Home / Authors / David Bowie

David Bowie

David Bowie Quotes

Musician

David Bowie (January 8, 1947 – January 10, 2016) was a legendary British musician, singer, songwriter, and actor. Known as the 'chameleon of rock,' he was celebrated for his eclectic musical style, avant-garde stage personas, and constant reinvention. His career spanned decades, blending rock, pop, electronic, and soul. Iconic works include 'Space Oddity,' 'Heroes,' and 'Let's Dance.' Through characters like Ziggy Stardust, he challenged gender and identity norms, leaving a profound impact on popular culture.

Filter quotes by topic

All Thinking People Ifs Writing Kind Artist Rocks Wanted Feels I Can Knows Mean Song Want Way Years Superhuman World Art Looks

Famous David Bowie Quotes

“I have to take total control myself. I can't let anybody else do anything, for I find that I can do things better for me. I don't want to get other people playing with what they think that I'm trying to do.”

People Thinking Want Trying I Can Can Do Control Myself

Book:David Bowie: The Last Interview

Source: David Bowie: The Last Interview

“I'm rather kind of old school, thinking that when an artist does his work it's no longer his.”

Thinking Kind Doe School Artist Working It Old School

Book:David Bowie: The Last Interview

Source: David Bowie: The Last Interview

“Love is every type of relationship that you think of... I'm sure it means relationship, every type of relationship that you can think of.”

Thinking Mean Love Is Type

Book:David Bowie: The Last Interview

Source: David Bowie: The Last Interview

“There have been times when I've written something and it goes out and it comes back in a letter from some kid as to what they think about it and I've taken their analysis to heart so much that I have taken up his thing. Writing what my audience is telling me to write.”

Thinking Writing Heart Has Beens Kids Audience Taken Written Letters Analysis

Book:David Bowie: The Last Interview

Source: David Bowie: The Last Interview

“I think the first song I ever wrote ... was called "Can't Help Thinking About Me." That's an illuminating little piece, isn't it?”

Thinking Firsts Littles Helping Song Pieces Illuminating

Author:David Bowie

“I don't think I did anything that my contemporaries didn't; it was just that I was the only one who talked about it. In the Sixties anyone who had a sense of style seemed to be gay. I wanted to indentify with that.”

Thinking Wanted Style Gay Sixty

Author:David Bowie

“I think music should be tarted up, made into a prostitute, a parody of itself. It should be the clown, the Pierrot medium.”

Thinking Should Made Mediums Clown Parody

Author:David Bowie

“I am a moderately good singer. I am not a great singer but I can interpret a song, which I don't think is quite the same as singing it.”

Thinking I Can Song Singing Singers

Author:David Bowie

“A lot of people that I know are bugged with the idea that they have got to have an audience, or they have got to be liked. I think the more that you fall into that trap it makes your own life harder to come to terms with, because an audience appreciation is only going to be periodic at the best of times.”

People Thinking Knows Ideas Fall Term Audience Harder Appreciation Traps

Author:David Bowie

“I guess a certain contingent of the musicians in London at the beginning of the '70s were fed up with denim and the hippies. And I think we kind of wanted to go somewhere else.”

Thinking Kind Wanted Certain Musician London Feds Somewhere Else Hippie Fed Up Denim

Author:David Bowie

“Some of us, I think, us small, pompous arty ones probably read too much George Steiner and kind of got the idea that we were entering to this kind of post-culture age and that we'd better do something postmodernist - quickly, before somebody else did.”

Thinking Kind Ideas Age Culture Too Much Posts Entering Pompous

Author:David Bowie

“I think that the history of rock could be recycled in a different way and brought back into focus without the luggage that comes along with it.”

Thinking Way Different Focus Rocks Different Ways Luggage Recycled

Author:David Bowie

“I'm wary of the word glam because I think that became the all-inclusive term with for any bloke with lipstick on, which is fine, you know, and that's what it is when it comes down to the public level.”

Thinking Knows Term Levels Fine Lipstick Blokes Glam

Author:David Bowie

“We were terribly excited, and I think we took it on our shoulders that we were creating the 21st century in 1971. That was the idea. And we wanted to just blast everything in the past, rather like the vorticists did at the beginning of the century in the Britain or the dadaists did Europe, you know. It was the same sensibility of everything is rubbish, and all rubbish is wonderful.”

