Remembering David Bowie - re-posting the following from January 2016
A sad day, hearing the news of the passing of David Bowie, an otherworldly genius whose magic was that he was so relatable, so down to earth, yet so not of the earth.![]()
A sad day, hearing the news of the passing of David Bowie, an otherworldly genius whose magic was that he was so relatable, so down to earth, yet so not of the earth.
It makes sense that David Bowie’s most famous alter-ego, Ziggy Stardust, was a futuristic alien on a humanitarian mission to earth.
It was January 29th 1972 when Bowie and his band took to the stage in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire for a warm up gig for the ’72-’73 Ziggy Stardust Tour. The chart for that concert* has transiting Sun exactly conjunct Bowie’s Ascendant at 9 Aquarius, symbolising recognition, praise, and the ego projecting brightly out into the world through innovative, unconventional Aquarius.Although Bowie had not yet fully embraced the bisexual alien rock superstar with a message of hope for a dying human race - all the elements were in place. The spiky red hair, the futuristic, androgynous costumes and the ambiguious sexuality**
A Starman was born.
Most of the songs on the Ziggy Stardust album were recorded when Bowie had transiting Neptune Conjunct his natal Venus, a transit for beauty, fantasy, creativity and illusion and by the time of the tour, when the songs were made public, Neptune had moved to his MC. These transits reflect the album’s themes of salvation, soul love and the struggle to hold onto the dream.
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However, when Neptune had finished with his MC, it was time for the illusion to end. Bowie’s natal Moon-Saturn-Pluto conjunction in Leo which straddles his Descendent, foreshadows Ziggy’s very public demise and indeed, by the time Bowie killed Ziggy off on stage in July ’73, shocking fans and bandmates alike, transiting Jupiter had crossed his ASC and was making a series of Oppositions to his natal Moon and Saturn, suggesting that keeping up the public persona of Ziggy had become frustrating, hard work and emotionally draining and explaining his need to get out of the rut and expand his horizons.
Transiting Uranus’ Squares to natal Mars and Sun were over by Autumn ‘72, but they certainly suggest that his desire to kill off his alter ego was not the spur of the moment decision it appeared to be. Transiting Jupiter had crossed his ASC in March that year and by July was making a series of Oppositions to Bowie’s natal Moon-Saturn Conjunction, suggesting that keeping up the public persona of Ziggy had become frustrating, hard work and emotionally demanding hard work and Bowie felt the need to get out of the rut and expand his horizons.
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| "Thank You Very Much, Bye Bye, We Love You" |
But the end of Ziggy was just the end of the start for Bowie and after many years, many albums and many personas later, Bowie has earned his status as a true legend. And now the Starman’s time on earth has come to an end, we can look up to the firmament and smile through our tears, for he has gone home.
“News guy wept and told us
earth was really dying
Cried so much his face was wet
then I knew he was not lying”
earth was really dying
Cried so much his face was wet
then I knew he was not lying”
*7.30pm, 29th January 1972 from original advertising poster on display at Aylesbury Friars http://www.davidbowie.com/news/aylesbury-friars-exhibition-launches-march-52891
** A married Bowie had declared himself gay in an interview with Melody Maker magazine just days before the Aylesbury gig http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melody_Maker
David Bowie 8th January 1947, 9.15am Brixton, London. Source: Astrodatabank. Rodden rating: A
