed and given by Jacob Arobo (a.k.a. “Jacob the Jeweler”). Utterly big, ghetto fabulous, Bling Bling goes the bell (whistle?).

DB also sent in this useful little piece of advice from the aforementioned Jacob Arabo:

HOW TO PICK OUT JEWELRY FOR YOUR FAVORITE RAPPER
By Jacob Arabo ? a.k.a. Jacob the Jeweler

Hip-hop?s bling-enhancer of choice Rappers need to stand out. Jay-Z likes a men?s tennis bracelet, maybe a small pinkie ring. DMX buys mostly for his wife, but for himself he likes high quality ? classy watches, and maybe one earring. Rappers especially like logo pendants. Logos are tax-deductible, because they?re considered advertising. My clients don?t like me to discuss cost, but my jewelry is not cheap. It might cost as much as a car ? be it a Toyota or a Rolls-Royce, I can?t say.

For the starspotters among you, apart from David and Iman and The Beckhams, the following were also guests last night:

Calvin Klein, Damon Dash, Diane Von Furstenburg and Barry Diller, Jimmy Fallon, Justin Portman and Natalia Vodianova, Kenneth Cole, Mario Testino and Frankie Rayder, Narciso Rodriguez, Ric Pipino, Stella Tennant and Karolina Kurkova and Narciso Rodriguez.

BowieNet members can view a full-length version of the David and Iman pic by clicking on it, while the whole world can view thumbnails from the evening over at wireimage.com by going here.

They got a message from the action man…

On your way here today, you may have noticed a great new welcome message from David, wherein he talks briefly about the forthcoming album and tour, and in which he also breaks the wonderful news that he will be chatting with you BowieNetters in the not too distant future.

By the time you reached the INFECTIOUS and MUTATIONS sections (see screen grab above) you may have noticed a new layout, which apart from incorporating David’s new message, now incorporates the A&E Live By Request broadcast and a new feature called The BowieNet Trivia Pool.

The BowieNet Trivia Pool is a new tool that explains itself pretty succinctly when you click on it. The idea is that you will all be able to contribute questions for future trivia chats, and the harder you make them, the better. Obviously we will check on the accuracy of any contributions before we start dishing out Bowie goodies from the vaults.

I think you’ll agree, it’s all jolly good stuff. Click on the image above to, erm… well, to bring you back to BowieNet actually!

You want more and you want it fast…

The soundtrack CD for the new Charlie’s Angels film, Full Throttle, that we told you about a couple of months back, (03/27/03 SNIPPET: DREW BARRYMORE WRESTLES WITH BOWIE & 08/18/02 SNIPPET: DREW BARRYMORE GETS THE ALADDIN SANE TREATMENT) now has a release date of June 24th.

The CD contains a studio re-recording of David Bowie’s Rebel Rebel, that uses the same arrangement as the version of the song David played live last year. Here’s the full listing:

01. Livin’ On A Prayer – Bon Jovi
02. Centerfold – The J. Geils Band
03. Working For The Weekend – Loverboy
04. Surfer Girl – The Beach Boys
05. Last Dance – Donna Summer
06. U Can’t Touch This – M.C. Hammer
07. Rebel Rebel – David Bowie
08. I Just Want To Be Your Everything – Andy Gibb
09. Thunder Kiss ’65 – White Zombie
10. Wild Thing – Tone-Loc
11. Firestarter – Prodigy
12. The Pink Panther Theme – Hollywood Studio Orchestra
13. Flashdance…What A Feeling – Irene Cara
14. Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting – Nickelback feat. Kid Rock

Not a great line-up, IMHO, but surely worth the price of the CD for this cracking new version of Rebel Rebel alone!? Click on the image above to take you to the official Full Throttle site.

I am a DJ, and I’ve got believers…

You should have all now received an e-mail regarding a BowieNet exclusive preview of the new George Hickenlooper documentary film, The Mayor Of Sunset Strip. The film concerns itself with the life and times of the famous LA DJ, Rodney Bingenheimer, an early champion of David’s music, and a man who still rates David top of his list of fifteen favourite artists of all time.

Perhaps most famous for Rodney Bingenheimer’s English Disco of the early Seventies and his hugely successful, world-famous show, Rodney On-The-ROQ on Los Angeles’ KROQ-FM, Rodney has always had his finger on the pulse, as confirmed by David in 1992:

“Alone in L.A. Rodney seemed like myself, an island of anglo ‘nowness’. He even knew British singles and bands that I wasn’t aware of. There was nothing about him that wasn’t ‘on’. Rodney single-handedly cut a path through the treacle of the 60’s, allowing all we ‘avants’ to parade our sounds of tomorrow, dressing in our clothes of derision.”

