On January 10, 2016 the world became a little darker when a rock and roll icon and one of the greatest musicians of the 20th century, David Bowie, died at age 69 from cancer. Within five decades, Bowie made over 30 albums and was a part of 10 bands. He influenced singers from Nirvana to Lady Gaga. Before his death, he released his latest album, Blackstar, on January 8, 2016—his parting gift to the world.
David Robert Jones was born in Brixton, a district of London, on January 8, 1947. At the age of 13, he learned to play the saxophone, one of many instruments he would learn to play. He started his music career playing with bands such as the King Bees the Kon-rads and the Mannish Boys. In 1969, he released his first hit album Space Oddity, which made No. 5 on the charts in the UK.
In the 1970s, Bowie introduced us to glam rock. He made two more successful albums: The Man who Sold the World and Hunky Dory before his most famous album, The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. This album introduced the world to Bowie’s most famous persona, Ziggy Stardust. The album featured hits such as “Starman,” “Suffragette City,” ” Ziggy Stardust,” and “Rock ‘n’ Roll Suicide.” He made three more hit glam rock albums: Aladdin Sane, Pin Ups, and Diamond Dogs, which featured the hit song "Rebel Rebel.”
The 1980s was the era of pop and Bowie, being the musical chameleon he was, Bowie started to make hit record after record. The most commercially successful of the pop albums was 1983's Let’s Dance, which featured the hit songs “Modern Love,” “China Girl,” and “Let’s Dance”.
In the ‘90s, Bowie started to create more hard rock albums to keep with the times. In 1996, he made the single “Telling Lies.” This song made him the first artist to have a song that could be downloaded through the internet. His 1997 "Earthling" album features one of his most popular songs, “I’m Afraid of Americans.” In 2002, Bowie returned to his truer form with Heathen, which was considered his best album in the past 20 years. The album was heavily influenced by the 9/11 terrorist attack. In 2013 Bowie made The Next Day album, where he teamed up with long-time creative partner and friend, Tony Visconti.
Along with his musical accomplishments, Bowie also acted in various movies. His acting career was mostly remembered for playing Pontius Pilot in “The Last Temptation of Christ” and being the lead character in Nicholas Roeg’s “The Man that Fell from Earth.” Bowie also was involved in children’s animated TV shows and movies such as "SpongeBob Square Pants," "Arthur," and "The Snowman."
Bowie strongly influenced many artist and bands over the last few decades, such as The Killers, Lorde, Jay-Z, Kesha, Calvin Harris, and others. Bowie also helped build the careers of Iggy Pop and Arcade Fire.
He spent the last few months of his life doing what he loved: making music. He passed away in his home in Manhattan. Bowie leaves behind a wife, two children, a worldwide fan base and a legacy as one of the most talented people in music and in the world.
