Under the moonlight, this serious moonlight...

David Bowie, I love your latest recording. I have not been able to listen to it since I heard you died, because I am afraid I will cry.

All week I have  read famous and non-famous people's reactions to your passing. I wanted to write something, but I couldn't start it until today.

I am so happy I had the opportunity to see you perform three times. Each time was amazing and I  think that the Glass Spider tour was my favorite. Though Serious Moonlight was my first big concert and Sound and Vision was my favorite set list (and Adrian Belew), the Glass Spider tour had all the theatrics. And Peter Frampton! 

Your music has been woven so deep in my sonic fabric that I am afraid that my entire soundtrack blanket will be unraveled, with all that is left in a heap on the floor. 

A friend of mine was super into Bowie in 8th grade. She bought a book that had about 350 pictures of him and we spent an entire night, cutting up the book and putting the photos on her walls. She also introduced me to the deeper cuts and not-so-commercial albums. She had an import of "Pin Ups," which is an album of all covers. She also had like 6 different versions of "V-2 Schneider."

I think that whole summer was David Bowie.

When I decided to move to San Francisco, I remember listening to the German version of "Heroes," 

I think that "Heroes," is probably my favorite of his...mmm, well I really like "Absolute Beginners" too.

I dragged my friend to go see the movie "Absolute Beginners." Yes, it is not a great movie, I remember looking over at my friend about half way through the movie and she was squeezing and poking at her hand.  The soundtrack is really good though and David Bowie is one of the best parts of the movie. I mean the lyrics are so good in the title song----


I've nothing much to offer
There's nothing much to take
I'm an absolute beginner
But I'm absolutely sane
As long as we're together
The rest can go to hell
I absolutely love you
But we're absolute beginners
With eyes completely open
But nervous all the same

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r8NZa9wYZ_U

Then there is "Panic in Detroit," "Ricochet," "Fame," "Rock and Roll Suicide," "Starman," "Aladin Sane----OHHH Aladin Sane! That whole record is rad! 

What about the band Tin Machine? They rocked!

Thinking about the song "Starman," it starts on IV and the chorus is the only part that begins on the tonic. There is reverb on the vocals and open position chords to create the "in space," feeling. The instrumentation is reminiscent of "Space Oddity," but still its own thing. 

Speaking of "Space Oddity," David Bowie used a Stylophone. I mean c'mon! There are 15 (I think) different chords used and in 5 minutes there is an intro, two verses, two bridges, two- four bar acoustic guitar breaks and the "lift off," portion, which sounds kind of like the crazy crescendo  part in the Beatles' "Day in the Life." And the song still is able to have a sense of quiet and repose.
Can't forget songs from his later albums "Afraid," from the album "Heathen," is amazing and he does a really good Pixies cover of "Cactus."
Really, I could go on and on about all the amazing music he wrote, how he was a decent actor, and seemed like a decent person, but I won't.

David Bowie was so much to so many people that I will just say this...
Let's dance!
Put on your red shoes and dance the blues.

The Unheard Music -- A letter to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on why the band X deserves to be nominated.

To Whom It May Concern,

I would like to formally request to nominate the band X to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. To make sure that the band is eligible, the criteria will be checked and noted.

First recording must have been released at least 25 years ago.  X released a single on Dangerhouse records in 1978 and their full length Los Angeles in 1980. Check.

The potential nominee must have demonstrated “unquestionable musical excellence.” Whew-E! Is that vague and colloquial or what? I mean, hello, music is subjective and let’s face it, tastes differ. Who are these 600 voters? Do they like punk rock? Female vocals? Ray Manzarek production values? I have so many questions, which I will never find the answers. So, I will do my best to state my case.

For your consideration-

X has had minor success on the music charts, but the Velvet Underground were inducted and they did not have much commercial success when they were a band.  X is considered by many music critixs and musicians as the “seminal LA punk band.”  To me their music is a snapshot into a moment that can be different things to different people. The first time I heard them I was 13 years old and just discovering punk rock on my local college radio station. Though I favored hardcore, X provided me with a more colorful soundtrack to my teenage angst. X emerged out of the Los Angeles punk rock scene in the late 1970s. The band’s two songwriters John Doe and Exene Cervanka are poets first and their lyrics painted expressionist scenes of California water colors. Billy Zoom’s rockabilly twang guitar with tape echo effect added to the beauty of poison and DJ Bonebrake is still one of the best drummers to hear and see live. His hard hitting is done with finesse and precision and the guy is like sixty years old.  “Johnny Hit and Run Pauline,” is a rocking tune with anti-rape lyrics, “Los Angeles” is a punk classic according to many lists on most alterna-mags and of course, the internet.  “See How We Are,” explores “progress,” and those who are left behind. With a hue of ennui, the music is acoustic (for the most part) and the message is presented with a quiet frustration.  “Burning House of Love,” is about Exene and John Doe’s divorce, bittersweet with super guitar hooks. The entire record, “More Fun in the New World,” is a love letter to the United States in the early 1980s. There are anecdotal songs, “I See Red,” which seems to be about the ills of touring. “The New World,” is a call to point out the confusion of the politics of the day, though done in a way where it could be relevant for the last few presidents.

The last time I saw X, which was just two weeks ago, they played “I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts.” My roommates in the 1990s can testify that is one of my favorite songs. The music is not hard hitting punk tune, but a meandering adult lullaby about the anxiety of living in a world of extreme poverty, social unrest, and violence. Using band names from the scene from which they emerged, they quip that popular music is a new British Invasion and that one cannot hear their own comrades on the local radio stations. Perhaps the band is eluding that the problems at home are clouded by distraction of the other.

Of course I recommend that you listen to the songs mentioned in my letter as well as, “Hungry Wolf,” We’re Desperate,” “Black and White Ghost,” “Fourth of July,” “Love Shack,” “Blue Spark,” “ The Have Nots,” and “Riding with Mary.” Unquestionable musical excellence? Check.

My favorite musicologist, Eddie Vedder is a big fan of X and the band opened for Pearl Jam on their 2012 European and South American tour dates. Ray Manzarek loved the band and produced their first four records. The song “Los Angeles,” is part of a curated piece in your museum, “500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll.” Is Cheap Trick on that list?

Thank you for your time,

Erica Watson

https://rockhall.com/inductees/induction-process/