David Bowie Wonderworld: Chat Transcriptions          Bowie Eden@vmg.co.uk Chat 2/2/00           BowieWonderworld Chat Room


David Bowie Live Chat Transcription - 2/2/00


Live Chat with David Bowie @ Eden.vmg.co.uk


You're a bit early! ...but don't worry, 'cos David will be here at 6:30pm (GMT) to answer as many of your questions as he can!!

Hold on, we're about to begin!!

HPL: 'hours' has been received by some of the press as a return to the kind of songwriting you did for 'Hunky Dory'... was this conscious on your part?

David: Hello everyone, I'm sort of here, I'm just saying hello to our typist here, I'm sitting here in the Ultrastar offices, I'm very excited about this chat, it's a bit different than the chats we do on BOWIENET.COM Lol. I don't know why people think it has anything to do with Hunky Dory. Possibly because it has an acoustic guitar on it, but I feel the songwriting style is really rather broader than that, it's really nothing like The Pretty Things Are Going To Hell on Hunky Dory. Come to that I don't think there is Something In The Air on Hunky Dory either. It's a human condition to want to link things, the acoustic guitar both on the Hours album and Hunky Dory but in reality I think it comes from the original Virgin press release which suggested that it sounded a little bit like Hunky Dory and as much journalism is lazy they will make life simpler for themselves generally by writing the last thing they read. Being a journalist is a horrible life, endlessly looking at your watch wondering when the pubs open.

Rory: Where are you right now?

David: As I said I am sitting in the offices of Ultrastar in New York. This is where we run our sites from apart from BOWIENET.COM, which I will desperately try and get into the answer of every question, we also run, among others, the Yankees Baseball Team site and the Baltimore Orioles. Iman and I have lived in New York for quite some years now, although we do have our official place in Bermuda.

Jonathon: Has dance music culture killed rock music?

David: No, rock music kills rock music. When the vocabulary of any artform gets too well known it dissipates its dynamic. Once everybody can play the e chord on a guitar, once everybody can sample what they want at home on a cheap computer, medium suddenly becomes the message and the message seems to be, this is lifestyle music not attitude music. I think we probably buy our music much in the same way as we buy our clothes now, it's no longer the replacement to church.

Spidey: Who was filming at the Astoria show? And will it ever be made available?

David: That's a very good question Spidey, who the hell was filming at the Astoria, it certainly wasn't Duncan my son, as he was standing in the wings and will it be available one day? Knowing the internet as we all do, no doubt!

Rupert: What is the one thing your most looking forward to this year?

David: Hi Rupert, Would that be the Rupert of the Rupert Goldsworthy Gallery? If it is then showing some stuff at the end of the year Rupert, of course. And if it isn't, four things I suppose. Going back into the studio with Tony Visconti, number 2 would be rerecording lots of the dodgy songs that I wrote in the 60's, three, trying to piece together '2.contamination', the follow up to Outside.

Howard Jackowitz: How involved are you with the Bowie site?

David: Well Howard, as your sitting next to me, I suggest that you stop submitting questions and post something useful for a change. For all of you reading all this, Howard is my right arm at BOWIENET.COM. Also my left leg, my right buttock and a bit of the chest area.

Fiona Campbell: This may seem inane, but do you appreciate the finer qualities of cheese?

David: Blimey, you've really homed in on my likes, cheese is right up there with coffee, both deadly and both irresistible. Requiring guts of steel, the most potent cheese I've ever had is from France, with the enticing epithet Devils Shit, Merde Diable, it can kill a donkey at 100 yards and is delicious on a water biscuit.

Kaye Lipscombe: I have read quite a few books about you all written by other people have you never considered writing your autobiography?

David: Um, well I said this in jest a few years ago, the more I think about it, the more amusing and sensible the idea seems to me. What I should probably do is collect together all the apocryphal stories and mount them as an alternative David Bowie show. It could make a most hilarious evenings entertainment.

AbbaGirl: Are you still planning on doing a stage production based on Ziggy Stardust, as we heard a while back? When might that be happening?

David: I certainly am. As I said before, it will take the form of theatre, film and internet. Then of course you will be able to get the book, the television show, the bank and the t-shirt, all of which of course will be available on BOWIENET.COM lol.

Flesh Mechanic: You Played a few gigs with Placebo, Who are my fave band...What do u think of Brian, Stefan and Steve and do u think u will be playing any future gigs with the band in England????????

David: My gut feeling is that Placebo will prove to be one of the more enduring bands out of Europe over the next few years. We have no active plans to work together in the near future but we're bound to pull something together eventually.

Kat: which of your old songs still expresses the way you feel?

David: As I continually feel that I'm being followed by somebody I suppose Laughing Gnome still has the greatest resonance. If you thought Earthling was puzzling with it's drum 'n' bass and rock hybrid, wait until you hear Goldie's symphonic jungle rendition of Laughing Gnome, it's okay Goldie, I'm joking, I'm joking.

Gilly: You talked about doing spring concerts in a recent chat. When and where will you do these concerts?!?

David: Hi Gilly, I know Gilly, she visits a lot on BOWIENET.COM chatroom. It's looking more and more likely Gilly that we will be doing some concerts around June. As usual with me these days, very very few, they will be both sides of the pond, I think I hear the word festival for Britain.

Sunday's Child: If you had not met Iman, in what ways do you think your life would be different?

