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The Ziggy Stardust
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Palin, Will: Equipment manager/roadie on the 1972 US and subsequent Ziggy Stardust Tours and creator of Underhill Rehearsal Studio in Greenwich, London.

"I remember all the fantastic times, the excitement, the breathtaking 'breaking-new-ground'.  Do you remember how "The Jean Genie" was written on that chartered Greyhound (NYC/Cleveland/Nashville/NYC - not sure guess I need to look up the old diary).  Anyhow it went something like: "Bus, Bus Bus, - we're going 'Busin'!" was the jam that Mick and I started!  Next thing you know we're loading-in the backline to RCA's studio in New York and a 'classic' is born.  What's the name of the girl with short blond hair I have always thought of as Genie? (Ed: thats Cyrinda Foxe!). That was all before the band and crew decided to fly; leaving David to catch-up by car and Am Track:  Beverly Hills Hotel was something else for a 21 year-old 'roadie'!  How long did we have to wait there?  Two weeks I think!" - Will Palin (2001) to Angie Bowie

"Panic In Detroit" (Bowie): Song on ALADDIN SANE (1973) performed on the 2nd US Tour and the 3rd UK Tour. It was written in Los Angeles after Bowie spent a night with Iggy Pop who reminisced about violence in Detroit, and for the purposes of the song, Bowie therefore portrayed Pop as a dangerous political radical.

Parmar, Daniella: Girlfriend of Freddi Burretti who assisted him with making costumes for the Ziggy Stardust concerts. Bowie credited them as being the formidable fashion duo from London. This was to be virtually a full time job for them with Angela Bowie helping out as well.  Bowie credits her as being the first woman he had seen with peroxided hair colour and convincing him of the importance of a synthetic hair colour for Ziggy.

Pastor, Terry (of Main Artery): Artist and illustrator for the album cover of THE RISE AND FALL OF ZIGGY STARDUST AND THE SPIDERS FROM MARS (1972). See more here.

Pennebaker, (Richard) D.A: American film-maker who produced and directed filming of the last Ziggy Stardust concert at the Hammersmith Odeon, London on 3 July 1973. The film of the event was shown once on ABC TV in October 1974, then it premiered at the Edinburgh Film Festival on 31 August 1979 and finally was released in 1983 as ZIGGY STARDUST - THE MOTION PICTURE.

PINUPS (1973)

PINUPS (1973) was released after ALADDIN SANE (1973).

PINUPS (1973)

Pitt, Kenneth: Bowie's manager and mentor from 1966 to 1970 until he was superseded by Tony DeFries. Under Pitt, Bowie recorded his first album (titled DAVID BOWIE (1968)) and made his first film (LOVE YOU TILL TUESDAY (1969)) from which the single "Space Oddity" evolved. Bowie and Angela surprised Pitt by visiting him at his flat on 10 May 1973 after the Japanese Tour, and gave him tickets for the Rainbow Theatre concert. He has written a comprehensive account of Bowie's early days in The Pitt Report.

Pop, Iggy (real name Jimmy Osterberg): American singer/songwriter and close friend of Bowie. Bowie remixed the album RAW POWER (1973) after an early poor attempt at mixing by Iggy Pop. Bowie was also to rescue Iggy Pop from an American mental institution in the mid Seventies and then resurrect his career by co-writing and producing THE IDIOT (1976) and LUST FOR LIFE (1977).

