“David Bowie redefined the popular perception of gender identity, and blurred the lines between the previously incompatible realms of high and popular culture. With no sop to hyperbole, it is quite simply impossible to overstate David Bowie’s impression on the cultural landscape of the past 40 years.” — Digby Warde-Aldam (2016)
David Bowie’s lasting impact on pop culture is unequivocally forever carved in history. How did ‘Ziggy Stardust’ help him break through sexuality and gender barriers and become a fashion icon, and why is this record culturally important?
“Ziggy played guitar”, sings David Bowie in the titular song of the album this essay will attempt to delve into. However, he also did so much more than that. Bowie, through his flamboyant alter ego Ziggy Stardust and his 1972 record “The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars”, helped change the world in ways no one could have foreseen when the ambitious songwriter from Brixton started making his first, timid steps towards artistic immortality. Yet, with his talent, wit and perseverance he managed to shape and influence pop culture like very few artists have done throughout history. This essay will be focusing on the aforementioned record and subsequent persona of Ziggy Stardust, in an attempt to analyse the manifestations permeated through culture from the record at the time of its release as well as later on and up to this day. Such concepts will revolve around, yet will not be limited to his ever changing and fluid sexuality, unworldly intertwined with Bowie’s unparalleled sense of fashion and style, their impact and how they remain relevant to this day. David Robert Jones was born in Brixton, London on the 8th of January in 1947 (coincidentally sharing his birthday with another legendary singer/songwriter, Elvis Presley). His fascination with alter egos, which would be broadly demonstrated later in his career was apparent from the early stages of his career, when only but a few years into his musical journey he decided to change his last name and adopt a stage one, the legendary ‘Bowie’ that he would later be widely known as. Due to the recurrent confusion with Davy Jones of The Monkees, in the mid-60s Bowie renamed himself after the 19th-century American pioneer James Bowie and the widely popular knife of the same name that he had created (Buckley, 2005). It took him an entire decade of back and forth with various identities until he settled to ‘Bowie’, trying to shake the label of a plain middle-class boy from London’s suburbs, that he felt Davy 01
Jones represented (Chan, 2016). However, merely altering his surname was simply the first step towards unravelling his talent and imagination. After a few years of experimenting with sounds, ideas, concepts and different bands to very little or no success (his debut album failed to chart), Bowie finally started piecing the puzzle of his creativity with a newly found interest in space and alien life, with aspects of both having an obvious effect not only on his direction musically, but aesthetically as well. Delving into influences from both space exploration and science fiction, he started wearing more feminine, extravagant and outlandish outfits and indulging into the possibilities offered to him through make up and different hairstyles. By the time he had created Ziggy Stardust, he had become “an omnisexual alien rock star” (Light, 2016), a persona who would go on to challenge everything people considered at the time as modest or “proper”, paving the way for artistic, stylistic, sexual or gender-based expression for generations upon generations. Fragments of what he would later accomplish were scattered all around his work from his second album and onwards; from the almost extra-terrestrial single ‘Space Oddity’, inspired by Stanley Kubrick’s film 2001: A Space Odyssey and the-then imminent launch of Apollo 11, the first manned moon landing mission (Goddard, 2013), where Bowie created the fictional hero of the song, astronaut Major Tom, to the intergalactic ‘Life On Mars’, a single included in ‘Hunky Dory’, the record released just before ‘Ziggy Stardust’. All those songs had glimpses of Bowie’s infatuation with space, with his inspiration drawn from the often gender-less depiction of aliens by science fiction films becoming apparent through his own personal style as well as the themes of the songs, preparing the ground for the landing of Ziggy Stardust. There is many an assumption and story as to how David Bowie came up with the name for this alien persona. The artist himself had given various sources regarding his inspiration for the character; notably, Rolling Stone magazine (Light, 2016) quotes him as claiming Ziggy Stardust’s first name taken from a tailor’s shop that he saw from a train, whilst the Guardian mentions it was based on Fifties rock ‘n ‘roll pioneer Vince Taylor, with ‘one of the few Christian names I could find beginning with the letter “Z”’ (Robinson, 2014). It is worth pondering upon Simon Goddard’s research with reference to the origins of the word Ziggy, in his book ‘Ziggyology: A Brief History of Ziggy Stardust” (2013), as he explains how the Babylonians and the Sumerians, ardent enthusiasts of