Taking place next month on Thursday 6th June is AN EVENING WITH PHIL LANCASTER and KEVIN CANN at Dimbola Museum and Galleries on the Isle Of Wight.

DAVID BOWIE's relationship with the Isle of Wight dates back to his childhood. All about this and much more.

Phil and Kevin will also be signing copies of their Bowie books: 'At The Birth of Bowie' and 'David Bowie: Any Day Now - The London Years (1947-1974)'.

Venue: Dimbola Museum and Galleries
Address: Terrace Lane, Freshwater Bay, Isle of Wight, PO40 9QE, England
Telephone: 01983 756814
Doors: 6.15pm. Starts 7pm.
Tickets: £6 - telephone or visit.

For more details please visit dimbola.co.uk

The next day sees the opening of the ICONIC BOWIE exhibition at the same venue, which runs 7th June through to 18th August. Scroll down this page to 9th May news item for more details.

The seventieth episode of THE A TO Z OF DAVID BOWIE podcast created by MARC RILEY, ROB HUGHES and sound assisted by HOWARD NOCK is now available online for your listening pleasure.

This episode covers the letters Y and Z and discusses: Young Americans and Duncan Zowie Haywood Jones.

Available FREE via your preferred podcast download or streaming. I personally prefer acast.com for streaming - LISTEN HERE

For more information, updates and questions you can follow @zofdavidbowie on Twitter.

Also check out their YouTube channel A to Z of David Bowie and don't forget to subscribe for notifications.

For the podcast each letter is currently averaged at 2 episodes of 30 plus minutes and will be published at 3am on Tuesday's each week.

You can listen to ALL previous episodes HERE

• Photographer MICK ROCK has a DAVID BOWIE exhibition in Beijing, China, which runs from 29th May until 4th August. 798 Art Zone hosts an exciting exhibition featuring 65 photographs of the glam rock legend. There will also be an original soundtrack for the exhibit, performance footage, filmed interviews with the iconic British photographer and more. For more details, tickets and information, please visit thatsmags.com...

• DAVID BOWIE enters at #1 with 'Boys Keep Swinging' in this weeks U.K. Official Vinyl Singles Chart...

• Birthday memories of MICK RONSON born on this day in 1946...

22nd May 2019 sees the 30th anniversary of the debut album by TIN MACHINE, a band which consisted of DAVID BOWIE on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, REEVES GABRELS on lead guitar, TONY SALES on bass guitar and backing vocals, along with his brother, HUNT SALES, on drums and backing vocals.

To promote the album, the band, along with acclaimed director Julien Temple, filmed nine riotous performances of songs from the record at the downtown New York City rock club The Ritz in April 1989.

Though the film was issued as a very limited promotional box set, it has remained unreleased commercially until now. To commemorate the 30th anniversary of the record, the nine song medley is available now as a digital download.

The Tin Machine LP entered the Official UK Album Chart at #3 and stayed in the Top 40 for seven weeks. The album heralded a back to basics approach for Bowie with a hard sound and simple production. The New York Times commented at the time 'Bowie's lyrics are bald, sincere statements, sometimes proud to be vulgar, rock songs don't get much blunter', and Rolling Stone reviewed the record as 'indignant and acidic, an all-too-welcome feast of aggro-guitar flamboyance and bass-drum body checking'. Spin said the record was 'Aggressive, direct, brutal and incendiary fun'.

30 years on, Tin Machine still kicks bottom somewhat.

TIN MACHINE 'NINE TRACK COMPILATION' 30th ANNIVERSARY TRACKLISTING

01. Pretty Thing
02. Tin Machine
03. Prisoner Of Love
04. Crack City
05. Bus Stop
06. Video Crime
07. I Can't Read
08. Working Class Hero
09. Under The God

Total running time: 12.37

Check out the video below via the Official David Bowie YouTube channel.

You can also preview and download via iTunes - 9 Song Compilation

The DAVID BOWIE Aladdin Sane / Zion tape reel sold this afternoon at OMEGA AUCTIONS for an impressive £20,000 GBP.

The 1967 rejected demo tape realised a healthy £16,000 GBP. Both tapes were bought by the same bidder.

Other David Bowie lots in their Music Memorabilia auction included...

