Any Bowie fans out there?

[Over The Hill]

No. As you're stuck in the past, I'd suggest you update yourself on that one yourself. Perhaps you'd be happier sticking with Take That

My point is that the likes of Bowie, Dylan and many many more great artists from the past are just that- artists from the past.
You may look at the list of stuff Dylan has done in the last 15 years and see a superstar carrying on. I happen to see a burnt out shadow of his great past.

I am not here to champion the likes of Take That and actually cannot stand them but give them credit for coming up with some good material and new stuff on their comeback. They manage a balance of nostalgia for the past with good new material.

If you want to listen to Bob Dylan's latest album of Sinatra covers then great. Critics may love it. But let us not kid ourselves it is good or sells for any reason other than it has Bob Dylan's name on the cover.

I am not sure how I (who moves on to new artists and new music) am stuck in the past while you (stuck with someone you latched on to 40 years ago) are not.

 

[Flying_Monkey]

Bowie's last album, The Next Day, is the equal of almost anything he has done. By turns world-weary, spikey and knowing, it's a great piece of work. Some of the accompanying videos are brilliant too - in themselves more interesting that the entire output of a lot of lesser figures. His new thing, Blackstar, out next year, looks like it might be rather challenging listening and I look forward to it.

Bowie is, rather like his erstwhile collaborator, Brian Eno, always interesting and the rewards for keeping up with what he's doing are not the simple and superficial ones of easily accessible pop (although he's done that too).

 

[PaulB]

Brian Eno, always interesting and the rewards for keeping up with what he's doing are not the simple and superficial ones of easily accessible pop (although he's done that too).

I was entirely with you there until this...... And then I was reminded of this!
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QEAKPOlnazY

 

[PaulB]

My point is that the likes of Bowie, Dylan and many many more great artists from the past are just that- artists from the past.
You may look at the list of stuff Dylan has done in the last 15 years and see a superstar carrying on. I happen to see a burnt out shadow of his great past.

I am not here to champion the likes of Take That and actually cannot stand them but give them credit for coming up with some good material and new stuff on their comeback. They manage a balance of nostalgia for the past with good new material.

If you want to listen to Bob Dylan's latest album of Sinatra covers then great. Critics may love it. But let us not kid ourselves it is good or sells for any reason other than it has Bob Dylan's name on the cover.

I am not sure how I (who moves on to new artists and new music) am stuck in the past while you (stuck with someone you latched on to 40 years ago) are not.

But you've dissed David Bowie for having the temerity to be a senior citizen despite his recent ground-breaking new stuff and then you choose to attack Bob Dylan for following Rod Stewart down the great American songbook route like that's all he's done so you conveniently pick on that to beat him with!

You clearly see only what you want to see and as you obviously don't like Bob Dylan (you're not alone there, many think about him the same way) you look for confirmation bias to back up your arguments. Additionally, as you've lost the David Bowie argument hands-down, you've concentrated on Bob Dylan as a way out.

And you've yet to show us you've moved on to ANY new artists or new music but we who still see merit in the likes of Bowie, Dylan, Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin etc according to you are stuck with proven music superstars we haven't moved on from in forty years!

You'd have been saying exactly the same thing about Mozart or Beethoven if you'd been around at the time and they'd carried on composing into their 60s and 70s.

 

[Over The Hill]

But you've dissed David Bowie for having the temerity to be a senior citizen despite his recent ground-breaking new stuff and then you choose to attack Bob Dylan for following Rod Stewart down the great American songbook route like that's all he's done so you conveniently pick on that to beat him with!

You clearly see only what you want to see and as you obviously don't like Bob Dylan (you're not alone there, many think about him the same way) you look for confirmation bias to back up your arguments. Additionally, as you've lost the David Bowie argument hands-down, you've concentrated on Bob Dylan as a way out.

And you've yet to show us you've moved on to ANY new artists or new music but we who still see merit in the likes of Bowie, Dylan, Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin etc according to you are stuck with proven music superstars we haven't moved on from in forty years!

You'd have been saying exactly the same thing about Mozart or Beethoven if you'd been around at the time and they'd carried on composing into their 60s and 70s.

Bowies ground breaking new stuff? I listen to three radio stations all day and some evenings and it was so good that it got no airplay so passed me by.

Bob Dylan croaking old Sinatra is really bad. Sorry but really awful.

Rod did the covers really well. He also still comes out with a cracking album of new stuff. "She makes me happy" is as good as his 70s work. Cannot say that about Dylan or Bowie and you still have come up with a youtube clip of eithers work from recent times that is anything worth listening to.

There is no rule to it. Johnny Cash was stunning with Hurt, Tony Bennett great with his Duets album singing with Lady Gaga.
If it is good then it is good but lets not kid ourself if it is not good just because we deem the artist as beyond criticism.

 

[PaulB]

Bowies ground breaking new stuff? I listen to three radio stations all day and some evenings and it was so good that it got no airplay so passed me by.

Bob Dylan croaking old Sinatra is really bad. Sorry but really awful.