the stars and believers of their power, would erect colossal temples to observe and admire the cosmos, archiving the first known astronomical data. Part of those temples was dedicated to the divine, a shrine devoted to the city’s God. Those temples were named ‘Ziggurats’, meaning ‘higher place’ (Goddard, 2013, p.15). It is therefore interesting to examine the connection of Ziggy to Ziggurats, their etymology and, consequently, to both the spiritual/heavenly and the observation of the stars or the physical universe/space, whether Bowie was aware of it or not. Nevertheless, in order to duly begin to comprehend the album’s cultural importance, it is paramount to understand its own influences in terms of artists and genres. Although the album’s astute influence on the arts and culture usually focuses around how sexually liberating it was and how stylistically instrumental, none of that would have been so highlighted if the 02
record itself was not a brilliant musical endeavour, above all. Consequence of Sound (Jarroush, 2014) and Stereogum (Nelson, 2012) described the record as glam rock and a rock opera respectively, with Stereogum also characterising Ziggy Stardust as “the most recognizable fictional character in all rock music”, a testament to Bowie’s ability to create something new out of his own influences. Thus, musically Bowie was most notably influenced by Iggy Pop, Lou Reed, Jimmy Hendrix and Marc Bolan (Ludwig, 2016), while lyrically he explores themes such as the artificiality of rock as well as political issues, drugs, sexual orientation and stardom. Still, despite its obvious influences the record stood as a separate and distinct piece of work; the quirky melodies, the intelligent chord changes and the superb production and instrumentation (courtesy of, amongst others, Mick Ronson) were all integral parts of recordings who were not only an exceptional collection back in 1972, but maintain their freshness to this day, still influencing hundreds of new musicians (Perone, 2007). Of course, the record’s charms were not limited to themes and musical brilliance; and how could they be, when David Bowie was such a diverse, multi-dimensional artist whose restlessness always compelled him to expand his interests beyond music, for instance acting in numerous films throughout his career. His, especially at the time, crowning achievement was bound to be taken care of to the last detail, such as the artwork and packaging. Of the album’s packaging in general, Bowie said: “The idea was to hit a look somewhere between the Malcolm McDowell thing with the one mascaraed eyelash and insects. It was the era of Wild Boys, by William S. Burroughs. [...] [It] was a cross between that and Clockwork Orange that really started to put together the shape and the look of what Ziggy and the Spiders were going to become. [...] Everything had to be infinitely symbolic.” (Griffin, 2016, p. 87) The cover stands as further proof that the cultural importance and influence of the record extends to the multiple ways it has been immortalised; in January 2010, it was among the ten albums chosen by the Royal Mail for a set of “Classic Album Cover” postage stamps issued the same year (Michaels, 2010). “The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars” was released in the UK on the 16th of June, in 1972. With Bowie’s sexuality becoming a perplexing enigma (Wolk, 2015), as well as a flamboyant performance of ‘Starman’ on Top of the Pops (BBC, 1972), the album garnered a lot of attention from the public and critics alike (Inglis, 2013). Commercially, the record did fairly well upon its release, entering the top 10 in the UK by its second week. After it dropped down the chart in late 1972, it started climbing up again, until it peaked at number 5 in February 1973 and certified platinum. In the US, it peaked at number 75 on the Billboard Top LPs & Tape chart in April 1973, and therefore it was certified gold. It is worth mentioning the record returned to the UK chart in 1981, as well as the US Billboard 200 after his death in 2016, peaking at 21, which was a new all-time best (Kirk, 2016). Critically, the reception was equally, if not more positive; the Rolling Stone (Cromelin, 1972) gave it a favourable review of 99 of 100, whilst Circus Magazine (1972) called it a “stunning work of genius”. Retrospectively, the album has been hailed and appreciated universally with its legacy being unquestionably cemented in music history. Publications such as Pitchfork, Rolling Stone, NME, Q Magazine have all ranked it 03