Thinking Knows Ideas Wanted Past Wonderful Century Creating Europe Excited Shoulders Britain Sensibility 21st Century Blast Rubbish

Author:David Bowie

“I think the only music I didn't listen to was country and western, and that holds to this day.”

Thinking Country Western This Day

Author:David Bowie

“I think much has been made of this alter ego business. I mean, I actually stopped creating characters in 1975 - for albums, anyway.”

Thinking Mean Has Beens Made Character Ego Creating Albums Alter Ego Creating Characters

Author:David Bowie

“I think it's rather a waste of time endlessly singing the same songs every night for a year, and it's just not what I want to do.”

Thinking Want Years Night Song Waste Singing Wasting Time Every Night

Author:David Bowie

“I liked rock music, I kind of moved into that sphere, somehow thinking that somewhere along the line I'd be able to put the two together. And I suppose I very nearly did with the Ziggy character.”

Thinking Kind Two Character Able Together Lines Rocks Moved Spheres Rock Music

Author:David Bowie

“I think everything that I learned about stagecraft and carrying through - creating a through point for a theatrical device.”

Thinking Creating Devices Theatrical Stagecraft

Author:David Bowie

“I think Lindsay Kemp really introduced me to the work of Jean Genet, and through that, I kind of kept re-educating myself about other prose writers and poets.”

Thinking Kind Poet Prose Writers And Poets

Author:David Bowie

“Having not really written any generational songs - I think maybe two or three of the songs that I've ever written have any bearing on the age of the listener. My stuff tends to be far more concerned with the spiritual and with subjects like isolation and being miserable.”

Thinking Two Age Spiritual Song Three Stuff Written Subjects Concerned Miserable Isolation Listeners

Author:David Bowie

“I never heard so many kids talk about just doing anything to be famous. I mean, yeah, fame is part of the deal when you're a kid and you think, I wanna go into music, but everybody that I knew was really doing it because of their love for it. I don't see so much of that anymore.”

Thinking Mean Kids Deals Heard Fame Yeah

Author:David Bowie

“And it's always the same kind of artist, I think, who has more enjoyment being slightly on the outside of things, who doesn't want to be sucked into the tyranny of the mainstream. Because once you get sucked into that, you're dead as an artist.”

Thinking Want Kind Artist Tyranny Enjoyment Mainstream

Author:David Bowie

“If I hadn't had my children, I would have been discouraged a lot quicker. It would have been much more easy for me to say, "You know what, let the whole thing go. Have a good time, because these people, this place - it's just not worth it." You know? I can't do that anymore. I look into those eyes and they look at me so trustingly that I'm gonna make sure that [they're thinking], "Hey, you did a good thing bringing me into the world, daddy. I'm going to have a great life!"”

“I think that my fascination with clothes generally was motivated by trying to create the characters for the stage.”

Thinking Trying Character Stage Clothes Motivated Fascination

Author:David Bowie

“People don't get a chance to think, "Why am I a consumer?" Because the decisions come at them so fast and furiously, they're not [even] given time to think, I am a consumer.”

People Thinking Given Chance Decision Consumers Time To Think

Author:David Bowie

“I think hip-hop is actually one of the most challenging things that's happened in music in a long time.”

Thinking Long Challenges Happened Long Time Hip Hop Hips Hops

Author:David Bowie

“I think I quite desperately wanted to have that kind of special companionship [like marriage ] . . . a special relationship, yet I hid from it for many, many years and pretended to be cynical about it.”

Thinking Years Kind Wanted Special Cynical Companionship Special Relationship

Author:David Bowie

“I think the first experience scared the hell out of me. Within months of my initial marriage [on Angela Bowie], I realized I had done a really naive and rather stupid thing. . . . I don't think either of us had any real resolve about being together. The result was it made me wary of relationships.”

Thinking Firsts Made Real Done Together Results Hell Stupid Months Scared I Realized Resolve Naive Initials Stupid Things Bowie Being Together Angela

Author:David Bowie

“I think getting married and then running away for 10 months would be an absolute disaster.”

