April 1, 2015
David Bowie is best known as an artist in flux, both in his aesthetic and his career. Born in 1947, the British musician's outlandish appearance is matched only by his inimitable music, with its rare ability to reflect the anxieties of his generation while simultaneously expressing nostalgia for an imaginary future and an otherworldly past. This title attempts to pin down the living enigma through his most insightful interviews, spanning his debut in 1969 through 2003, right before his ten-year hiatus from the media and the music industry. Egan's curation places each interview in context, though the editorial language is choppy, giving helpful social reference points and highlighting the musician's notable remarks. Documented identities include Bowie as the brassy, bright-eyed newcomer, the rakish bisexual glam star, the evocative ambient artist using music as rehab, well into his later years as the reserved family man who has little use for the press. VERDICT The repetitive structure of interviews might not make this a quick read; Bowie's penchant for wandering observations, and each journalist's varying level of pretension also render it tough to digest in one sitting. But this is a fascinating journey through the mind of a musician many people claim to "know" but who proves time and again that his own essence is often foreign to himself. An asset for Bowie fans.--Ashleigh Williams, School Library Journal
Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.
May 1, 2015
Bowie (born David Robert Jones) has been defying expectations ever since he arrived on the popular-music scene decades ago. A singular presence, he is also one of the most articulate and thoughtful of rock stars. Indeed, Egan calls Bowie one of popular music's greatest interviewees, and that certainly comes through in this sparking collection of interviews that captures Bowie at his most eloquent. It follows the unconventional career of a most unconventional artist of numerous personas: Ziggy Stardust, Aladdin Sane, the Thin White Duke, Plastic Soul Man, Godfather of the New Romantics, 1980s sellout, Tin Machinist, and, now, the elder statesman of pop. Egan includes interviews from 1969 to 2003 (he notes that Bowie no longer grants interviews) from major publications (Melody Maker, Mojo, Q, Rolling Stone) and lesser-known ones, too. Bowie talks about music and acting (he has appeared in numerous movies as well as the lead role in The Elephant Man on Broadway) as well as existentialism and flying saucers, and whatever the subject, he is always fascinating. A must for Bowie fans.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)