extremely high in their respective best of lists, whilst it has also been included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (Dimery, 2005). Having briefly examined the record’s musical importance, in addition to its backstory, themes, commercial and critical success, it is imperative to further analyse how the choice of Ziggy as Bowie’s alter ego shaped and continues to shape cultures across the world, not only through its musical brilliance and capacity but also through the messages his persona and music were imbued with: sexuality, fashion and style. Thus far, it has been established that the alter ego of ‘Ziggy Stardust’ helped Bowie to feel comfortable in his own skin, express himself and, ultimately, tell the stories he wanted to share with the world. But, what were those stories? The New York Review said in 2013 that “Bowie dressed up when everyone else in pop culture was dressing down” (Ford, 2016). Ergo, defied the norm and what was considered ordinary or appropriate at the time. With his androgynous look and his ever changing, fluid sexuality he inspired not only the youth of the era Ziggy ‘lived’ in, but generations after it. Notably, Boy George admitted his impact in 2016 that after witnessing him live during the album’s tour, saying “Bowie gave me permission to be me. He validated me, he allowed me to be different and to embrace that difference.”, while Lady Gaga created her own alter ego Jo Calderone years later in 2011, a male character that proves gender does not have to define, nor limit an artist’s expressive vision (Smith, 2018). An important fact in showcasing how Bowie’s journey onboard the Ziggy Stardust spaceship was a perilous one, is that Britain in the 70s was not exactly a haven for gay people. Bowie’s blatant femininity was a bold and risky statement, as it had only been a mere three years since homosexuality in the UK had become legal; meanwhile, the Gay Liberation Front had just been established in response to growing concerns over omnipresent homophobic incidents (Thompson, 2016). Despite Ziggy’s apparent femininity, there was a certain degree of ambiguity in regard to Bowie’s actual sexual orientation. First of all, Bowie himself never committed to defining and therefore limiting himself; he had been on record as admitting being gay, bisexual or even heterosexual at times (Walters, 2016; Ford, 2016; McCormick, 2016). What that proved to the public was the fact that you could wear a skirt and still not be gay. You could put make up and a dress on, and yet that would not make you someone simply dressed up as a girl. Ziggy Stardust defied gender conventions, broke sex norms, shocked the world and allowed people to accept themselves and embrace what made them different (Smith, 2018; Aston, 2016). Nevertheless, Bowie’s inspirations and aspirations in regard to his stage appearance were not solely intertwined with his sexuality, but rather an ardent interest in alien and extravagant visuals and style; in his own words, he “felt very puny as a human. I thought, F*ck that. I want to be a superhuman.’’ (Hawking, 2013). One of Bowie’s major influences for the artistic direction and construction of his eccentric and jaunty character, was the ancient dance-drama theatre ‘kabuki’, tracing back to the very beginning of the 1600s. ‘Kabuki’(to deviate; to be different), was characterised by the excessive use of make-up, sexual tension as well as cross dressing, as both male and female parts were acted by women; something that would change in 1629, when the aforementioned eroticism resulted in riots and the eventual banning of kabuki played by women.(Goddard, 2013). Shortly thereafter, men would claim it the roles 04
would be completely reversed, with them now assuming the acting of both male and female roles, with the same heavy use of make-up and extravagant clothing. Bowie, infatuated by the concept, started using costumes designed by Kansai Yamamoto, and more specifically jumpsuits inspired by the ‘kabuki’ tradition (Goddard, 2013). Eventually, after being contacted by a friend, Yamamoto flew to New York and witnessed Bowie’s show in person. He was left wonderstruck and as a result ended up working with Bowie on future outfits (Garratt, 2016). Yamamoto would later explain that this was the first time he was seeing one of his creations being used by an artist or singer, as they were always made for models. He claimed that instance felt like “the beginning of a new era” (Garratt, 2016). That collaboration was so legendary, that in 2014 the famed model Kate Moss received an award on Bowie’s behalf at the Brit Awards, wearing an actual Ziggy costume from 1972 no less (Sowray, 2014). Amongst further influences Bowie borrowed from was the styling for another Stanley Kubrick film, “Clockwork Orange” and other collaborations included a whole collection by Freddie Burretti, prior to the album’s release in 1972, preparing the ground for what was about to follow (Goddard, 2013). Obvious as it may be how well thought out and manifested Ziggy Stardust’s style was, his true greatness lies within his influence. Apart from his then contemporary (Boy George) and future peers (Lady Gaga), Bowie as Ziggy influenced a vast array of other artists and designers. Some of them are Givenchy and Jean Paul Gaultier, who, after Bowie’s death in 2016 wrote in Out Magazine that “I was living in Paris when I first experienced Bowie’s music, and the influence was instant and permanent” (Gaultier, 2016). Furthermore, it could be argued that Ziggy inspired and influenced Bowie’s own later alter egos, like the Thin White Duke or Aladdin Sane. Bowie’s continued and restless journey throughout fashion, initially sparked by and perfected with Ziggy Stardust, would go on to catapult him to fashion stardom, granting him cameos in films such as Zoolander, or commercials such as the famed 2014 Louis Vuitton release, while