David Bowie: The Oral History

Extraordinary, stunning, comprehensive. At the end, you will KNOW David Bowie (and like him). There are about five people (five pages of 540) who dislike/hate David; the vast majority marvel about his intelligence, creativity, kindness, humor, and his great manners. The author was a friend as well as a fan. This would be a better book if it was 200 pages shorter, but EVERY phase of Bowie’s life is covered comprehensively.

This book reminds of Edie: An American Tragedy by George Plimpton and Jean Stein. It's all told through interviews with those who knew Bowie in some form or another. A beautifully laid out format for a beautiful soul who ultimately never gave himself away but gave us the many faces he became. I was struck mostly by how much Bowie was us--he took gestures, outfits, looks, attitudes from whomever he was infatuated with and went down the rabbit hole till he became a combination of what he admired at the time, all filtered through him so that each had a dash of Bowie and David Jones. He seemingly influenced all of fashion in some form or another utilizing this vehicle of persona's. Anyone who has ever been a hardcore fan with an obsessive streak can relate to the genius of his creations and his song. And that's how he hypnotized us for forty plus years. Each piece of the puzzle is beautifully illuminated by the perspective of individuals interviewed, who are allowed room to tell their own personal experience of him. He was an alchemist. He made his life a work of art leaving us all breathless. There is an almost physically painful void knowing that Bowie no longer walks this earth. What saves us is the disbelief and the reminders of what an astonishing and surprising creature and musician he was. One is left with the feeling that he's still around watching as we try to put together the pieces of the puzzle that was and is, David Bowie.

In high school, I thought David Bowie's "China Girl" was one of the greatest songs of all time. For the next three decades I went no further than his "greatest hits." But over the past few years, as I have dug deeper, I wanted to learn more about this enigmatic artist. The singular talents and charisma of David Robert Jones more than compensate for the significant flaws in "David Bowie: A Life" by Dylan Jones. I spent the first 100 pages thinking that an "oral history biography" was a disjointed and redundant biography by a lazy writer. I was also shocked that a biography of such a visually-oriented artist does not contain a single picture. This book also does not try to capture all of the essential facts of his career, so "The Complete David Bowie" remains essential. Finally, I found Dylan Jones' jaded British cultural gatekeeper pose a bit annoying at times (such as referring to Bowie as "Mockney Jones"). YET, once you can keep the 180 "Dramatis Personae" straight, the interviews just get better and better. From his early childhood friends to the director for Bowie's final video, this book contains deeply insightful interviews with almost all of the key people in his life. The one exception is his personal assistant of nearly four decades, Coco Schwab. Something tells me she will take her stories to the grave. It is difficult to say whether Bowie did more line of coke or women (the most troubling interview is with a then 15-year-old groupie that he deflowered, AKA statutory rape ). He also had a penchant to turn his back on friends he no longer found useful. YET, I still came away from this book wishing that I had had the chance to meet him or at least see him in concert.

This book as an absolute must-have for any Bowie fan. The detail, especially in the Ziggy heyday, is delivered throughout this book by those who were there, and absolutely nothing is left out! But the beauty is not just in hearing what was happening, it is in the personal and emotional honesty that seeps through as each individual recounts their part in this fascinating story. Some are hilarious, some are poignant, some were just passing through. But it is weaved together in a way that makes this book impossible to put down at times. A++++!!!

I have wondered about David Bowie and who he truly is/was since I was 16. I was invited to a new girlfriends house after returning to rural Pennsylvania from exchange in France; under the guise of study and listen to music. It was then I was introduced to David's talent. The books were tossed once in her bedroom, she throws on Ziggy Stardust and is doing air guitar on top of a chair. From this point, David Bowie had my attention. I really enjoyed the format of this book of individual interviews with friends and collaborators of David Bowie; it felt genuine and a little like being a voyeur. David Bowie was always special to me and now after such a great read, he is extra special.

Unless you know names Adrian Belew, Tony Visconti, Robert Fripp or Nile Rodgers, this book is not for you. Even for fanatics, you have to look at this like reading the Sunday Times and search for what might be interesting. Of some value is the rock and roll inside stuff; but for sex, scandal, or simply gossip it is very superficial--not risky. He does get input from some big names [eg John Lennon], but many other obvious intimates like Mick Jagger plainly didn't want to play. One of these "interviews" is a nobody internet fan blogger! Would recommend only to a Bowie obsessive.

This was a thoroughly insightful recount of DB rise to fame (a tiny little bit too insightful in some parts) and the highs and lows throughout his career. My earliest memories of Bowie were from the early 80s and, I will admit, I didn't really like him. Turns out this is a period in is career when most thought he was selling out, so maybe I wasn't being too harsh on him. Since his death I have read a few autobiographies and this was without doubt the most enjoyable, probably because it is a 'warts n all' account, turns out he wasn't such a saint in real life after all.

As Bowie never wrote an autobiography, this has to be the next best thing. Consisting of testimonies, interviews and quotes from probably just about everybody in Bowie's life, rather than a more conventional format. Superb. A must for every Bowie fan.

No exagera el editor cuando en la portada afirma que es "El libro definitivo sobre Bowie". He conocido al artista de modo vicario -uno de mis mejores amigos es fan- toda la vida, pero más allá de tres o cuatro cd's y algunas cintas Bowie ha sido un desconocido para mi. Ahora estoy comprando sus discos de modo cronológico mientras sigo la historia y estoy sorprendido de lo mucho que me ha gustado. Los fans supongo que lo tiene todos, seria absurdo prescindir de semejante documento. Pero para cualquiera con un aun tangencial interés en el personaje, no lo dude y cómprelo.

A brief skim through the book tells me this is going to be a great read

An excellent gift