David Bowie Pg. 2

  The 1970s

David Bowie entered the new decade with promise but little certainty. "Space Oddity" had given him his first major hit in Britain, yet success remained fragile. Record companies still struggled to define him, and Bowie had already developed a reputation for refusing to repeat himself. Rather than chasing another "Space Oddity," he became determined to reinvent both his music and himself whenever inspiration demanded it.

That determination first became evident with The Man Who Sold the World in 1970. Working closely with guitarist Mick Ronson, Trevor Bolder, drummer Mick Woodmansey, and  Tony Visconti as both bassist and producer, Bowie moved away from the folk-influenced sound of his earlier recordings and embraced a heavier, guitar-driven style. The songs explored madness, fractured personalities, mortality, and alienation. Those themes would remain central to much of his work for decades.

Even before Ziggy Stardust, Bowie was drawn to stories about people who existed outside ordinary society. Major Tom, introduced in "Space Oddity," was less an astronaut than a lonely observer separated from humanity. Bowie admired science fiction, particularly works by Arthur C. Clarke and Ray Bradbury, but his recurring space characters were usually metaphors for isolation, identity, and the experience of viewing the world as an outsider. Those ideas became one of the defining threads running throughout his career.

On May 30, 1971, he and his first wife, Angie, welcomed their son, Duncan Jones. Fatherhood introduced a responsibility that Bowie sometimes struggled to balance against the demands of his rapidly expanding career, but Duncan would remain an important part of his life.

Commercial success still proved elusive. In December, 1971 Bowie released Hunky Dory, an album that demonstrated both his growing confidence and his remarkable range as a songwriter. Rather than simply paying tribute to his heroes, he explored what they represented to him. "Song for Bob Dylan" reflected his admiration for Dylan's songwriting, "Andy Warhol" examined the pop artist's influence on modern culture, and "Queen Bitch" affectionately captured the spirit of Lou Reed and The Velvet Underground. The album also featured "Changes" and "Life on Mars?," songs that would later become among the most celebrated recordings of his career.

Despite glowing reviews, Bowie still had not become the superstar he believed he could be. His breakthrough arrived in spectacular fashion during 1972. Drawing upon his lifelong love of theater, mime, fashion, and storytelling, Bowie created Ziggy Stardust, an androgynous alien rock star who arrives on Earth as humanity faces its final years. Through The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, Bowie blurred the line between performer and character more completely than almost anyone before him. Audiences were no longer simply attending concerts. They were witnessing a theatrical production unlike anything rock music had seen.

The album transformed Bowie into an international star. "Starman," "Moonage Daydream," "Suffragette City," and "Rock 'n' Roll Suicide" became closely associated with the Ziggy character, while Mick Ronson's powerful guitar work became an essential part of the band's sound. Glam rock exploded in popularity, and Bowie suddenly found himself leading a movement that countless artists would soon follow.

Ironically, the enormous success created another dilemma. Bowie feared becoming trapped by Ziggy Stardust. Throughout his career he had been driven by change, and the idea of repeating the same character year after year held little appeal. On July 3, 1973, during the final performance of the Ziggy Stardust Tour at London's Hammersmith Odeon, Bowie shocked the audience by announcing that it was "the last show that we'll ever do."

Fans believed he was retiring. Even members of the Spiders from Mars were stunned. Mick Ronson, Trevor Bolder, and Mick Woodmansey initially thought Bowie had unexpectedly broken up the band onstage. Only afterward did they realize he was retiring Ziggy Stardust rather than ending his own career. It was a painful decision for the musicians around him, but one that perfectly reflected Bowie's refusal to allow success to dictate his future.

And just like that, Ziggy was gone.

Aladdin Sane, often described as "Ziggy goes to America," chronicled the excitement and excess Bowie experienced while touring the United States. Pin Ups followed later that year, allowing Bowie to honor many of the British artists who had inspired him during the 1960s. He had established a pattern that would define his career. Every successful chapter was simply preparation for the next one.