other notable designers heavily inspired by him were Alexander McQueen and Balmain (Garratt, 2016). Such was Ziggy’s (and Bowie’s as a whole) impact on fashion, style and generally the visual, that in 2013 Victoria and Albert Museum curated an entire exhibition dedicated to him, that would prove so popular it would travel to further museums and galleries all around the world, such as the Groninger Museum in the Netherlands and an international tour, including Japan in 2017, where his Ziggy costumes by Yamamoto were highlighted. At the opening of the exhibition in V&A, Tilda Swinton was invited to make a speech, and acknowledged how it was the image rather than the music that first drew her into his world (V&A Network, 2013). ‘The Rise and the Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars’ has been so salient in the cultural landscape from the moment of its release until today, it is simply impossible to overstate its influence. It paved the way not only for David Bowie’s future alter egos, but for other musicians’ artistic expression ever since, helping them overcome their personal struggles and realise their potential, much like Bowie himself, as he explained in 1973: “Offstage, I’m a robot. Onstage, I achieve emotion. It’s probably why I prefer dressing up as Ziggy to being David.” (Ford, 2016). ‘Ziggy Stardust’ stands as a pinnacle of sexual liberation, artistic illustration and gender exploration, influencing and encouraging the 05
youth of every generation that has come and gone from the moment it landed on planet Earth. Such was its importance in Bowie’s career, that an upcoming biopic on him is aptly named ‘Ziggy’(Beaumont, 2020), while in 2018 Elon Musk in association with NASA sent one of his cars into space and towards Mars, with ‘Starman’ playing from its speakers, potentially for millions of years, ‘floating in the most peculiar way’ somewhere in space; a more than fitting homage to a human whose penchant for the stars and space almost fooled everyone he was from a different universe (Malkin, 2018). Ziggy will always be synonymous with David Bowie, who, as Gary Oldman put it in his speech at the Brit Awards tribute after his passing, was “the very definition, the living embodiment of that singular word: icon.” (BRITs, 2016). But ‘Ziggy Stardust’ is more than a beacon for the obscure. It is the proof that you can be different, you can be peculiar, and you can do all that whilst still excelling at your craft; for ‘The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars’ stands today not just as a culturally significant record, with a niche audience. Having sold an estimated 7.5 million copies worldwide (Dee, 2012), it stands as one of the most successful, critically and commercially records ever made— an album so well written, produced and executed on stage, that it will forever endure the test of time and transcend genres, trends or movements.
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Garratt, S. (2016) ‘David Bowie’s style legacy: ‘He stole ideas from everywhere’’, The Guardian, January 11. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/jan/11/david-bowie-style-icon-fashion-legacyaladdin-sane (Accessed: 10 May 2020). Gaultier, J. P. (2016) ‘My Bowie: Jean Paul Gaultier’, Out Magazine, January 11. Available at: https://www. out.com/fashion/2013/03/13/my-bowie-jean-paul-gaultier (Accessed: 15 May 2020). Goddard, S. (2013) Ziggyology: A Brief History of Ziggy Stardust. 1st ed. London: Ebury Press. Griffin, R. (2016) David Bowie: The Golden Years. 1st ed. London: Omnibus Press. Hawking, T. (2013) ‘The Collected Wisdom of David Bowie’, Flavorwire, March 15. Available at: https:// www.flavorwire.com/377621/the-collected-wisdom-of-david-bowie (Accessed: 15 May 2020). Inglis, I. (2013). Performance and Popular Music: History, Place and Time. 2nd ed. Hampshire: Ashgate Publishing Limited. Jarroush, S. (2014) ‘Masterpiece Reviews: “David Bowie – The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars”’, Consequence Of Sound, July 8. Available at: https://consequenceofsound.net/video/ masterpiece-reviews-david-bowie-the-rise-and-fall-of-ziggy-stardust-and-the-spiders-from-mars/ (Accessed: 17 May 2020). Kirk, A. (2016) ‘David Bowie: The legendary singer in numbers’, The Telegraph, January 11. Available at: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/music/music-news/12092955/David-Bowie-The-legendary-singer-in-numbers.html (Accessed: 17 May 2020). Light, A. (2016) ‘‘Ziggy Stardust’: How Bowie Created the Alter Ego That Changed Rock’, Rolling Stone, June 16. Available at: https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/ziggy-stardust-how-bowie-createdthe-alter-ego-that-changed-rock-55254/ (Accessed: 13 May 2020). Ludwig, J. (2016) ‘David Bowie’s Spirit of Transgression Made Him Metal Before Metal Existed’, VICE, January 13. Available at: https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/rnwkzg/bowie-metal-impact (Accessed: 15 May 2020). Malkin, B. (2018) ‘SpaceX oddity: how Elon Musk sent a car towards Mars’, The Guardian, February 07. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/science/2018/feb/07/space-oddity-elon-musk-spacex-car-marsfalcon-heavy (Accessed: 10 May 2020).
