FEBRUARY 1998 - DAVID BOWIE WONDERWORLD NEWS
LEGENDARY US RADIO SHOWS FOR UK
28th February 1998
STRANGE FRUIT has announced that it will be releasing material originally recorded for the KING BISCUIT FLOWER HOUR radio show.
The planned first releases, which are scheduled for late Spring include IGGY POP.
No information available just yet on the two KBFH BOWIE performances in Montreal 1983 and Tokyo 1990. Watch this space
EVERYBODY LOVES SUNSHINE - Update
27th February 1998
The Press Release now available for the new GOLDIE/BOWIE feature film EVERYBODY LOVES SUNSHINE currently being shot.
NEW BOWIE ART
26th February 1998
New DHead LIX artwork available at BowieArt web site.
GRAMMY AWARDS - Update
26th February 1998
No DB performance and no awards unfortunately. Apparently the NME report about RADIOHEAD performing was taken out of context.
BOWIE TO PERFORM AT THE GRAMMY'S?
25th February 1998
DAVID has been asked to perform live at the Grammy Awards in New York. RADIOHEAD were told they could not perform alone because they would "not be good for ratings".
The band planned to boycott the ceremony despite being nominated in the Best Album and Best Alternative Performance categories. The situation occurred after Radiohead turned down an invitation to perform with David Bowie at the awards. According to the band's management, the event's producers were unwilling to let Radiohead play alone. They were told it wouldn't be good for ratings.
Quote: "The group wanted to perform 'Exit Music (For A Film)' on their own which we thought would have worked really well," said a band management spokesman. "Everybody's who's nominated wants to play the Grammy's because it goes out to 400 million people worldwide so it's a huge tool for developing acts. In America, Radiohead still are developing, in terms of sales. Basically, unless with did a duet with David Bowie - which is not a very Radiohead thing to do - they said they weren't really interested in the band coming on and doing a song."
The 40th Grammy Awards Show will be shown on British TV on Friday 27th February on BBC1 in two parts at 11.15pm-11.45 and 12.15-1.05.
CHART POSITION - WEEK 2
25th February 1998
The latest DB single I CAN'T READ has dropped to No. 22 in the UK Indie Charts.
LITTLE WONDERWORLD - Site Of The Week
24th February 1998
Congratulations!! Your site is SITE OF THE WEEK under category: British Pop.WebTrips Network(tm) - Production Staff.
Thanks for contributing to a better sense of community on the web. We value those of you taking the web to the next level. Your site has been selected as a featured site this week on the WebTrips Network(tm) located at http://www.webtrips.com
The WebTrips Network(tm) is a free total entertainment experience which encompasses full animation, entertainment, and music.
FREE BOWIE CD
24th February 1998
In case anyone missed out on the November issue of GQ, Music Boulevard is giving away the EARTHLING IN THE CITY promo CD with the purchase of any other DB CD.
Get your freebie at the Music Boulevard web site.
LITTLE WONDERWORLD - Site Review
23rd February 1998
Another totally gone Bowie fan has flown off the deep end with a hyper-obsessive neon shrine to da boy wonder. This site claims an award from The Web 'zine. It's got views of Bowie art, a nifty trivia page, a trading post for collectors, a sizeable press archive and the part I liked best, a great selection of recent news briefs. The huge photo picture gallery was slow as molasses being overpacked with scores of thumbnails you click for biggies. Can't vouch for anybody's familiar-photo sources but the web master even did some nifty mugging with our subject in at least four photos. This site is a piece of work recommended for an occasional repeat visit. Very artistic layout.The Train Station.
BOWIE PAINTING HELPS CLEAR ARTIST'S DEBT
24th February 1998
Scotland On Sunday Newspaper by Jim McLean.
THE most glamorous of the latter-day Glasgow Boys, artist Peter Howson, has shaken off a six-figure overdraft and re-established himself as the darling of the world's celebrity circuit.
The artist whom many feared was becoming one of his own characters - a hard-up but noble dosser - has just finished a portrait of rock superstar David Bowie and will soon paint another rock legend - Madonna - who will pose for him after his next Los Angeles show in the summer.
Bowie agreed to a sitting after buying the controversial rape painting Croatian and Muslim, inspired by Howson's nightmare experiences as the Imperial War Museum's official war artist in Bosnia in 1993.
He returned to Britain suffering from exhaustion and dysentery, haunted by his personal involvement in the horrors of war around Vitez, to produce what many consider to be some of his best work but to the detriment of his own psychological health.
His marriage suffered and for the past four and a half years he has lived in self-imposed exile in London.
