Working For David Bowie
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- Опубликовано: 26 июл 2024
- Tom Battista talks about touring with David Bowie and working on his road crew.
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David Bowie
Diamond Dogs
Ziggy Stardust
Changes
#DavidBowie 
Видеоклипы
What's your favorite David Bowie song?
I love them ALL!!💓🤘
I only know one. Space Odyssey.😟
@@Caperhere ruclips.net/video/lXgkuM2NhYI/видео.html
They're all so good, but I always come back to " Life on Mars"
I´ve been a Bowie fan since my friend came back from a stay in England, 1970, i think, and gave me the Ziggy LP. So i have a lot of favorites, but Ablolute begginers is one that i've always loved. Both to play and listen to.
I was never into Bowie. Then my (new) girlfriend and I took a trip from Michigan to Missouri and back by vehicle this fall and she wanted to listen to Bowie, so we had two straight hours of Bowie and I realized what I had missed. Genius, original and before his time. Listened to him again on the way back.
What Bowie did you listen to?
Isten to Scary Monsters (1980)
his best
@@TheChadTI
My first concert was David Bowie when I was 12 in 1978. I won 3rd row seats and it was on a par to me with seeing Elvis. I saw him again on the Let's Dance, Glass Spider, Sound and Vision and Reality tours. They were the best shows I ever saw of any genre of music. I have never seen any musician who was more thankful to the audience for being there. I never heard of Bowie ever being anything but class to people.
Same birthday as Elvis
Met a fella who was working on the sets for one of his 80's movies. Might have been Absolute Beginners. Bowie queued up in the canteen with everyone else and just chatted. A lackey asked him to come to the front of the queue but Bowie said he's happy queuing with all the other fellas. Just chatting away as a normal person would. Can you imagine Elton or any of the new stars like Beyonce doing such a thing?
@DudeSilad Elton is pretty gracious considering his position. I could see him doing that nowadays. Probably not young diva Elton though.
Having seen David in concert about 35 times, he never ceased to amaze me!
OMG! Lucky you. Wow!
Wow. I saw him once and considered myself lucky.
All in the US? I saw him about 12 or 13 times but in the UK. Paris and Germany as well. Made him laugh on three seperate occassions. Thats a great feeling. He knew I existed 🥰
I worked as a stagehand for the Serious Moonlight tour, at Milton Keynes. We were all stoned. 10 minutes before Bowie was due on stage, 3 of us were instructed to adjust a monitor speaker at the front of the main stage. Well the audience mistook one of us for Bowie and the crowd went crazy, it was a beautiful feeling absorbing the adulation meant for this rock god. We stood there for maybe a minute just soaking it up. My young self had just received the best hit ever !! Plus got to see the show three times and got paid really well for it. Happy, crazy, hot days of summer 1983.
My first Bowie concert attendance was Diamond Dogs tour in 1974 Madison Square Garden NYC. The next year I was fortunate to attend opening night then WORK as an on-stage bouncer closing night for the Young Americans tour at Radio City. Needless to say, it was wild. I couldn't believe they paid me to stand 5 feet away from Bowie, Carlos Alomar, et al, and try to keep the screaming hordes of girls off of him. Thereafter, I saw every Bowie tour (most more than once) until he slowed down touring late 90's. In 2017 I was fortunate to attend one of the few "commemoration" shows (only 4 cities globally) at the Sydney Opera House. Mike Garson was the MC and a member from every band from the Spiders to his last releases (including Carlos Alomar, Earl Slick, Andrian Belew, and others) were all there. Very privileged to have done this.
I was there on the Saturday, sitting up on the embankment in the glorious sunshine, enjoying a cold beer. I thought those halcyon days would last forever. Sadly, life doesn't work out like that.
Thanks for sharing this story. Got me a little choked up, really.
Saw the serious moonlight tour at murryfield(Edinburgh,saw a roadie I met on the undertones tour and he took me and my girl up the tower where the sound/lights were controlled and I watched the gig from up there,great time
My favorite David Bowie Song: Young Americans..."Just sing me a one damn song that can make be break down and cry" Says it all for me.
*One of Bowie's secrets to success was that he always got the absolute best musicians available in his band... He might not have always given em' their full credit..., or treated them well when he was evolving into his next phase..., but he ALWAYS had truly great musicians with him..., each and every one..., a master of their craft...*
I think you're right. When Ronson joined the band he rearranged Bowie's folk songs & reignited his faltering career. Lou Reed & Tony Visconti said that Ronson's work was flawless. Sadly, he got little or no credit & died almost penniless.