Rod did the covers really well. He also still comes out with a cracking album of new stuff. "She makes me happy" is as good as his 70s work. Cannot say that about Dylan or Bowie and you still have come up with a youtube clip of eithers work from recent times that is anything worth listening to.

There is no rule to it. Johnny Cash was stunning with Hurt, Tony Bennett great with his Duets album singing with Lady Gaga.
If it is good then it is good but lets not kid ourself if it is not good just because we deem the artist as beyond criticism.

And on that note....

 

[andyfraser]

Bowies ground breaking new stuff? I listen to three radio stations all day and some evenings and it was so good that it got no airplay so passed me by.

Which stations out of interest? I first heard 'The Stars (Are Out Tonight)' (from 'The Next Day', released 2013) on Planet Rock. It was also on Radio 2 so Bowie does get national radio play.

I doubt if Bowie gets much play on Radio 1, local radio or similar stations where most of the output is bland pop or dance music but that doesn't mean he isn't still hugely popular or relevant today.

 

[threebikesmcginty]

Bowies ground breaking new stuff? I listen to three radio stations all day and some evenings and it was so good that it got no airplay so passed me by.

Bob Dylan croaking old Sinatra is really bad. Sorry but really awful.

Rod did the covers really well. He also still comes out with a cracking album of new stuff. "She makes me happy" is as good as his 70s work. Cannot say that about Dylan or Bowie and you still have come up with a youtube clip of eithers work from recent times that is anything worth listening to.

There is no rule to it. Johnny Cash was stunning with Hurt, Tony Bennett great with his Duets album singing with Lady Gaga.
If it is good then it is good but lets not kid ourself if it is not good just because we deem the artist as beyond criticism.

Priceless, talk about nuking your own argument!

 

[Maverick Goose]

Priceless, talk about nuking your own argument!

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iw8YjVrRNRU

Bowie wise Ziggy remains my favourite album, but I've really enjoyed The Next Day too.

 

[AndyRM]

This is possibly my favourite thread on the interwebs.

Can we do Simon & Garfunkel and Grace Jones next please?

 

[Over The Hill]

This is possibly my favourite thread on the interwebs.

Can we do Simon & Garfunkel and Grace Jones next please?

Lets get PaulB to put them on his music Top-gear-style cool wall. If you are up at the cool end then everything you do is good, but the uncool are of course cast aside.

With the above lets add Phil Collins - just heard on the radio he has come out of retirement. This may be a bit tricky for PB: Association with Genesis so normally a lifetime pass for the cool end, but then he had years of trite covers that were about the level of Robson and Jerome and he cannot sing so will that win out?


As for nuking my own argument. All it is is that I don't operate by this Cool Wall principle. Some artists from the past move on to good or great new areas and touch on their old stuff in a fresh way. Others seem to just bang on and come out with endless rubbish.

All I am really saying is that in my view Bowie and 99% of Dylan in recent years has been in the second group. Seems that some disagree. I put that down to your historic high regard for the artist rather than the output itself. I do accept that you may have rushed out and bought Dylan doing Sinatra covers and play it every day and love it.

 

[andyfraser]

All I am really saying is that in my view Bowie and 99% of Dylan in recent years has been in the second group. Seems that some disagree. I put that down to your historic high regard for the artist rather than the output itself. I do accept that you may have rushed out and bought Dylan doing Sinatra covers and play it every day and love it.

This is the bit I have a problem with. Sorry if I've misunderstood you but to me that sounds like you're saying that someone only likes Bowie's newer stuff because he used to be great rather than because the newer stuff is good in its own right. I can only speak for myself but I have never treated music like that.

If an older artist who was considered influential in the passed releases something that I don't like I say so and don't listen to it. I'm not going to waste my time with someone's music if I don't like it just because I liked their music 30 or 40 years ago. I happen to genuinely think that Bowie is still releasing really good music.

 

[Over The Hill]

Over The Hill is well known for employing the 'it stands to reason dunnit' method of debate - in this case it means, 'I think it's rubbish, therefore of course, it is rubbish.'

Not at all. I gave examples to back it up.

Rod Stewart released a very good album last year, it sold well and had three good singles on it. Best track "she makes me happy" is as good as anything he did in the 70s. It was the first Rod album I bought so proves he is bringing in new fans, as he did with the American songbook.
Quo have had some good tracks out recently and also did a twist on their old hits with an acoustic album of oldies. That worked well.

Contrast that with say Bowie in recent years, a couple of studio albums that sols 25,000 copies to die hard fans that just buy all he produces through loyalty and all his output ignored by the radio and public. None of you can come up with a decent track to post when asked which rather proves the point.

 

[threebikesmcginty]

Come on then, I'll play...

Rod



Bowie



It's pretty clear to anyone with ears that one is still producing stuff that can be regarded as quality music and the other is Rod Stewart.

 

[MissTillyFlop]

Love the Bowie, I like The Next Day too.

I think this is my fave


View: https://youtu.be/hTA3r-0GKW4