Howson admits he does not like thinking about money, although his paintings routinely sell for thousands. He confesses that he was recently in dire financial straits having run up an overdraft of around 150,000 pounds.
With major canvases selling at more than 30,000 pounds, like his oil painting The Glorious Game unveiled last week in the Gallery of Modern Art (Goma) in Glasgow, Howson can always depend on being able to paint his way out of trouble.
He is also in the frame for a 100,000 pound commission from the Scottish National Portrait Gallery to paint Donald Dewar and other members of the cabinet.
Howson has agreed with David Bowie that there will be no pre-publicity of the portrait before its unveiling. But Howson's Scottish agent Roger Billcliffe recently sold a pastel and ink study of the portrait to an Edinburgh man, who wishes to keep the price and his identity anonymous.
"Bowie being Bowie, he wanted it all to be completely hush-hush," said Howson.
"We have had about six sittings together and each of them was a bit cloak and dagger. One time he turned up early in the morning at the studio but was recognised by some school kids who saw him getting out of a car. Before long there were hundreds of kids surrounding the place.
"I am trying to organise the Madonna thing at present. I hear she is wanting painting lessons so that could be part of the package. She said recently I was her favourite artist and that gave me a big buzz."
Bowie will be invited back into the studio for one last sitting to finish the portrait.
The multi-millionaire, famous for painting his own face during his Aladdin Sane period in the early Seventies, may add the work to his own collection which has veered recently from the figurative to more surreal works by another big contemporary name, Damien Hirst.
BOWIE DAY ON VH1
21st February 1998
A DAVID BOWIE day on VH1 on 12th March. Featuring: One To One, Greatest Hits, Planet Rock Profile, Live At The Beat Club and Ziggy Stardust.
BOWIE TV TONIGHT
21st February 1998
DAVID BOWIE on VIVA 2 in Germany tonight at 17.00, programme entitled 'Geschmacksoche'.
BASQUIAT VIDEO
21st February 1998
The BASQUIAT movie available on sell-through video, released 23rd February by Fox Guild, priced £12.99.
BOWIE WINS!
20th February 1998
DAVID BOWIE has won the 'Best Solo Artist Of Year 1997' from Musikexpress magazine in GERMANY and also the Earthling Tour won 'Best Concert Of The Year 1997' from Showbizz magazine in BRAZIL.
BOWIE GIRL ON FILM
20th February 1998
DAVID BOWIE is one of the contributors to a new soundtrack for a forthcoming bio-film about the 70s supermodel GIA.
Filmed in Los Angeles and New York City by Marvin Worth Productions and directed by Michael Cristofer. The cast includes Angelina Jolie, Elizabeth Mitchell, Faye Dunaway, Mercedes Ruehl and Kylie Travis.
Gia who was a huge Bowie fan from Philadelphia, sadly died from heroin abuse/AIDS aged twenty-six. A biography book entitled "Thing Of Beauty - The Tragedy Of Supermodel Gia" by Stephen Fried is available, which contains two chapters on her 'Bowie fanaticism.
THE WEB MAGAZINE
20th February 1998
LITTLE WONDERWORLD - REVIEW
Artists like David Bowie, who have been dissected by the media time and time again, are often less understood than before they went under the zeitgeist microscope. The best way to discover an artist is through his or her own (unedited) words. And that's exactly what this new fan-created site offers. Read through Bowie's self-penned tour diary from 1974 to '75 (originally published in Mirabelle) and scores of interviews and excerpts. You'll also find links, photos, tour schedules, screen savers, and more on this appropriately arty site.Copyright © 1998 PC World Communications. All Rights Reserved
EH (Editor)
CONTENT 4 DESIGN 3 LINKS 4 OVERALL 4
The Web Magazine
NEW HOME ON BROADWAY
19th February 1998
New York Observer: The Bowie's new residence is a 5,000 square foot loft located on Broadway, near East 4th Street in downtown Manhattan. The loft was on the market for $1.7 million, but Bowie, ever the shrewd businessman, beat them down to $1.5 million for the ninth floor, just below the penthouse floor and the roof-top swimming pool.
CHART POSITION - WEEK 1
18th February 1998
The latest DB single I CAN'T READ has entered the UK Indie Charts at Number 12.
EVERYBODY LOVES SUNSHINE - Update
16th February 1998
The filming of the GOLDIE/BOWIE movie EVERYBODY LOVES SUNSHINE starts Thursday on the Isle Of Man, at The Mill Studios, Laxey, which is going to be transformed into Moss Side, Manchester for the £2 million movie. The film company THE MISSION have requested copies of the Greater Manchester Police insignia for use in the film.