@@bryanj149 Ronno was messed about very badly by Mainman and the promises made to him were not kept - Bowie had terrible management for years (though he probably never would have originally cracked it without Tony de Fries) - Ronno was going to have a huge push and major label support. Bowie and he did fall out but (as with Woody and the other Spiders) Bowie did make it right long before the end.
I was eight years old when Space Oddity came out. I had a clock radio on my night stand and I used to go to sleep listening to the radio. I'll never forget hearing that song playing in that space you drift into just before falling asleep, it gave me goose bumps. He's got so much great music but that is my sentimental favorite.
Saw Bowie’s first American concert in Cleveland in 1972. The Ziggy Stardust tour. He was being played by Billy Bass on WMMS radio, the most popular album oriented station in the country who brought him to the States. Bowie was transformative. The band was killer with Mick Ronson. The stage was totally black and all of a sudden white strobe lights shot from the sides of the stage to the middle. In an instant, Bowies “landed” in the middle of the lights. He was the spider from Mars.
I was at the Pittsburgh Diamond Dog Tour first time I saw DB and it was Magic,2nd row and he sat on the edge of Stage directly in front of me and sang ,All TY Dudes,fantastic,Didn't hurt that in the 2 seats in front of me were 2 stunning Girls which is the only reason he picked that spot at the now gone Syria Mosque.
Bowie was sublime, copacetic, and original.
It was this Diamond Dogs Tour of 1974 -- far more than the previous Ziggy Stardust/Alladin Sane Tours -- that turned Bowie into a huge, arena-filling superstar in America.
Um, what turned him into a Superstar was "Fame" going to Number 1. in 1975.
saw the diamond dogs tour, and the young americans/thin white duke follow-up tour right after, which was during the station to station era.
all happening at Bowie's cocaine peak, so I can only imagine some of the backstage drama. It's probably a really good thing that Battista was so grounded even back then!
I will say the music from those shows, (many viewable on youtube, of course.) still holds up well to this day.
favorite song? too many.
Saw Bowie a couple of times and it was the Best Concert ever & I'd seen many acts, the fans were dressed fantastically and a load of fun!!
Thank you Otis for sharing this
Thank you, Susie! : )
Love the fact that your a Head and a Bowie fan, there are fewer of us than you would think. Saw Jer and the Boys 70 times and saw David 7.
@@MrYatesj1 Ride On!
“The highest mountain, the oldest books, the strangest people, there you will find the stone.”
Diamond Dogs was my first concert, June 30, 1974, at the Mid-South Coliseum in Memphis, TN. It was the summer between 6th and 7th grade. I was 12. A 21-year-old Earl Slick had just replaced Mick Ronson as Bowie's lead guitarist.
Wow nice! The Diamond Dogs album set list or the revamped one? If you remember. The revamped set list is (basically) what appears on David Live (1975 live album)
Yes, I love that live record. Wish we would have gotten the show with Luther as a backup singer. Here is the setlist according to setlist.fm:
1984
Moonage Daydream
Sweet Thing
Changes
Suffragette City
Aladdin Sane (1913-1938-197?)
All the Young Dudes
Cracked Actor
Rock 'n' Roll With Me
Watch That Man
Knock on Wood (Eddie Floyd cover)
Diamond Dogs
Big Brother
The Width of a Circle
The Jean Genie
Rock 'n' Roll Suicide
Obviously, I can't remember everything about a show I saw almost 50 years ago. Love that he did "Knock on Wood" by Memphian Eddie Floyd and Steve Cropper. I do remember being at the show and Bowie being high up over the stage in what I remember being a cherry picker but from what Tom describes some other mechanism lifted him high into the air a couple of times during the show. I remember the show starting with him above the stage. I may be wrong about that it was a long time ago.
@@memphokid ...fat Luther or skinny Luther ?? ..
I’m a couple years older than you, but I wasn’t allowed to go to a concert then. My first real concert was the Stones at the Liberty Bowl, July 4, 1975. I was 15, and that was pushing it for my parents.
I did see Bowie at least twice at the old roundhouse. I think the first time was the Station to Station tour. I’ve still got all the stubs. I need to dig them out, because memory fades, but I saw some great shows at Ellis and mid-South.
I was at that Stones show on July 4th. Billy Preston on keyboards. Furry Lewis, The Meters, and J. Geils Band opened. The next year July 4, 1976 was ZZ Top, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Blue Oyster Cult, The Outlaws and Point Blank played at the Liberty Bowl.