The film will make it’s world premiere at the LA Film Festival on June 17th at 7:30pm at the ArcLight Cinerama Dome on Sunset Blvd, but we have a first showing of a three-minute clip that includes footage of David with Rodney, wherein DB is sporting the short-lived Mohawk/Mohican hairstyle (anybody know what is the difference between them?) that he wore briefly at the end of 1997.

If you’ve not yet received your e-mail, click on the screen grab above to take you to the clip, and go here for a synopsis by George Hickenlooper himself. Those of you not already familiar with Rodney’s past may want to check out this brief biography on his official website.

Monday I have Friday on my mind…

Just received a hurried note from Gail Ann Dorsey regarding some upcoming shows in New York, the soonest of which is this coming Friday. Anyway, she asked if we would post the following information, and frankly, how could we resist?…

GAIL ANN DORSEY will be performing a solo set accompanied by pianist Antony Widoff at BAM Cafe (Brooklyn Academy Of Music) on Friday, May 30th at 9:00 PM. Gail will be playing music from her previous CD releases, as well as material from her first solo CD in over ten years ‘I Used To Be…’ due for release this summer!

BAM Cafe @ Brooklyn Academy Of Music
30 Lafayette Avenue
Brooklyn, New York 11217
Telephone: 718.636.4195
Fax: 718.636.4126
For more info, visit www.bam.org

GAIL ANN DORSEY will also be performing as one-third of The Chanteuse Club, with B-52’s vocalist Kate Pierson and hostess Maggie Moore on their “back-by-popular-demand” return to Joe’s Pub in New York City, June 12th and 13th at 9:00 PM. Special guest will be singer-songwriter Joy Askew.

Joe’s Pub @ The Public Theater
425 Lafayette
New York, New York 10003
For further information call 212.539.8500 or visit www.joespub.com

For her final solo appearance in the New York area before resuming her place in the David Bowie band for his upcoming tour, GAIL ANN DORSEY will be performing again with pianist Antony Widoff at her favourite Upstate New York venue, The Hudson River Theater on Friday, June 20th at 9:00 PM.

Hudson River Theater
521 Warren Street
Hudson, New York 12534
For reservations and further info call 518.822.8189

So there you have it. You lucky, lucky New Yorkers! We’ll give you more details about Gail’s long-awaited next release, I Used To Be…, as we get them.

(If) I can talk on television…

Last week saw the telecast of the annual Daytime Emmy Awards. The winner in the ‘Outstanding Special Class Special’ category was Hollywood Rocks The Movies: The 1970’S (AMC) hosted and narrated by David Bowie.

You will remember that we brought you details of this great show last year (08/26/02 SNIPPET: FORTHCOMING DB ON TV) when it first aired in the USA. Congratulations to David and all involved!

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Have you have been an un-American?…

Starring a ‘dazzling’ Nicole Kidman, and currently wowing Cannes Film Festival goers is writer and director Lars Von Trier‘s (Dancer In The Dark) latest offering – Dogville. This unusual film, the first part of a proposed trilogy, was shot entirely on one soundstage and has a set is so minimalist that even the town dog is just a chalk drawing. Here’s a paste from the official synopsis.

The beautiful fugitive, Grace (Nicole Kidman), arrives in the isolated township of Dogville on the run from a team of gangsters. With some encouragement from Tom (Paul Bettany), the self-appointed town spokesman, the little community agrees to hide her and in return, Grace agrees to work for them. But Grace has a secret and it is a dangerous one.

Music is a ‘supporting actor’ in all of Lars Von Trier’s films, and here Young Americans plays over the closing credits. Metro magazine has this to say:

…a staggeringly powerful closing credit sequence juxtaposing images from the American depression and war and poverty around the world with David Bowie’s Young Americans is simply brilliant.

You can also check out this article in Time Europe Magazine, in which the director describes David Bowie as “a god”.

:))

I keep a photograph…

Coming up on June 9th at the Chelsea Art Museum in New York is a benefit evening with a difference. A ‘Live and Silent’ Auction of exclusive POLAROID images taken by artists, photographers and celebrities is scheduled to take place, the proceeds of which will benefit the organisation Free Arts for abused children of NYC, and David Bowie is one of the contributors.

You can preview some of the polaroids here, although David’s contribution is not available to view at the moment. Tickets for the evening start at $150.

Enjoy!

:))