One of the cast, Vinny Davies says of the film: "There's bad, there's evil, there's wicked, and then there's Goldie.".... Sounds like a scary film not for the squeamish! The film should hit our screens later this year.
NEW BOWIE ART
16th February 1998
New litho prints available at the superb BowieArt web site, including a special portfolio of four prints from the Biennale di Firenze exhibition, Saucer I and II, TV Christ I and II.
DUTCH FAN CLUB MEETING
15th February 1998
The DUTCH David Bowie Fan Club Annual Meeting is to be held on the 8th March, 13.00 till 18.00hrs at:
Cultureel centrum Azotod Meerendijk 126 De Meern, near Utrecht.
There will be live music, merchandise, videos, an exhibition of rare Bowie material and much more. Also the first 150 visitors will receive a colour print of a Bowie painting.
(From Ludo Wopereis - Dutch Fanzine Editor).
SECOND EMI RELEASE
15th February 1998
The planned second compilation album to be issued by EMI entitled 'The Best Of David Bowie 1975-1979' is scheduled for release in the United Kingdom for April.
SAVE THE CHILDREN GIG
13th February 1998
The planned BOWIE New York show for SAVE THE CHILDREN will be an acoustic set.
OOH AHH VISIONARY
13th February 1998
BOWIE, icon and occasional film star, looks like concentrating on his music career for the foreseeable future and is disillusioned with movies.
DB: "The film industry doesn't appeal to me much unless there's a director who is a visionary. I prefer to be a film star without doing any work. I like being on posters though..."
SATURNZ' LITTLE HELPERS
11th February 1998
NME VIBES: DAVID BOWIE Ever the master chameleon, Bowie fell for drum'n'bass so much he made a whole album - last year's 'Earthling' - inspired by it. In truth, Bowie's contribution to Saturnz Return, 'Truth', is far superior, although ironically it's beat free. The duo evidently hit it off - GOLDIE is being drafted in to produce Bowie's next album.
GOLDIE SAYS: "Bowie's been around for a very, very long time and I've got a lot of respect for him for staying in the business for a very long time and still being able to do a lot of different things."
TELLING JOKES
7th February 1998
For those of you who haven't heard DAVID telling his favourite joke, nip over to the Dazed & Confused web site.
There's also an interview from a previous issue and some nice graphics on a IGGY POP section.
If you're under eighteen, don't tell your mum the joke for Christ's sake!
LATEST BOWIEART PRINT
5th February 1998
The latest Bowie print available for purchase at the BowieArt web site is ZENZI an Iris print on Arches paper, in a limited edition of 175.
GOLDIE PRESS CONFERENCE
4th February 1998
GOLDIE announced plans for a co-production with DAVID BOWIE during the press conference for his latest album in London last week.
Goldie is due to fly to Switzerland this month to collaborate with Bowie on a new album. The pair decided to work together after meeting at a drum 'n' bass club last year.
"One enjoyment was being able to manipulate through him what I wanted to get out, write, sing or whatever," Goldie said. Bowie told NME last week: "We don't know how far we're going but we're going in deep."
Goldie is currently working on EVERYBODY LOVES SUNSHINE a gangland film set in Manchester. After that he is due to start work on a film with Val Kilmer.
NME READERS POLL WINNERS 1988
3rd February 1998
BEST SOLO ARTIST:
1. Beck, 2. Paul Weller, 3. Björk, 4. Finley Quaye, 5. Sheryl Crow, 6. Robbie Williams, 7. Beth Orton, 8. Natalie Imbruglia, 9. Morrissey, 10. Louise, 11. DJ Shadow, 12. DAVID BOWIE, 13. Kylie Minogue, 14. George Michael, 15. Tanya Donnelly, 16. Tricky, 17. Mark Owen, 18. Fatboy Slim, 19. Jon Bon Jovi, 20. Roni Size.
BOWIE TO HELP THE NPG?
2nd February 1998
DAVID has been asked by the National Portrait Gallery in London to select the photographs which he feels encapsulate the century for their forthcoming Millennium exhibition to be held in October 1999.
FEBRUARY RELEASES
1st February 1998
The video for the amazing BASQUIAT is due for release this month on the 23rd. Also on the same day, hopefully, the CD single I CAN'T READ due for release in England.
C4 TELETEXT NEWS
1st February 1998
DAVID BOWIE is enjoying a resurgence of popularity in the United States, with his single 'I'm Afraid Of Americans' standing firm for several weeks at the top of the MTV charts.
Bowie has also been nominated for 2 Grammy's, a Brit, and a Gong in Ireland's Hot Press Magazine awards.
And he's now set to work with GOLDIE on his next album, (released tomorrow), "We're going in deep," promises Bowie.