“He wanted to stay home, I wish someone would phone”
The Spring issue (#115) of CLASH magazine has David Bowie as one of four different covers. With a theme of STAY HOME, apparently CLASH wants to use this latest issue as “a means to break down the barriers of self-isolation, to supply a sense of community at a time when many of us feel alone.”
They go on to say: “David Bowie turned isolation into an art form. Transforming himself into an alien outsider, his 1972 album 'The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars' flipped pop on its head, its metallic crunch exploding how rock could communicate.”
In celebration of the recent reissue of Mick Rock’s superb photo book, TASCHEN’s The Rise of David Bowie 1972-1973, Robin Murray interviews the photographer for the Bowie feature…
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“What conclusions do I come to?” Mick ponders aloud. “David was very articulate, he was very intelligent, and he did great interviews. So that helped a lot. He would talk about the future – he loved science fiction and philosophy. David was a very avid reader. He was highly self-educated. He was a man of great curiosity. He wanted to know about things. And of course he pushed it all forwards – not just music… but culturally in a huge way. And his legacy is amazing. It doesn’t stop. People’s interest in him is as high as it’s ever been.”
“But I loved him,” Mick adds, with an assertive bite to his voice. “He was a very kind man. He was personally very kind. He was very inspirational, and of course he was physically a very good-looking man. Which was a nice thing for photographers!”
There’s a sense of moments slipping away into the ether as our conversation draws to a close. “It was a magical time for me, and David was the most magical of them all,” he says. “And I miss him.”
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Also featured in this issue is H.E.R, Ryan Beatty, Alicia Keys, Kim Petras, Mae Muller, Inhaler, Gorillaz, Graham Coxon, Cavetown, Shaggy, and many more. Other covers to follow this week.
#BowieClash #BowieMickRock #BowieTASCHEN