Lot 73: David Bowie Barrie Wentzell photographs - £95 GBP
Lot 204: Three Bowie posters - £70 GBP
Lot 406: The Man Who Fell To Earth lobby posters and quad - £440 GBP
Lot 407: Hammersmith 1973 audio tape fan recording - £150 GBP
Lot 408: Bowie 1993 autograph on Isolar compliments card - £120 GBP
Lot 409: Marquee Club flyer 1966 Bowie and The Buzz - £120 GBP
Lot 410: K. West chest - UNSOLD GBP
Lot 411: Aladdin Sane/Zion Trident Studios tape reel - £20,000 GBP
Lot 412: 1967 rejected demos tape reel - £16,000 GBP
Lot 413: Ziggy Stardust Trident Studios tape reel #1 - UNSOLD
Lot 414: Ziggy Stardust Trident Studios tape reel #2 - £3,200 GBP
Lot 415: Vernon Dewhurst Bowie 1969 transparencies - £3,200 GBP
Lot 416: Space Oddity print, signed Vernon Dewhurst - UNSOLD
Lot 417: Space Oddity print, signed Vernon Dewhurst - UNSOLD
Lot 418: The Man Who Sold The World Trident Studios acetate - UNSOLD
Lot 419: "Heroes" French Decca acetate - UNSOLD
Lot 420: 1968 Drury Lane Arts Lab poster - £800 GBP
Lot 421: Aladdin Sane promo film reel - £400 GBP
Lot 422: Friars Aylesbury flyer - £200 GBP
Lot 424: Bound For Glory Bowie/Beezy Bailey t-shirt - UNSOLD
Lot 425: Marquee Club/NBC: 'The Midnight Special' ticket - £380 GBP
Lot 426: David Bowie 1969 album promo flats x3 - £1,100 GBP

For more details and information, please visit omegaauctions.co.uk website.

The sixty-ninth episode of THE A TO Z OF DAVID BOWIE podcast created by MARC RILEY, ROB HUGHES and sound assisted by HOWARD NOCK is now available online for your listening pleasure.

This episode continues with the letter X and discusses: X certificate movies (Just A Gigolo, Christiane F., and The Hunger).

Available FREE via your preferred podcast download or streaming. I personally prefer acast.com for streaming - LISTEN HERE

For more information, updates and questions you can follow @zofdavidbowie on Twitter.

Also check out their YouTube channel A to Z of David Bowie and don't forget to subscribe for notifications.

For the podcast each letter is currently averaged at 2 episodes of 30 plus minutes and will be published at 3am on Tuesday's each week.

You can listen to ALL previous episodes HERE

• Check out a multitude of DAVID BOWIE photographs taken in Studio Three for the Russell Harty Plus Show on 17th January 1973 at London Weekend South Bank Studios, Waterloo. More photos available by clicking the SEE MORE button - [View here]...

• Published in THE GUARDIAN is a piece entitled: 'DAVID BOWIE's Orwell: how Nineteen Eighty-Four shaped Diamond Dogs'. Dorian Lynskey tells the tale of how it (almost) inspired a rock musical - [Read here]...

• DAVID BOWIE is one the artists featured in the latest APPLE MAC advertisement 'Behind The Music. Behind The Mac' in the UK - [Watch here]...

• The restored 1978 fan-filmed footage shot of DAVID BOWIE performing at Selland Arena, Fresno, CA on 2nd April keeps getting longer and longer - [View here]...

OMEGA AUCTIONS have uploaded a mini compilation of the 'alternate' versions of the ALADDIN SANE tracks heard on the DAVID BOWIE tape reel which is available at lot 411 in next week's Music Memorabilia sale on 21st May.

A tantalising and fascinating prospect for any discerning Bowie collector here with an almost completely different versions of the classic 1973 album tracks and outtakes. Each track on this tape has notable differences to the released versions, ranging from completely different, likely unheard takes to alternate vocals, instrumental compositions and mixes.

Since the recording of Aladdin Sane in 1973 fans have wondered about the existence of a rumoured 'lost track' - thought to be titled 'Zion'. Was it cut and then binned in favour of 'Lady Grinning Soul'? Was it a working title for 'Lady Grinning Soul'? Was it actually titled 'A Lad In Vein', a version which has appeared on bootlegs? The answer is found here on this boxed reel of EMI tape, containing mastered mixes of these 8 tracks recorded at Trident Studios.

The handwritten notes on the original Trident Studios label reveal early hesitancy about the composition of the title 'Aladdin Sane', with amendments (in a different pen) breaking up the two words (to form A Ladd Insane) and also show the last track, which is marked clearly as 'Zion'.

For more details, information and bidding, please visit omegaauctions.co.uk website.

OMEGA AUCTIONS have uploaded a mini compilation of the 'alternate' versions of ZIGGY STARDUST album tracks heard on the DAVID BOWIE tape reels available at lots 413 and 414 in next week's Music Memorabilia sale on 21st May.

Heard here are tracks that split across the two reels (seen at lot number 413 and 414 in the catalogue) to include Moonage Daydream (alternate guitars), Hang On To Yourself, Round And Round and Five Years (heard without orchestration).

For more details, information and bidding, please visit omegaauctions.co.uk website.