While reinventing himself as a performer, Bowie also became one of rock's most influential collaborators. He produced Lou Reed's Transformer, helping revive Reed's career with songs including "Walk on the Wild Side." When Mott the Hoople stood on the verge of breaking up, Bowie offered them "All the Young Dudes," giving the band its biggest hit and an entirely new future. He also devoted considerable time to helping his friend Iggy Pop, whose struggles with addiction and career uncertainty had become increasingly severe. Bowie's encouragement, musical collaboration, and later partnership in Berlin played a significant role in helping Iggy rebuild both his career and his life.

Another important relationship developed during this period with John Lennon. The two musicians admired each other's willingness to experiment and challenge expectations. Their friendship would soon produce one of Bowie's biggest commercial successes.

By the mid-1970s, Bowie had begun using cocaine with increasing frequency. At first he believed the drug enhanced his creativity and helped sustain the relentless pace of recording, touring, acting, and promotion. Instead, it gradually began affecting both his physical health and his emotional well-being.

Diamond Dogs, released in 1974, reflected many of those darker emotions. Inspired in part by George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four, the album was supported by one of the most elaborate stage productions rock audiences had ever witnessed. Massive sets, moving scenery, theatrical lighting, and carefully choreographed performances demonstrated that Bowie continued viewing concerts as dramatic productions rather than traditional rock shows.

Only months later he surprised audiences once again. Young Americans abandoned glam rock almost entirely in favor of American soul, rhythm and blues, and funk. Bowie jokingly referred to the style as "plastic soul," but the music was genuine enough to earn widespread respect. During the recording sessions he met John Lennon, who joined Bowie in the studio for "Fame." Co-written with Lennon and guitarist Carlos Alomar, the song became Bowie's first number-one hit in the United States.

Professionally, Bowie had never been more successful. Personally, however, his life was beginning to unravel. Living in Los Angeles during 1975 and 1976, Bowie became dangerously thin as cocaine addiction intensified. Friends recalled increasingly paranoid behavior, fascination with the occult, and growing isolation from many of those around him. Despite continuing to produce remarkable work, Bowie later acknowledged that he had come frighteningly close to destroying himself.

Out of that turmoil emerged another of Bowie's most memorable creations: the Thin White Duke. Introduced during the Station to Station era, the sharply dressed, emotionally detached figure reflected the cold, fragile state of mind Bowie was experiencing at the time. Unlike the flamboyant Ziggy Stardust, the Duke projected elegance, restraint, and quiet menace. Bowie would later distance himself from the character, admitting he remembered very little of that period because of his severe cocaine addiction.

Recognizing that he needed to escape, Bowie left Los Angeles and relocated to West Berlin in 1976 with Iggy Pop. Berlin offered anonymity, fewer distractions, and an opportunity to rebuild both his health and his creativity. The move became one of the most important decisions of his life.

Working with producer Tony Visconti and Brian Eno, Bowie recorded Low, Heroes, and Lodger, albums later known collectively as the Berlin Trilogy. Their innovative blend of electronic music, ambient textures, experimental structures, and rock permanently influenced artists across new wave, post-punk, alternative rock, and electronic music.

The song "Heroes" became one of Bowie's defining achievements. Inspired by Tony Visconti and singer Antonia Maass embracing near the Berlin Wall, it celebrated hope in the face of impossible circumstances. Although only a moderate hit upon release, it steadily grew into one of the most beloved songs of his career.

Late in the decade, Bowie unexpectedly teamed with Bing Crosby for a Christmas television special. Their duet of "Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy" initially seemed like an unlikely pairing between two very different generations of entertainers. Instead, the performance became one of the most enduring Christmas recordings ever produced, returning to television and radio almost every holiday season.

By the end of the decade, David Bowie had already accomplished what most artists could only dream of. He had created unforgettable characters, transformed stage performance into theater, reinvented popular music several times, survived the beginnings of a dangerous addiction, and established himself as one of the most fearless creative figures of his generation. Yet perhaps his greatest achievement was proving that he never intended to become predictable. Every reinvention simply opened the door to another.

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