I for one will always love David Bowie stories just so you know and my favorite line so far is the greedy people weren’t around yet.
Thank you Otis once again❤️
More stories from this dude please.
Diamond Dogs is my favourite Bowie album. Nothing else like it.
If I recall correctly they had to ditch half of that set for the tour at some point because it was costing a fortune to transport it across the U.S.
I first saw Bowie in Detroit for the Ziggy Stardust tour. I snuck out of the house wearing high heeled platform shoes and a glitter shirt
I've only seen the ARTIST twice - back in the early seventies. The music he made back in those times is attached to my very soul, and so many memories and some heartbreak. Hunky Dory, The Man Who Sold the World, Ziggy, Pinups, Aladdin Sane, Station to Station....the quintessential, jolting sound of the opening cover song of Pinups - Rosalyn the [to me] haunting memories of Sorrow. This masterful collection will never leave me, much like the 'Long blonde hair with her eyes of blue' girl that I saw Mr. Jones with the first time. Every time I hear someone like Mr. Battista speak of the old days, it is clear that part of the magic David brought us was because he hired brilliant people and let their own individual talents make the music. But then, I have to stop - before my 68 year-old hillbilly ass falls apart, and something gets in my eye.
Putting out fire with gasoline. Great song. Let's dance was my favorite album. I think SRV played on it
Let's Dance- this guy is great, well spoken and a great storyteller!
A brilliant and gracious man. There are too many songs to pick a favorite. Many writers were impressed by his Berlin trilogy of albums, to which I feel I must point out that the three albums, Diamond Dogs, Young Americans, and Station to Station are the more impressive trilogy imho.
REBEL REBEL
Thank you OTIS GIBBS for all your work and dedication 👏 friend
Rebel Rebel is my favorite Bowie song. My roommate in college was a big Bowie fan and his life's goal was to someday meet Bowie. I lost touch with him, but I hope he achieved his goal before David passed.
Love all his work. When I was a kid Mom took us to South Beach (Miami Beach 67) where the neighbor kid, and I would swim in the surf. On the radio at the time was "A Space Oddity," and I think I remember thinking over there, and I would point to the east is Europe, and point again to where I thought Spain was. And then, I'd point to the U.K, and say "thats where the David Bowie comes from." We were so young, and the music was so good. Bless
Wow. I remember David Bowie talking about the lift getting stuck for a long time at one of the shows. Bowie was up in the air singing stationary. That's cool you talked to him.
This was filmed at Kan Kan Cinema in Indianapolis, you should stop and visit them sometime! kankanindy.com/
" golden years " is my favorite bowie song, just one out of dozens. i got a crazy bowie story for ya, but it's about me and the two mikes, not bowie so much. me and the two mikes studied german in high school and we went to live near hamburg in 1974 on a school exchange program. we were 16. bowie is playing hamburg, so we get tickets and go. the crowd sits there in their seats, quiet like they are at church. no yelling, no partying, no nothing. everyone just sits there through the show. we had bought some hash, but we couldn't smoke it in there because we stuck out like sore thumbs. the ushers were on us in seconds, so we went into the men's room to spark up. me and one mike are in a stall taking a turn smoking, while the other mike -- a big kid -- is watching out for us outside the stall. a cop comes along and wants to know what's up and big mike just hauls off and busts him in the nose. the cop is out cold on the floor and big mike had to drag him away from the door so we could get out. we didn't stay around to watch the show any more and we skedaddled like it was a land rush. we weren't proud of what we did, but we were 16 years old. we got away OK and i saw bowie in boston in 2002 without breaking any laws or noses.
Thanks again!! Man you're videos so appreciated 👍. Make an old man go back in time.
I grew up listening to Bowie. My mom always had him on the 8-track in the car. I saw him live a couple times in the 80s. Fav song(s) Heros and Life On Mars. Thanks for posting these stories.
Thanks so much for doing this, Otis! I first saw DB on Tom's first tour in 1974, then went on to see him 5 more times, in1978,1983,1987,1990,2004. I feel like the luckiest person on the planet. Tom Battista is a treasure of wonderful stories. Always love to hear them..... What a great collaboration! Too many "fave songs" of David Bowie to mention, but oh how I miss his wonderful voice. Still chills when I hear him. The world lost so much when he left this realm.
I have many favorite Bowie songs. I will say Ashes To Ashes." It was a great continuation of the story with some good surprises. I saw David on the Diamond Dogs tour in Montreal. Fantastic! I saw a lot of people dressed up wedding gowns.