Heads up: They will also share audio snippets of the 'Aladdin Sane' / 'Zion' alternate versions tomorrow.

In the latest issue of UNCUT magazine (issue 266) is a six-page TIN MACHINE feature - 'A garage band with a budget!'.

Fawlty Towers viewing marathons! Boat trips with Gary Oldman! Riots on Sunset Boulevard! These are just some of the ingredients in the story of how DAVID BOWIE pulled himself out of his '80s malaise with TIN MACHINE - a band of " f**king heathens" who paved the way for his creative rebirth in the following decade.

Here Reeves Gabrels, Hunt and Tony Sales, Kevin Armstrong and producer Tim Palmer reveal all to Rob Hughes about Bowie's creative motivations. "David said, 'Let's put an end to rock 'n' roll. I really want to f**ck with it!'"

The magazine also reports that Julien Temple's Tin Machine: Nine Song Compilation (Video) is being made available for the first time by Parlophone next month on 28th June.

On sale today - for more details, visit uncut.co.uk website.

Reminder: Two DAVID BOWIE releases out tomorrow (17th May)...

CLAREVILLE GROVE DEMOS a 3 x 7" vinyl singles box set featuring previously unreleased DAVID BOWIE recordings from 1969.

The singles box set contains six home demos, FOUR of which are previously unreleased recordings.

Recorded early in 1969 in David's flat in Clareville Grove, London, this live to tape demo session features David performing as a duo with John 'Hutch' Hutchinson following the end of the Feathers trio, which featured David's then girlfriend Hermione Farthingale.

You can pre-order NOW!

BOYS KEEP SWINGING is the next 40th Anniversary picture disc released and the tracklisting runs as follows:

Side A:
Boys Keep Swinging (2017 Tony Visconti mix)
(David Bowie, Brian Eno)
Produced by David Bowie and Tony Visconti
Mixed by Tony Visconti at Human Studios, NYC, 2017

Side AA:
I Pray, Olé
(David Bowie)
Produced by David Bowie and Tony Visconti
Mixed by David Bowie and David Richards, 1991

You can pre-order NOW!

• BUG VINYL presents an intimate playing of the DAVID BOWIE classic album Aladdin Sane. Introduced and in conversation with WOODY WOODMANSEY on Wednesday 22nd May at 8.00pm (doors open 7.30pm) at East Riding Theatre, Lord Roberts Road, Beverley HU17 9BE, England. Tickets priced at £15 and are only available at the Bug Vinyl shop at 11 Ladygate, Beverley HU17 8BH. Telephone: 01482 887293. There are only 50 tickets available and the majority are now sold. Be quick!...

• The July issue of UNCUT magazine contains a feature on DAVID BOWIE / TIN MACHINE. Uncut's news piece states: 'We also explore how David Bowie cured his '80s malaise with "a band of f**king heathens", Tin Machine'. This new issue hits the shops on 16th May...

• With DAVID BOWIE's 50-plus year career and albums that stretch across musical borders, Society for the Performing Arts presents Complexion Contemporary Ballet's Star Dust. The show pays homage to the iconic spirit of what can only be described as: Bowie. Full of glitter and glam, this utterly transfixing tribute to the life and music of David Bowie will be in Jones Hall, 615 Louisiana Street, Houston, Texas, USA for one night only on 1st June - [More details]...

Fifty years after DAVID BOWIE's first performance in Italy on 31st July 1969, the small Tuscan town of Monsummano Terme (near Florence) is preparing to celebrate this event with a special concert and a renaming of the gardens at Villa Renatico Martini - Museum of Contemporary Art and the Twentieth Century.

This project was designed and implemented by Officine della Cultura of Arezzo in collaboration with the Municipality of Monsummano Terme and the family of the deceased Alfio Magrini, organiser of this and many other events in the Pistoia area for many years.

The splendid gardens of the Villa Renatico Martini will be renamed in honour of David Bowie.

The ceremony will take place on 20th May at 17.00 in Monsummano Terme.

Also a concert is to be held the following day on 21st May in Piazza Giusti at 21.00 with a supergroup put together by Paolo Fresu. The band will be performing 'jazz' versions of various Bowie songs.

Also new unpublished details regarding Bowie's performance at The Carosello Internazionale del Disco have come to light.

For more details and information, please visit velvetgoldmine.it website.

English translation: 'A park and a concert for Bowie in Monsummano Terme' - [Read here]

The sixty-eighth episode of THE A TO Z OF DAVID BOWIE podcast created by MARC RILEY, ROB HUGHES and sound assisted by HOWARD NOCK is now available online for your listening pleasure.

This episode covers the letter X and discusses: X certificate movies (The Man Who Fell To Earth).

