The cliché about David Bowie says
he's a musical chameleon, adapting himself according to
fashion and trends.
While such a criticism is too glib, there's no denying that
Bowie
demonstrated remarkable skill for perceiving musical trends at his
peak in the '70s. After
spending several years in the late '60s as a mod
and as an all-around music-hall entertainer,
Bowie reinvented himself as a
hippie singer/songwriter. Prior to his breakthrough in 1972, he
recorded a
proto-metal record and a pop-rock album, eventually redefining glam-rock with
his
ambiguously sexy Ziggy Stardust persona. Ziggy made Bowie an
international star, yet he
wasn't content to continue to churn out
glitter-rock. By the mid-'70s, he developed an
effete, sophisticated
version of Philly soul that he dubbed "plastic soul," which
eventually
morphed into the eerie avant-pop of 1976's Station to Station.
Shortly afterward, he relocated to Berlin, where he
recorded three
experimental electronic albums with Brian Eno. At the dawn of the '80s, Bowie
was still at the height of
his powers, yet following his blockbuster
dance-pop album Let's Dance in 1983, he slowly sank into mediocrity
before
salvaging his career in the early '90s. It is very clear that Bowie
is
one of the most influential
musicians in rock.