David: I wouldn't be rushing home to bed every night. My life would be reasonable, I have good friends, I live in a nice town but it would be emptier and I wouldn't wake up so excitedly as I do in this married life and you can read anything you want into that.lol

Caroline: Can you tell us a little about your latest film Exhuming Mr Rice. Any plans for further movies?

David: Exhuming Mr Rice was a most delightful experience an extremely poignant yet hopeful film about two young boys with terminal cancer, it covers the themes of hope, bravery and friendship. It wont be a box office wow as it's too small a film and I am so happy that I was allowed to contribute to it as it is a fine piece of work. There aren't any plans for future movies other than the Ziggy Stardust venture which I wouldn't necessarily be in. I really fell that writing is taking up far too much of my time and I am simply not serious enough about acting, though it would be nice to be a film star as there's little work in that.

HAL 9000: Hello Dave. Can I ask you a question? What was your opinion of Stanley Kubrick? Would you have enjoyed working with him?

David: Hi Hal, We had a Hal 3500 at home a few years ago but the spark plug's gone all rusty, I hope you're an improvement as me and the wife are thinking of picking up a new one this year before we go on our holidays to that lovely satellite hilton in orbit around mars. Kubrick set up some of the most extraordinary environments in his early movies, that of conditions in outer space and that of conditions in inner city space with 2001 and Clockwork Orange, those two films where hugely influential on how I would locate my writings through the 70's. I heard he was really really hard to work with unless you were a dedicated actor which you now know I'm not.

Ed Veloser: do you have the feeling your doubt about existence have been solved through the years or do you still think "knowledge comes with deaths release?"

David: Blimey Ed Veloser, I think you've read too many books, but the one thing I do know about deaths release is that it swiftly annihilates all questions or even the need to have them. Questions are just something you think on the way to the answers, I think Lennon should probably have said that. lol.

Tanya: You've performed so many songs. Do all those words still mean anything to you?

David: Of course, when I can remember them. That's why I carry a big book around with me. These days on these little shows that we have been doing, I tend to take the book on stage from it. It can't be long before I use the bouncing ball, strictly for my own use of course.

John Allanson: Have you ever been mistaken for someone else?

David: Thats a lovely question. When I was 16 years old or there abouts I tried really hard to have girls mistake me for Keith Relf from the Yardbirds, it never ever worked but around 1974 or so I was stopped on the street by that infamous little old lady, I was wearing a hat and she said, 'Are you that Elton John', I said 'No', she said 'Thank God, I can't stand that red hair and those silly clothes'.

Phil: Mister Bowie, 1) Do you keep in contact with Russian rock star Boris Grebenshikov, does your acquaintance last? 2) what books gain your attention now? Excuse my english. Thanks.

David: That's an amazing coincidence Phil, I actually came accross some photographs of myself and Boris just a couple of days ago and funnily enough I am going to be posting them on davidbowie.com tomorrow. I wish I could say that we stayed in touch, but I simply have no idea what he's up to these days. He is a fine lyric writer. ehh, I inevitably read anything written by Elaine Pagels but right now I am reading a very old book called Spitting In The Wind about the Black Panther party. It's not very good, so I'll be going back to the great writings by Huey Newton.

Angie Freeman: Do you have 'bad hair days'?

David: Ah, well Miss Freeman, I always felt that was part of my charm and I depend on them for a continuing interest in my career.lol

Spaceface: I think your journals from Bowienet would make a wonderful book. Sort of a memento of these times with your nutty members!

David: What kind of nutty members are you referring to Spaceface? Surely you should be referring this question to bigones.com. I'm glad you like the journals though. Can you see that I am trying really hard these days to do at least four a week. This kind of discipline could kill me.

Pete: when are you going on Parkinson

David: Well Pete, when I come off Anadin.

Drew: Which modern artists do you feel a kinship with?

David: Well Drew, because my tastes are so bloody Catholic, I can vacillate quite easily between Odd Nerdrum and Gavin Turk. It does mean I have an extraordinarily eclectic art collection. Typical bloody rock god!

Frode Garnes: I just wonder - what is your ALL TIME favourite live gig?

David: I suppose that's impossible because on a good night that gig itself is always the one. Telescoping back in time, I would say Dublin last year was pretty hard to beat. There was such a feeling of camaradery and high spirits, it was pretty damn intoxicating. I didn't take Anadin all night, it was that good!!

Marisa: Do you get to choose these questions?

David: Marisa, ah, choose them? I WROTE em! You Marisa are just a figment of my imagination.

Edward: Who do you look up to in the Music Industry?

David: Stefan from Placebo. I have to pull myself to my full 5' 10 inches.

Okay folks, just three more

Bob Drew: Time to get up... Is it "Oh No" or "Oh Yeah!"?

David: A resounding OH YEAH BABY COOL.

Roger: Are you going to do any more work with Trent Reznor?

David: Trent is doing a mix for me a little later this year, other than that it's the same old rock cliche of trying to find time when we are both in the same city at the same time.

Paul S: Is it only rock and roll, and do you like it?

David: I think in all seriousness I would have to say that this is my question to all of you. Is it only rock and roll and do you like it? Answer in less than 1500 and send on word or similar programme to info@davidbowie.com. Thanks so much for all of you coming on line today and I look forward to doing this again shortly. Taraaaaa.




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Created: Feb. 2000 © Paul Kinder Last Updated: 2/2/00