Available FREE via your preferred podcast download or streaming. I personally prefer acast.com for streaming - LISTEN HERE

For more information, updates and questions you can follow @zofdavidbowie on Twitter.

Also check out their YouTube channel A to Z of David Bowie and don't forget to subscribe for notifications.

For the podcast each letter is currently averaged at 2 episodes of 30 plus minutes and will be published at 3am on Tuesday's each week.

You can listen to ALL previous episodes HERE

On this day, 49 years ago, DAVID BOWIE was awarded an Ivor Novello Award for 'Space Oddity' as Best Original Song at the Musical Festival '70 show at The Talk of The Town, London in 1970.

He performed 'Space Oddity' accompanied by the Les Reed Orchestra. The event was transmitted live via satellite to over 60 closed-circuit outlets in America, including New York's Carnegie Hall. It was also seen in France, Spain, Australia, Holland and Venezuela, but not Britain, where it was broadcast live on Radio One and Two at 10pm-11.30pm.

You can watch the performance below...

davidbowie.com have announced details of the DAVID BOWIE - SPACE ODDITY 50th Anniversary 2 x 7" Box Set to be released on 12th July...

As part of the ongoing celebrations marking 50 years since David Bowie's first hit, and following announcements of the Spying Through A Keyhole, Clareville Grove Demos and The 'Mercury' Demos collections, Parlophone is releasing a very special double 7" single of SPACE ODDITY featuring brand new remixes by Tony Visconti. The set and a 1 track digital single of the single edit of the 2019 mix of Space Oddity for streaming and download will be released by Parlophone on 12th July, 2019, the day after the single's 50th anniversary.

Space Oddity 50th anniversary double 7" set will come in a box including a double-sided poster featuring an original Space Oddity press advertisement and a Ray Stevenson shot of David taken on stage at the Save Rave '69 concert at the London Palladium on 30th November, 1969, the backdrop featuring a N.A.S.A. astronaut. The set also includes an information card and a print featuring an alternative shot by Jojanneke Claassen from the Space Oddity promo single cover session.

A facsimile of the original ultra-rare unissued UK picture sleeve has been used for the cover of the original mono single, which, along with the label, features the original Philips trademark specifically cleared for this 50th anniversary release. The single itself has been cut from the original analogue single master tape. The jacket housing the 2019 remixes by Tony Visconti is a new design featuring an alternative Ray Stevenson shot from the Save Rave '69 concert to that on the poster.

First released as a 7-inch single on 11 July 1969, Space Oddity was also the opening track of his second studio album, David Bowie. Initially inspired by Stanley Kubrick's film 2001: A Space Odyssey, the song gained huge popularity when it was adopted as the unofficial theme of the Apollo 11 Moon landing mission which launched five days after the single's release.

Over the past 50 years Space Oddity has been on a journey as long and as far as its main character, Major Tom. Originally written and demoed in November 1968, the song has gone through many guises from appearing in the filmed for television special Love You Til Tuesday in an earlier recorded incarnation with John 'Hutch' Hutchinson, to being recorded in Italian (Ragazzo Solo, Ragazza Sola), winning an Ivor Novello Special Award for Originality in May 1970, being Bowie's first hit on both sides of the Atlantic (#5 in the U.K. in 1969, #1 in the U.K. in 1975 and #15 in the U.S. in 1973), having no less than three videos made for it and in 2013 was performed by Canadian astronaut Commander Chris Hadfield, while aboard the International Space Station, and became the first music video shot in space. Major Tom remained a motif for Bowie throughout his career revisiting the character in the songs Ashes to Ashes, Hallo Spaceboy and in the music video for ★.

Further news of moments and events celebrating the anniversary of this very special song will follow.

SPACE ODDITY (1 TRACK DIGITAL SINGLE)
(2019 Mix - Single Edit) 2019 mix by Tony Visconti, March 2019.

SPACE ODDITY (2 x 7" SINGLE BOX SET)

Single 1

Side A: SPACE ODDITY (Original Mono Single Edit)
Side B: WILD EYED BOY FROM FREECLOUD (Original Mono Single Version)

Single 2

Side A: SPACE ODDITY (2019 Mix - Single Edit) 2019 mix by Tony Visconti, March 2019.
Side B: WILD EYED BOY FROM FREECLOUD (2019 Mix - Single Version) 2019 mix by Tony Visconti, March 2019.

You can pre-order Space Oddity (50th Anniversary Box Set 2 x 7" Singles) NOW!

A major retrospective of DAVID BOWIE is coming to the Isle of Wight on 7th June through 18th August...

DIMBOLA MUSEUM & GALLERIES is delighted to be hosting ICONIC BOWIE, a major retrospective of the extraordinary life of DAVID BOWIE. A journey in which the Isle of Wight witnessed his first public musical performance at a Corf Scout Camp, Shalfleet in 1958 and Bowie's last UK live show headlining at the Isle of Wight Festival in 2004.