Love you guys. Thanks for sharing these stories with us all.
The Glass Spider tour was the first concert that I paid $20 to see. $20 was a lofty ticket price back then. I was not disappointed.
I have seen David Bowie twice in Ahoy Rotterdam. It was great.
Diamond Dogs was the first LP I bought, at the innocent age of 9. Wow, that evokes some memories! Thanks for your great channel and stories. Just found it and now I won't let go, that's a promise!
"If you pull up in a limo they are going to let you in." - excellent.
Sound and vision, cygnet committee, Starman, she's got medals.
What a lucky fella. Such a great memory. Bowie was pretty much coked out of his head on that tour. He's not wrong about him weighing about 98lbs. He was living on coke and peppers. I can imagine Luther becoming a prima donna.
The Width of a Circle
Well, that's show biz! 😂😂
Great story, Tom! Thank you 🙏
Nothing quite like working stage crew. At least you caught the bridge issue before a show. I'll have to go looking for pictures of that model stage.
Also, hard to imagine Kuther Vandross as a "nobody"...
Thank you, Otis, for capturing these stories 🙏
Be good to you 🤍
Thanks for a great channel !!! I was at the Phoenix show and it was mind blowing , I think he only ever did 26 Ziggy shows . I love this kind of behind the scene stuff nobody presents it better , thanks Otis !
I don’t have a single favorite - that’s too hard. But if I had to answer, I’d include a list: rock n roll suicide, kooks, cracked actor, and… wait, no I can’t even get a list going - there’s too many great songs But space oddity changed me forever. I was watching tv on my own and it was a variety show. I have no idea what show it was or even what the time frame was, other than I was quite young. Apologies if I have misremembered anything. Bowie came on set in a flashy white jumpsuit with these crazy lapels and carrying a large acoustic guitar. He played Space Odddity, and my mind was blown. I became a huge fan right then and there.
The stage set was designed for an artist called Jobriath. An author called Robert Cchrane has written a great book about it.
love what you do and how you do it, Otis! 'under pressure' with Mercury is EPIC!
Slightly off subject. Just wanted to say your CDs arrived within 10 days, and I’m enjoying them very much. Wish I could catch a live show sometime. Thanks for making fine music, Otis.
I'm glad they made it to ya and thanks for the support! It's much appreciated. : )
He had alot of creative input on his shows...I saw his drawings on the Bowie V&A project and was even more inspired if you could get anymore inspired by the guy. He was one of a kind and his laugh well I loved his laugh. He was the epitome of creativity...had great teams of creative and talented people.
Beautiful. Thank you.
Not a moment of hesitation. Fashion. One of the coolest songs ever written.
I love that your channel is this diverse. I grew up on everything from George Jones to Iggy Pop and The Stooges.
'Station to Station' LP tour. "Golden Years" was the hit then. Great song. Only time I saw him live. (Earl Slick on guitar.)
Fabulous to hear such stories.
"stay" is my favorite...earl slick on guitar was awesome
Cool, I’m from Newburgh, NY! I grew up right next to where those sets are built. It’s New Windsor technically 😉
Up The Hill Backwards ~ It’s a true gem of a song.
COOL COOL.THANKS FOR POSTING. THANKS TO TOM FOR THE STORY
This is great stuff thanks
This had to be the Diamond Dogs tour. That had to be awesome! David Sanborn is fantastic and that whole David Live album is unreal. Listen to that album and it will blow you away.
My favourite Bowie album... Got a bit of stick when it came out for technical reasons but I never thought of that, I just listened to the interpretations of some of his best work. Amazing. Earl Slick is my guitar god too...
“The greedy people weren’t around yet.”
Thanks for sharing this is cool stuff!!
I saw Bowie in Hartford CT....Can't remember when exactly. His Stage Setup was better than anything! I can't believe I getting the back story!!
I'm so impressed. I'm going with "China Doll" and " Let's Dance"... ty Otis
Great stories. Liking your channel. My favourite David Bowie song .. at the moment is Black Tie White Noise
Tom and Sherrie are absolute stellar people!
Hi! Looks like our man David Bowie lives on in our hearts Big Love! I really love Kooks! Next week I'll tell you my favorite favorite song in that new moment! Lol, rock on!
