Veteran songwriter David Bowie was “driven by lust” throughout the 1960s and most of the 1970s.
Unheard archive interviews, set to release as part of the BBC Sounds podcast series, David Bowie: Changeling, heard Bowie talk about what drove him during his career high. The period between his self-titled debut and then Hunky Dory through to Lodger was driven by three wildly different moods which affected Bowie. Archival interview tapes which have never been released before heard Bowie comment on the “moody instrumental” influence which inspired the Berlin trilogy and his “depression” after “anger” replaced his “lust” in songwriting. The interview will be used as part of the BBC’s upcoming podcast series, hosted by Kate Moss. It features musicians including St. Vincent, Brian Eno, and Christine and the Queens speaking on Bowie’s influence.
But Bowie, whose work on The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, and Heroes was rightly lauded, found himself struggling at the time of each album’s creation. He said: “I think that throughout the 60s and most of the 70s I was driven by lust, as much as anything. It’s a great creative force.
“That in turn is replaced by anger, when you ask where the money is. And then you get depression, and then you go to Berlin and write really moody instrumental stuff. It’s the triptych of the 70s. Lust, anger, moody.”
That difference of emotional topics which formed his very best albums has since been commented on by a variety of famous guests. Tilda Swinton, who worked with Bowie on a music video for The Stars (Are Out Tonight), suggested the “flexibility” and “curiosity” Bowie had as an artist was a massive influence on culture.
She said: “I think that what Bowie contributed and contributes still – and presumably always will contribute to the culture – is a model of flexibility, curiosity. He was a portal to the idea of a kind of properly engaged and up for it relationship with himself and with the development of his work.
“And was clearly a deeply experimental spirit, so dedicated to not repeating himself and very healthily not invested in minding when other people didn’t like what he was up to.”
St. Vincent agreed, with the pair speaking on Bowie’s influence in episode eight of the documentary. “There are so few artists who are able to make consistently challenging, exciting, erotic, scary, profound work for their entire lives,” she said.
“He is truly my ‘north star’ as an artist. He was able to take the lunatic fringe and the deeply accessible and put them together and make a body of work in so many mediums that will live for eternity.”
Dave Gahan of Depeche Mode would also say part of the influence Bowie has as an artist is his outfits, which are “equally as important as the music.” He said: “The way Bowie looked was equally as important as the music. It went together, you know, it was part of the fantasy, it was part of going to where he was going and this imagery that he was creating. I felt like I belonged there too. And it was outrageous.”
The podcast is the latest in the Music Uncovered strand and will be available on BBC Sounds from 6am on Wednesday, September 10 (broadcast on 6 Music on Monday 22nd September, 12-2am).