Iconic Bowie showcases both stunning and intimate portraits of Bowie by some of the world's greatest photographers. The photographs, from the extensive Iconic Images archive, were taken over his phenomenal 50-year career and draw into focus the remarkable contribution Bowie made to culture, music and art. These portraits contain rare moments, the force of Bowie's unique nature and his personality on film. Each image is an illuminating artefact of one of the greatest artists that has ever lived:

"Great portrait photographers do a rare thing through extraordinary alchemy that renders light, exposure, emotion, soul, sorrow, joy, beauty forever fixed in time. Iconic Bowie contains images that startle the world and provide an illuminating insight into the astonishing career of David Bowie," - Brian Hinton, Chairman of Dimbola Museum and Galleries.

The Iconic Images archive is one of the biggest collections of David Bowie imagery under one house. Terry O'Neill, Kevin Cummins, Markus Klinko, Justin de Villenuve, Milton H. Greene and Gerald Fearnley all had important roles throughout the visual life of this singular artist. Through the collective lens of these creative photographers, a true visual image of Bowie the artist was realised.

Cummins first photographed Bowie as the star's alter ego, Ziggy Stardust on his Aladdin Sane tour of 1972-1973 and went on to photograph and be influenced by him throughout his career. Cummins can remember the effect of seeing Bowie on stage:

"I went to see David Bowie when I was in my teens. I had never seen anything like that on stage and I had seen various things which were all very flashy and very showy. Now, it may seem normal but at the time nobody really had that kind of theatricality in rock 'n' rock." - Kevin Cummins.

To celebrate Bowie's influence on art and culture, Dimbola has invited contemporary British sculptor Guy Portelli to curate an artists' response to Bowie in the Charles Hay Gallery. The collection, featuring artists Keith Haynes, Chris Myers RBA RI, Guy Portelli PVPRBA FRBS, will show artworks inspired by the music and iconic imagery of David Bowie.

Exploring the Isle of Wight/Bowie connection there will be a rare display of ephemera tracing Bowie's early footsteps on the Island. These include copies of The Bowie Bureau (1977-1982) a magazine produced by two long-standing friends and sent from their Ventnor home to destinations throughout the world as well as adverts from Bowie's three early appearances at Ventnor Winter Gardens with Davy Jones and The Lower Third in the summer of 1965.

ICONIC BOWIE is kindly sponsored by Wightlink, Solo Agency, Style of Wight and The Seaview Hotel. All exhibition images are limited editions and available to purchase.

Venue: Dimbola Museum and Galleries
Address: Terrace Lane, Freshwater Bay, Isle of Wight, England PO40 9QE
Opening times: 7 days a week - 10am - 5pm

There is also Q&A and exclusive insights with Kevin Cummins on Friday 7th June at 19.00 for a Q&A and exclusive insights from the legendary photographer.

Manchester-born Kevin Cummins has an international reputation as one of the world's leading photographers. He has photographed numerous bands and musicians including Joy Division, The Clash, Sex Pistols, R.E.M., U2, Patti Smith, Marc Bolan, The Smiths and of course David Bowie.

For more details and information, please visit dimbola.co.uk website.

Further reading: OnTheWight.com 'Major retrospective of David Bowie coming to the Isle of Wight' by Elissa Blizzard - [Read here].

The sixty-seventh episode of THE A TO Z OF DAVID BOWIE podcast created by MARC RILEY, ROB HUGHES and sound assisted by HOWARD NOCK is now available online for your listening pleasure.

This episode continues with the letter W and discusses: Warren Peace (aka Geoffrey MacCormack).

Available FREE via your preferred podcast download or streaming. I personally prefer acast.com for streaming - LISTEN HERE

For more information, updates and questions you can follow @zofdavidbowie on Twitter.

Also check out their YouTube channel A to Z of David Bowie and don't forget to subscribe for notifications.

For the podcast each letter is currently averaged at 2 episodes of 30 plus minutes and will be published at 3am on Tuesday's each week.

You can listen to ALL previous episodes HERE

Here's the first snippet from the DAVID BOWIE audio tapes up for grabs at OMEGA AUCTIONS in their next two day vinyl and memorabilia sale on 21st / 22nd May.

We promised we'd share audio from the rejected 1967 David Bowie demos, so here you go...

A worldwide debut for 'Funny Smile', 'Bunny Thing', 'Did You Ever Have A Dream' (released on the Another Face comp) and 'Pussy Cat'.

Full details of Lot 412 DAVID BOWIE 1967 REJECTED DEMOS.

To view the full list of David Bowie items in this auction please visit bid.omegaauctions.co.uk website.