What a fabulous raconteur. Great work, love what you're doing Otis. My fav Bowie song is probably Heroes. However, Five Years and
Rock 'n' Roll Suicide are tied really as my all time most meaningful emotionally connected songs of his. First time I heard him was Ziggy, and life was never the same. I suppose when Tom Battista says "Bruce" he means Springsteen trying to get more gigs in NYC?
Great stories!
Great story. Thanks
What a nice idea. Great little stories from real people about the hardest business you can get in. Really interesting, thank you for all the stuff !
Bowie: I once knew a bunch of danish young lads, for them, Bowie was a god. They always talked about him with low whispering voices full admiring his look and his eyes and it was kind of religious. We sat down and just listened to the whole albums, and waited for some moments we could find in these songs. Mystic. We loved him from our hearts, he touched us so basicly, he is a real europian, a british mate, he had his hands on every emotion we could grow into. Those days are gone, and nothing comes behind... what a short time we had with these real handmade music.
Yes indeed, Bowie had that certain thing that made him a star. Although, I wonder why he was not more of a supporter of his band members. He was very self centered and did some very low class things to some very good people.
Good story.
Precious moments to remember.
Wonderful stories x
I can't pick a favorite song, but I do love the thin white duke era as far as visual. A good story is the best currency. Thanks
This question, ah! Ashes to Ashes, Lazarus, Where Are We Now?, Slow Burn, and……… too hard to even continue, plus I could never pick one song of his as he changed so much album to album, and I love all of it!!!
Very good!
Tom B. …!! Man, I’m 67,semi retired carpenter.. and guitar/bass “hobbyist…I’ve been on and run some really interesting jobs… But I gotta tell ya..in my next incarnation I’m gonna come back as a roustabout for touring bands… You’re obviously a very hardworking,talented…AND lucky man..!!
God Blues ya..! ✌🏼😎
great memories playing and singing Moonage Daydream with friends lakeside outside New York
I cant pick a favorite Bowie song unless I were to pick my fav from every album he ever made, I am kind of a fan :-)
great GREAT story
Bowie was unique,turned down a knighthood what a guy!
The heroes tour 78 for me , mind-blowing
I just started playing bass (as a hobby) a few years back and if you ever stop and listen to the amazing bass riffs to EVERY Bowie song it will give you a new appreciation for the songs! Gail Ann Dorsey (certainly not discounting every bass player Bowie enlisted, always surrounding himself with great talent)!! Panic in Detroit (wake the neighbors with this one), Heroes, TVC15, The Jean Genie, Suffragette City (updating list as the Bowie playlist blares in the background!)... the list goes on.
My Favorite Bowie song is " Changes " Learn to face the strange, ch ch ch ch Changes!!
Interesting insights. Zappa, Bowie, Bellew.
My favorite Bowie song? That's impossible! There are too many.
January 10, 2016, two days after his birthday... two days before mine. D.R.J. RIP. To me, that was like what it probably was for older generations when Elvis died. The loss was indescribable.
Station to Station, Stay, Major Tom
David Bowie ❤❤❤❤❤
Moonage DD, thank you.
fave song I m deranged
Heroes
Heard RnR Suicide yesterday. Love that one
Wow luther vandross!!!!
Queen Bitch was my favorite . I love a good riff and that song has one
Corydon Indiana, bro my hometown.
I think I saw that set.
Saw the Ziggy tour @ MSG, still got the ticket...
'Suffragette City' was a great rocker..I always wanted to learn it when I was playing the dance clubs. I wonder if it would translate to an acoustic guitar now..hmmm
Twisted Sister used to cover Suffragette City when they were still a Long Island (NY) bar band on the cusp of a record contract, circa approximately 1978 or so. Diamond Dogs, too.
Ha! I know exactly what he was talking about. The first time I saw Bowie, there was this humongous Hunger City set for Diamond Dogs at Madison Square Garden in July '75. I went to see Diamond Dogs again a few months later, in November, at Radio City. It was an entirely different show. The set was gone, Bowie was in a suit with his hair slicked back and he had Luther Vandross, Ava Cherry and Robin ? singing backup. It was interesting to hear his remarks about Luther.
So was the Radio City show the one that became the "David Live" album ? With TOO much saxophone? Also - was the MSG concert more "Glam Rock" ?? How did the shows differ - MUSICALLY ?????
Thanks for sharing your story! Did you build that cabin?
I'd like to hear more Luther Vandross stories. Jack-in-the-box! Man I wish I was in that picture!!
Fav song is a tough one, but I'd have to say the title track off of Station to Station.
Probably The rare early Version of Major Tom from the movie or Sation to Station.