just another of them sort of posts that i promised not to do every month, look you see. yes, after doing a whole load of Bowie albums once a month (for many months) i undertook not to write about him once a month. which has worked out ever so well, as regular readers (thank you) shall be all too aware.
for a change, though, no music (as such) and no film (as such) up for discussion, but rather some literary (not literally) adventures. in the past, when all was well, i received not one, not three, but two books of Bowie as gifts, with one being given at Christmas and the other on my birthday, whenever that was, i think i was on a train.
in terms of books concerning, pertaining to or about Bowie, yes, i have (frequently) quoted his own view in the past, and shall indeed probably do so again in the future, should i be around. when quizzed on doing an autobiography, his stock answer was that anyone interested in such should rather just look at the many biographies out there, find the one that seems the most interesting or appeals to them, presume it to be the truth they want and just get on with it.
these two would not be "biographies" as such, though. although, that said, one gives an overview history of the bloke, whereas the other (at least claims to be) is constructed solely from his words alone. generally, my view remains that music at its best should speak for itself, and if one is required to bring specific, existing knowledge to get a beneficial listening experience, the recording artist has either excessive demands or has simply gone a trifle wrong.
starting where i did would be to return to those days of Christmas, with Bowie The Illustrated Story. credited to one Pat Gilbert. this was a most unexpected and welcome gift, and by all accounts was picked out by young William in a shop, who informed my (considerably) better half that they should get it, as it is that man that Dad likes. very wise.
any good, you may ask if you are in a rush? yes, very much so. how to word this so as not to seem derogatory, i wonder. in terms of the text of the book, you could say that it is inoffensive, does not challenge or seek to cause overt controversy. which is absolutely, perfectly fine. let us not forget, or otherwise lose sight, of that the word "illustrated" is in the title, for the images are the strength here.
overall i would suggest, or put forward the case, that some decent and considerable effort has gone into the illustrated part of the story told. the pictures selected, or if you like curated, should for some reason you like things to sound posher than need be, are most impressive.
it would be fair to say there are several (many) images of Bowie which are so well known they could be defined as "generic". anyone wishing to make something on the cheap - say, a documentary about Bromley Council and their services - is likely to go for this sort of one, and then begrudgingly so. one gets the impression that some decent effort has been put into image selection here, as it certainly has one or two images that i could not recall seeing before. not that i would make any claim to have seen all possible such before.
let me suggest that a close on universally accepted concept is that Bowie is a very pleasing visual image in his iconic status (or stature). i am not quite sure, for i am a gent, one would state that this is overtly in a homoerotic or otherwise arousing way, although for many this is of course very much a truth. but, safer, and more wider covering ground, is to state the obvious that he has always been a remarkably aesthetically pleasing chap to consider.
there is a tap on my shoulder as i write this, trying to attract my attention and tell me that which i know, which is i feel that i have been somewhat dismissive (and maybe rough) on the text element of this book. by no means, at all, is it bad. just anyone looking for controversy or "juice" will be left somewhat disappointed. whenever insights or anything critical is offered - the album Never Let Me Down, for instance - it all follows a quasi official line, uttering negatives only when there is a Bowie quote or comment to put forward as such.
yes, i do very much indeed like that image of Bowie to the top right, there, sat in his nicely clean house (with a suspicious lack of ashtray), hammering away at a mid-90s computer connected to something called an "internet", watching it take one or two hours to not strictly legally download a song or two via the phone line. it is quite possible Bowie had a second line installed just for internet connection, leaving his regular house phone (mobile phones were not that big then) free for his mates, such as Brian Eno or even maybe Reeves, to call and say hi.
so, indeed, then, Bowie The Illustrated Story is a truly lovely thing to pick up and peruse. just about every era or stage of his musical career gets decent coverage, and is resplendent with lovely images. on the off chance you are here reading this to see if there is a suitable gift to get for a Bowie fan that you know, yes, this is indeed a good one.
how big are the pockets on your trousers, or if posh your jacket? it's just that, whilst dimensions are overall smaller, the next book proclaims (or states) it is a "pocket" book, yet in terms of width (not of a circle) it is exact to the book just looked at. this is illustrated above, for those of you with a particular interest in such things.
moving on (or going back) to my birthday, and it was so that i was presented, as a carefully curated gift, the second (of two) books to feature here. this would be one called The Pocket Book Of David Bowie, but by this stage i would imagine you are aware of this.
what is it, precisely? as oddly quite clearly visible in the Commodore 64 mode image above, it has the extra, or clarification, title of Words Of Wit And Wisdom From The Starman. so, in effect, this is a collection - a "copy and paste" if you will, of select words attributed to being given, or spoken, by Bowie over the years.
to say this is made on the cheap is both, at once, misleading and accurate. on a superficial, or broad, level, one could say the (pocket) book "only" grabs quotes from interviews and what have you, and puts them together. well, yes. but doing that would take a fair bit of time and patience to do.
yes, some randomly selected quotes for you from the "pocket" book of Bowie, presented for easier reading in non-Commodore 64 mode. so far as i am aware it is not so that i have been to Croydon, at least not in any capacity where i would have spent time there and known it was where i found myself. there is some curiosity to visit, now, of course, to see what it was of the place that irked Bowie so.
it is so that the "cheap" element of this (pocket) book do creep up every now and then. whilst i could not be bothered to pick it out and picture, there is one attributed quote from Bowie in which he mentions looking back on the 60s with his chum John Lennon. whereas there is no reason to doubt the veracity of the words or quote, it is given that Bowie said this in 1969. a bit of an editorial or proof reading slip, there. so far as i am aware the two were not chums at that stage, and even if they were, i suspect they would not have been all that reflective on a decade which they were still in.
go on, then, the above was (partially) deliberately selected as a random, example quote off of Bowie from this so-called pocket book, to showcase the kind of answer he would give when consulted on an autobiography. also, it sort of highlights his sense of "meta", and gifts of what we know call, and i take it as complimentary, "Dad jokes".
exactly how possible is it to construe, or construct, this set of quotes as a superficial (face value) sort of autobiographical thing? for those who would wish so to exist, i suppose it could be done. one has to be mindful, though, that the purpose of any interview would be to "sell" something, be it a product, your innocence to the constabulary or your skills for a job. quotes from interviews have to be taken in that context. but, then again, an autobiography would be selling yourself too. no, this is all getting quite meta.
that's a lovely final quote, pictured above, to end all of this post on. it's cheeky, funny, witty, insightful, expresses an awareness, etc, but overall it's just, well, lovely.
would i recommend (or "endorse") this (so-called) Pocket Book Of David Bowie? actually, yes. what it lacks in being able to place in a conventional trouser pocket it more than compensates for in being a fun, interesting thing to pick up and read random quotes from. hopefully such has been highlighted with the selections here.
right, that would be all of that for this post. undoubtedly, should circumstances allow, it will be so that even more Bowie things will feature here next month. thanks for reading!
be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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