From Omega Auctions.

Further reading:

The Guardian: 'Mockney accents and drug-smuggling bunnies: rare David Bowie songs to be auctioned' - [Read here]
CNN: 'Rare David Bowie demo tape up for auction' - [Read here]
Sky News: 'David Bowie songs rejected from debut album up for auction' - [Read here]
UDiscoverMusic: 'Early David Bowie Songs Set To Go Uner The Hammer' - [Read here]
The Irish Times: 'David Bowie unreleased songs to be auctioned' - [Read here]

The HD Projects presents, the third in a series of four interview videos TRACING MY DAD Vol. 10 (part 3) (1977-1978) - TONY VISCONTI talking about DENNIS DAVIS and DAVID BOWIE.

The interview took place in New York City in 2018. Tony provided a lot of information and insight into the music he and David Bowie made, and the times they shared, with Dennis Davis.

BOWIE's BECKENHAM ODDITY celebrates the 50th anniversary of The Growth Summer Festival and Free Concert of 1969, with the return of some of the original line up!

Venue: Croydon Road Recreation Ground, Beckenham BR3 3PR
Date: Saturday 17th August - door time 12.00 noon - 8.30pm

Live Music (Acts TBC) / Food and Drink / Market Stalls / Bowie Auction / Face Painting / Raffle / Kids Rides.

Join us to celebrate David Bowie and the original festival of 1969, plus help raise money to restore the bandstand and place a plaque there in his memory and for everyone involved in the original event.

Tickets are available now from wegottickets.com

• RSD 2019 DAVID BOWIE release 'Revolutionary Song' entered the UK 'Official Vinyl Singles Chart Top 40' at #4 during its first week, then went up to #1 in the second week!...

• RSD 2019 DAVID BOWIE release 'Pin Ups' picture disc album entered the UK 'Official Vinyl Albums Chart Top 40' straight in at #2, then down to #12...

• BLACK STAR DANCING is the new song from NOEL GALLAGHER'S HIGH FLYING BIRDS, taken from their EP of the same name. Set for release on 14th June, Noel said: "It manages to combine the influences of DAVID BOWIE, INXS, U2, Queen, Indeep AND ZZ Top FFS!... I might have been watching too much Top Of The Pops recently ... anyway, it's 'dope' ... not my words, but the words of NILE RODGERS who literally danced in the studio when he heard it!" - [More details]...

• Happy birthday wishes to MARY FINNIGAN...

• In an interview with JON LOVITZ in the PHILLY VOICE he talks about meeting DAVID BOWIE...

Q: Didn't you use to hang out at the Columbus Cafe in New York, which was crawling with celebrities during the '80s and '90s?

A: Yes. I met Danny Aiello, Tony Danza and David Bowie there.What killed me was that David Bowie was such a regular guy. I remember talking to him for about a half-hour. I said, 'you're nothing like your persona'. I asked him if he just wrote theatrically for his musical productions, like Ziggy Stardust and he said that he did.

Q: What's the wildest thing you did with someone like Bowie?

A: I was hanging out with Dana Carvey, Dennis Miller, David Bowie and Mick Jagger and David says, 'hey, let's go dancing'. David, who was so classy, was all dressed up, and we went out dancing and it blew me away.

You can read the whole interview - [HERE]...

'A BOW TO BOWIE' - A TRACK WRITTEN BY RAF AND O IN HONOUR OF DAVID.

RAF AND O, the acclaimed Art-Pop duo from South East London return with their new album 'The Space Between Nothing And Desire'.

This album sees the duo presenting a haunting version of 'The London Boys' and also a Raf and O track dedicated to David himself called 'A Bow To Bowie'.

Here the duo pay respect to David with a beautiful, minimal and heartfelt song, an acoustic guitar, synths and vocals swelling and soaring, while a constant bass drum like a heartbeat underpins the track.

'A Bow To Bowie' was written in December 2016, Raf Mantelli says: "I really wanted to write a song for David after his passing, but it took me a few months before I felt I could tackle it".

Raf and O performed at Memory Of A Free Festival in Beckenham, Bowie's Beckenham Oddity and were invited to perform in honour of David at the Starman Celebration, The Union Chapel in January 2016.

You can have a listen to 'A Bow To Bowie' [4.23] HERE

For more details and information, please visit rafando.com

Released later this month on 17th May is CLAREVILLE GROVE DEMOS a 3 x 7" vinyl singles box set featuring previously unreleased DAVID BOWIE recordings from 1969.

The singles box set contains six home demos, FOUR of which are previously unreleased recordings.

Recorded early in 1969 in David's flat in Clareville Grove, London, this live to tape demo session features David performing as a duo with John 'Hutch' Hutchinson following the end of the Feathers trio, which featured David's then girlfriend Hermione Farthingale.