Intro to RAW POWER: Iggy & the Stooges 1972 by Mick Rock

"Twenty-eight years is a long time. It’s not always easy to go back. But 1972 was a potent year for rock n’ roll, for London, and for me. I saw (and photographed), the rise of Ziggy Stardust, Mott the Hoople’s All the Young Dudes, the surfacing of Lou Reed with the Bowie/ Mick Ronson produced Transformer (and its key cut Walk on the Wild Side), and Raw Power (which wasn’t released until 1973, but was recorded, mixed and photographed in 1972). I don’t recall it like it was yesterday, but I do recall certain shiny moments in a year that transformed all our lives. Iggy & the Stooges....Now therein lies a tale or two or three. Genius comes in strange packages. I knew that the Punkmeister had it the first time I heard the immortal couplet: “1969 OK All across the USA” Such resonance in such minimal form; fuck, I knew this guy was a pure poet. David Bowie introduced me to Jim Osterberg at a welcome party he had organised for Jim’s first UK visit at some little veggie restaurant off Westbourne Grove, where everyone sat on the floor, in the early summer of 1972. David had often riffed enthusiastically to me about the Ig, who in many ways was the inspiration for (Z)iggy Stardust. He swapped tales of Iggy for stories of Syd Barrett, an intimate of mine. The very informed (and very hip) of London at that time had heard apocalyptic stories of peanut butter, broken glass and blood, and I maybe expected someone of an outrageous, outgoing nature, so I was struck by how quiet, polite, almost shy, Jim was. Shortly after I bore witness to the other side of this unique coin at a concert at the recently converted La Scala cinema in King’s Cross, the Stooges’ one and only show ever in the UK. Even the early albums and the tales of gore hadn’t prepared me (or any of us). Remember this was 1972 (although the Stooges in some form had been on and off the game since 1967). A rock ‘n’ roll lifetime before the advent of the Sex Pistols and ‘Punk Rock’. For a London lad this was an unprecedented experience. Here was a ‘monster’ in the Shakespearian sense, elemental, a force of nature. To quote myself: ‘He was like something caged and very angry about it. Something dreamed up by Karl Jung...Dionysius in silver, breaking out...’ I remember feeling distinctly intimidated, even as I boldly aimed my lens at him. He appeared so much bigger in the frame than I knew him to be. He had undergone a complete and dangerous transformation, and I was totally fascinated. Little did I comprehend how great a resonance the images I was collecting would have. How could any of us have known the legendary status this concert would attain. It seemed to last a lifetime (although it was in fact only 40 minutes) and it changed everything. There was no blood and broken glass, but we were all riveted and devastated by the ritual enacted before us. Never was there a truer description - ‘Raw Power’! The stuff of narcotics and nightmares.... A couple of weeks later Iggy’s manager Tony Defries (also Bowie’s manager) called me. Two or three publications needed recent Stooges pics en groupe and there were none. It wasn’t a commission (nor was the King’s Cross session). Tony didn’t believe in paying for photographs. But he understood my enthusiasm and my naivete, and knew that I would jump at the opportunity (which I did). In those days I came very cheap (I even paid all expenses). In truth, nobody valued rock photography very highly at the time. But I didn’t care. I got my kicks out of aiming my lens; everything else was unimportant and my material needs were modest. I had one camera and two lenses (a normal and a wide angle) and my red sneakers, and I was flying. It took me a while to locate the trashed out basement rehearsal studio off the Fulham Road, but I was buzzed. I had tracked the Stooges to their lair, and they were to be mine for a whole hour! There was no brief. There never was in those days. Just grab a fistful of frames and get out. But it was my nature to linger and probe around, to cram as much variety as I could into a few modest rolls of film. And in fact, the Stooges were glad to see me. They were bored with rehearsing for the upcoming ‘Raw Power’ recording sessions, and I provided respite and distraction. It wasn’t as if they were inundated by attention, or local photographers kicking down the door desperate to immortalise them! Those were very different times and there were few shutterbugs on the music scene. I was the only one who shot them on their ‘Raw Power’ jaunt. First I recorded the Stooges as a group, then later individually (which, of course, meant mostly Iggy). They were very co-operative, and I remember it was Iggy’s idea to be shot embracing the toilet bowl! Iggy and Ron Asheton were communicative although James Williamson was the most voluble, while Scott Asheton hardly mumbled a note. I remember James explaining to me that the Stooges’ attention could wander easily, and not linger too long with one set-up: a hint I readily took. Certainly the location and circumstances were ideal for the Stooges. I worked with the available light (3 or 4 bare light bulbs hanging from the ceiling) and a long exposure or a small flash on the camera. ‘Raw’ was what we got and it was of course perfect. As I always did in those early years, I processed all the black and white photos myself. Some of the negatives are even somewhat fogged. Who knows why, but that only seems to add to the overall flavour. A key point to note is that none of these photos (King’s Cross or the basement) were shot with an album package in mind, and of course the Stooges hadn’t even begun to record. The decision to use them came a few months later in New York where I was lensing Ziggy Stardust’s first US tour, when CBS decided they wanted Bowie to remix the album and to release it in early 1973. Since these were the only recent photos available, out of necessity they made the grade. In their largesse, CBS even paid me a couple of hundred dollars! And I’m sure I was grateful for the pittance! It was great to be young and not give a damn about such trivial matters as geld. The beauty of it all is that as copyright owner of these images which have become an indelible part of rock n’ roll lore, my naivete has been rewarded many times over in the years in-between. Time and again life has proven itself to be wild and unpredictable, I’m grateful to say. My advice to young photographers: Hang on to your copyrights. It’s been a privilege and a pleasure and I’m glad I’ve got the pics to bear witness. May your raw power pump forever, Igmeister. Thanks for the magic." © Mick Rock 1999

Pork: Name of Andy Warhol's notorious underground play supported and attended on a number of occasions by Bowie and Angela in London during its performance from 2-28 August 1971. A number of its UK cast were to later become MainMan employees specifically tasked with promoting Bowie.

"Port of Amsterdam" aka "Amsterdam" (Jacques Brel/M.Shuman): Song covered by Bowie and a regular acoustic number on the 1st UK Tour only. The original version is on Brel's album titled LA CHANSON FRANCAISE. A Bowie studio version of the song was recorded during the Trident sessions for THE RISE AND FALL OF ZIGGY STARDUST AND THE SPIDERS FROM MARS (1972) but was only released later as the B-side of "Sorrow/Port of Amsterdam." (RCA 2424 - 28 September 1973). It is included as a bonus track on the PIN-UPS (1973) CD. See also "My Death."

"Prettiest Star, The" (Bowie): Originally a single and then re-recorded for ALADDIN SANE (1973) and performed only on the 2nd US Tour. Marc Bolan was the guitarist on the original Bowie single version of "The Prettiest Star/Conversation Piece" (Mercury MF.1135 - 6 March 1970) which can be heard on SOUND + VISION I (1989).

 

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---This page last modified: 16 Jan 2019---

Ziggy Stardust Scarf (1973)