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McCormick, J. (2016), ‘How David Bowie challenged public perceptions of sexuality’, Pink News, January 11. Available at: https://www.pinknews.co.uk/2016/01/11/how-david-bowie-challenged-public-perceptions-of-sexuality/ (Accessed: 15 May 2020). Michaels, S. (2010) ‘Coldplay album gets stamp of approval from Royal Mail’, The Guardian, January 8. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2010/jan/08/coldplay-album-stamp-approval (Accessed: 15 May 2020). Nelson, M. (2012) ‘Top 10 Rock Operas That Deserve A Stage Adaptation’, Stereogum, November 5. Available at: https://www.stereogum.com/1192682/top-10-rock-operas-that-deserve-a-stage-adaptation/photo/ attachment/bowie/ (Accessed: 17 May 2020). Perone, J. E. (2007). The Words and Music of David Bowie. 1st ed. Westport: Praeger Publishers Inc. Robinson, P. (2004) ‘The Rise & Fall Of Ziggy Stardust & The Spiders From Mars, David Bowie’, The Guardian, June 20. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2004/jun/20/shopping.davidbowie (Accessed: 17 May 2020). Smith, K. D. (2018) ‘How has Bowie’s exploration of gender influenced modern art and culture?’, Medium, March 05. Available at: https://medium.com/@kirstydiana/how-has-bowies-exploration-of-gender-influenced-modern-art-and-culture-400f70d14cc3 (Accessed: 15 May 2020). Sowray, B. (2014) ‘Brit Awards 2014: Kate Moss slips into David Bowie’s costume’, Fashion Telegraph, February 20. Available at: http://fashion.telegraph.co.uk/news-features/TMG10650767/Brit-Awards-2014Kate-Moss-slips-into-David-Bowies-costume.html (Accessed: 17 May 2020). Thompson, R. (2016) ‘How David Bowie pushed the boundaries of gendered fashion’, Mashable UK, January 11. Available at: https://mashable.com/2016/01/11/david-bowie-genderless-fashion/?europe=true (Accessed: 11 May 2020). V&A Network (2013) ‘Tilda Swinton’s dinner speech at the opening of David Bowie is’,V&A, March 21. Available at: https://www.vam.ac.uk/blog/news/tilda-swintons-dinner-speech-opening-david-bowie (Accessed 17 May 2020). Walters, B. (2016) ‘David Bowie, Sexuality and Gender: A Rebel Who Changed the Face of Music’, Billboard, January 14. Available at: https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/magazine-feature/6843021/david-bowie-sexuality-gender-rebellion-changing-music (Accessed: 12 May 2020).
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Warde-Aldam, D. (2016) ‘‘It is impossible to overstate Bowie’s influence on our cultural landscape’’, Apollo, January 11. Available at: https://www.apollo-magazine.com/it-is-impossible-to-overstate-david-bowies-influence-on-our-cultural-landscape/ (Accessed: 11 May 2020). Wolk, D. (2015) ‘David Bowie: Five Years 1969-1973’, Pitchfork, October 01. Available at: https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/21066-five-years-1969-1973/ (Accessed: 17 May2020).
COVER IMAGE Sukita, M. (1973) Watch That Man. Available at: https://www.snapgalleries.com/watch-thatman/ (Accessed: 24 May 2020).
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FURTHER BIBLIOGRAPHY Buruma, I. (2013) ‘The Invention of David Bowie’, The New York Review Of Books, May 23. Available at: https://www.nybooks.com/articles/2013/05/23/invention-david-bowie/?pagination=false&src=longreads (Accessed: 17 May 2020). Carr, R. and Murray, C. S. (1981). David Bowie: An Illustrated Record. 1st ed. New York: Avon Books. Caulfield, K. (2016) ‘David Bowie’s Top 20 Biggest Billboard Hits’, Billboard, January 11. Available at: https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/6836512/david-bowie-top-20-biggest-billboard-hits (Accessed: 15 May 2020). Ferrier, M. (2016) ‘David Bowie: five defining looks – in pictures’, The Guardian, January 11. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/gallery/2016/jan/11/david-bowie-key-looks-pictures (Accessed: 17 May 2020). Watts, M. (2006) ‘Flashback: 22 January 1972: On the cusp of fame, Bowie tells Melody Maker he’s gay - and changes pop for ever.’, The Guardian, January 22. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2006/jan/22/popandrock.davidbowie (Accessed: 17 May 2020).
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