The tracklisting runs as follows:

SINGLE 1

Side A: Space Oddity
Now featuring the final lyrics, this version of the demo first appeared on the long deleted Space Oddity 40th Anniversary 2 CD release, and is now making its debut on vinyl. It predates the 2nd February Morgan Studios recording that featured in the Love You Till Tuesday television film.

Side B: Lover To The Dawn
This song aimed at a former lover would eventually morph into Cygnet Committee recorded for the David Bowie (aka Space Oddity) album later in the year.

SINGLE 2

Side A: Ching-a-Ling
Previously recorded in October 1968 by the trio Turquoise featuring David, Hermione and Tony Hill (who became Feathers when Hutch replaced Hill). David and Hutch continued to perform the song as a duo following Hermione's departure.

Side B: An Occasional Dream
Slightly different lyrically to the later album version, this version of the demo also first appeared on the deleted Space Oddity 40th Anniversary release.

SINGLE 3

Side A: Let Me Sleep Beside You
A studio version was first recorded in September 1967 but remained unreleased until The World Of David Bowie album in 1970. The song was later recorded in session for the BBC in October 1969 and was a song David clearly believed in, recording it once more for the unreleased Toy album 30 years later. That version finally saw the light of day on the Nothing Has Changed 3 CD set in 2014.

Side B: Life Is A Circus
A cover of an obscure song written by Roger Bunn recorded by vocal/instrumental quartet Djinn. Vocals are shared Simon and Garfunkel style by David and Hutch.

Musicians:
David Bowie (vocals, guitar and Stylophone)
John 'Hutch' Hutchinson (vocals and guitar)

You can pre-order NOW!

(Ed. Please don't confuse any of the recordings with the well-known 'Beckenham Oddity' bootleg - these are completely different demo tape recordings).

The next DAVID BOWIE 40th anniversary picture disc single in the series is out this month.

BOYS KEEP SWINGING is released on 17th May and the tracklisting runs as follows:

Side A:
Boys Keep Swinging (2017 Tony Visconti mix)
(David Bowie, Brian Eno)
Produced by David Bowie and Tony Visconti
Mixed by Tony Visconti at Human Studios, NYC, 2017

Side AA:
I Pray, Olé
(David Bowie)
Produced by David Bowie and Tony Visconti
Mixed by David Bowie and David Richards, 1991

You can pre-order NOW!

davidbowie.com have announced details of the next DAVID BOWIE 40th Anniversary 7 Inch Picture Disc Single.

D.J. / BOYS KEEP SWINGING is released next month on 28th June and the tracklisting runs as follows:

Side A:
D.J. (2017 Tony Visconti mix - single edit)
(David Bowie, Brian Eno, Carlos Alomar)
Previously unreleased.
Produced by David Bowie and Tony Visconti.
Mixed by Tony Visconti at Human Studios, New York City, 2017.

Side AA:
Boys Keep Swinging (Kenny Everett Video Show version)
(David Bowie, Brian Eno)
Previously unreleased.
Produced by David Bowie and Tony Visconti.
Recorded at Good Earth Studio, Soho, London, 9th April, 1979.

You can pre-order NOW!

From davidbowie.com

We were kindly invited down to OMEGA AUCTIONS this morning to help cross check the DAVID BOWIE items and descriptions in their forthcoming auction.

For example: The Aladdin Sane reel tape... amazingly each of the tracks are different takes of every song. Sounds amazing. Also both Ziggy tapes have some different takes than the ones we all know.

Lots of various song snippets will be appearing online soon.

Make sure you check out the updated and revised descriptions on some of the Bowie lots.

Highlights include:

Lot 411: DAVID BOWIE LOST ZION TAPE
Lot 412: DAVID BOWIE 1967 REJECTED DEMOS
Lot 413: DAVID BOWIE ZIGGY STARDUST TAPE REEL
Lot 414: DAVID BOWIE ZIGGY STARDUST TAPE REEL
Lot 418: DAVID BOWIE THE MAN WHO SOLD THE WORLD TRIDENT ACETATE
Lot 419: DAVID BOWIE DECCA FRENCH "HEROES" ACETATE
Lot 420: DAVID BOWIE 1968 DRURY LANE ARTS LAB POSTER

The Music Memorabilia and Vinyl Records (2 Days) goes live on 21/05/2019 at 10:30 am GMT.

Check out the online catalogue now.

There's a new DAVID BOWIE book in the pipeline...

Entitled: ME AND THE STARMAN, We Are Cult's editor JAMES GENT and regular contributor JON ARNOLD have put together a massive David Bowie tribute anthology with all profits going to Cancer Research.

Three years in the making. Expect it on 11th July.

Foreword by Nicholas Pegg and afterword by Tony Zanetta.

Published by Chinbeard Books.

More details soon.

Released next month is THE 'MERCURY' DEMOS vinyl LP by DAVID BOWIE with JOHN 'HUTCH' HUTCHINSON scheduled for for 28th June.

The tracklisting runs as follows:

Disc: 1
1. Space Oddity (with John 'Hutch' Hutchinson) ['Mercury' Demo]
2. Janine (with John 'Hutch' Hutchinson) ['Mercury' Demo]
3. An Occasional Dream (with John 'Hutch' Hutchinson) ['Mercury' Demo]
4. Conversation Piece (with John 'Hutch' Hutchinson) ['Mercury' Demo]
5. Ching-a-Ling (with John 'Hutch' Hutchinson) ['Mercury' Demo]
6. I'm Not Quite (aka Letter To Hermione) [with John 'Hutch' Hutchinson] ['Mercury' Demo]

Disc: 2
1. Lover To The Dawn (with John 'Hutch' Hutchinson) ['Mercury' Demo]
2. Love Song (with John 'Hutch' Hutchinson) ['Mercury' Demo]
3. When I'm Five (with John 'Hutch' Hutchinson) ['Mercury' Demo]
4. Life Is A Circus (with John 'Hutch' Hutchinson) ['Mercury' Demo]

As part of the ongoing celebrations marking 50 years since David Bowie's first hit, 'Space Oddity', and following the recent Spying Through A Keyhole and Clareville Grove Demos collections, The 'Mercury' Demos are 10 early Bowie recordings captured live in one take to a Revox reel to reel tape machine in David's flat in spring 1969, with accompaniment from John 'Hutch' Hutchinson on guitar and vocals.

The version of 'Space Oddity' from the demos, originally released with edits on the 'Sound + Vision' box set, is presented here in its true context for the first time. The other nine recordings on the album are all previously unreleased.

The other nine recordings on the album are all previously unreleased. In addition to Bowie originals, the session also includes the Roger Bunn composition 'Life Is A Circus' (which features as an earlier demo version on the Clareville Grove Demos set) and the Lesley Duncan composition, 'Love Song', later recorded by Elton John for his Tumbleweed Connection album. David's own 'Conversation Piece' is announced as 'a new song' and 'Janine' features a short nineteen second section sung to the melody of The Beatles' 'Hey Jude'.

The session was a basic recording of the 'Bowie & Hutch' duo's set list at the time and was committed to tape at the request of Mercury Records A&R man Calvin Mark Lee who wanted the tracks to send them to his boss Bob Reno. Both Calvin and Bob are referenced during the 41-minute recording, and the demos were key in securing David his recording deal with Mercury Records.

The 'Mercury' Demos set will come in a replica of the original tape box and will feature 1 vinyl LP, a print, two photo contact sheets and sleeve notes by Mark Adams. The labels of the LP feature the same EMIDISC acetate styling as Spying Through A Keyhole and Clareville Grove Demos with the song titles in David's own handwriting.

You can pre-order The 'Mercury' Demos NOW!

DAVID BOWIE WONDERWORLD REMINDERS SPACE ODDITY 50th ANNIVERSARY 2 x 7" BOX SET featuring brand new remixes and 1 track digital single - to be released on 12th July - you can pre-order NOW! D.J. / BOYS KEEP SWINGING 40th Anniversary 7" picture disc single to be released on 28th June - you can pre-order NOW! DAVID BOWIE - THE 'MERCURY' DEMOS (with John 'Hutch' Hutchinson) vinyl LP to be released on 28th June - available to pre-order NOW! BOYS KEEP SWINGING / I PRAY, OLÉ 40th Anniversary 7" picture disc single to be released on 17th May - you can pre-order NOW! DAVID BOWIE - CLAREVILLE GROVE DEMOS 7" Vinyl Box Set containing THREE singles and SIX songs - released on 17th May - available to pre-order NOW! DAVID BOWIE - SPYING THROUGH A KEYHOLE 7" Vinyl Box Set containing FOUR singles and NINE songs - released on 5th April - available to purchase NOW! New book ASHES TO ASHES: THE SONGS OF DAVID BOWIE, 1976-2016 by CHRIS O'LEARY published on 19th February - you can purchase NOW! The 2018 softback edition of DAVID BOWIE WORLD 7" RECORDS DISCOGRAPHY 1964 - 1981 book by MARSHALL JARMAN and RETO STÖCKLIN available to purchase via the marmot-publishing.com website.         Exclusive DAVID BOWIE lino-cut print that appears in MUTE movie directed by Duncan Jones is available to purchase here - don't hang around, these are ALL the remaining original left-over stock from 34 years ago, once they've gone, they've gone!                  [CLOSE BOX]