Thinking Would Be Running Months Married Absolutes Disaster Running Away Getting Married

Author:David Bowie

“I think every time I said, "I'm working with Nile [Rodgers]," the reaction was, "Oh, great. I love 'Let's Dance.' " I think that's pretty expected. I'm not sure Nile and I went in consciously not to make "Let's Dance." We just wanted to work together again.”

Thinking Said Wanted Together Expected Reactions Not Sure Working Together Together Again Nile

Author:David Bowie

“On "Tonight" I think I was torn dreadfully between writing what I wanted to write, but keeping it in a style that would follow up what I had just done. That's where I feel I was untrue to myself as an artist . . . that album and, to a lesser extent, "Never Let Me Down."”

Thinking Feels Writing Done Wanted Artist Style Let Me Albums Tonight Torn Untrue Follow Up Let Me Down

Author:David Bowie

“I think a lot of that album ["Tonight" ] is still very good . . . the songs, but I think I was indifferent to the arrangements.”

Thinking Stills Song Very Good Albums Tonight Indifferent Arrangements

Author:David Bowie

“When I was going through those very fast changes, I think it was terribly important to me that I was seen to be inventive. I think that was the characteristic of my work that I wanted people to see.”

People Thinking Important Wanted Characteristics

Author:David Bowie

“I think I am a lot more relaxed about what I have or haven't done.”

Thinking Done Havens Relaxed

Author:David Bowie

“1961 was when I was really into clothes. I left school at 15 and started copying a bloke who used to go up on the train to London with me; Leslie, I think his name was. He was like, top mod of his own area. He wore Italian jackets with white linen jeans. Boy, was that cool! I mean, that's in style now - it's very much the L.A. look. But he was wearing it then, and it looked supercool.”

Thinking Mean School Boys Style Train Italian

Author:David Bowie

“I'm not sure that an art career would have any benefit for me; I'm not sure it's what I want. I don't think I want to be a designer-rock artist.”

Thinking Art Artist Not Sure

Author:David Bowie

“Am I Machiavellian? I don't think I'm quite the mastermind people would have me be. Everything I do tends to be very successful and it may have something to do with the fact that I'm very good, not necessarily that I manipulate. But that doesn't often occur to people.”

People Thinking Successful Very Good Manipulate Mastermind

Author:David Bowie

“My work is really the accumulation of these different moods that I've had throughout my life and where they've taken me. I start looking back, and I think, I've actually created a life out of all this, out of these changes of mood. They've pushed me through all these years, and I seem to have a semblance of a life, and if I look very carefully, I can see some thematic design to it. There's some continuity.”

Thinking Different Taken Design Mood Looking Back

Author:David Bowie

“I think Mick Jagger would be astounded and amazed if he realized that to many people he is not a sex symbol, but a mother image.”

People Ifs Thinking Would Be Mother Sex Symbols Amazed Superhuman Sex Symbol Jagger Astounded

Author:David Bowie

“Funk, I don't think I have anything to do with funk. I've never considered myself funky.”

Thinking Funk Funky

Author:David Bowie

“When you think about it, Adolf Hitler was the first pop star.”

Thinking Firsts Stars Music Pops Pop Stars

Author:David Bowie

“I've never responded well to entrenched negative thinking.”

Thinking Wells Negative Negative Thinking Thinking Negative

Author:David Bowie

“But I'm pretty good with collaborative thinking. I work well with other people.”

People Thinking Wells

Author:David Bowie

“I'm very at ease, and I like it. I never thought I would be such a family-oriented guy; I didn't think that was part of my makeup. But somebody said that as you get older you become the person you always should have been, and I feel that's happening to me. I'm rather surprised at who I am, because I'm actually like my dad!”

Thinking Feels Should Persons Has Beens Said Would Be Guy Dad Happenings Should Have My Dad Who I Am Ease Makeup Should Have Been Music And Life Family Oriented

Author:David Bowie

“But I've got to think of myself as the luckiest guy. Robert Johnson only had one album's worth of work as his legacy. That's all that life allowed him.”

Thinking Guy Albums Legacy Johnson

Author:David Bowie

“Since the departure of good old-fashioned entertainers the re-emergence of somebody who wants to be an entertainer has unfortunately become a synonym for camp. I don't think I'm camper than any other person who felt at home on stage, and felt more at home on stage than he did offstage.”

Thinking Want Persons Home Felt Stage Camps Old Fashioned Entertainers Departure Emergence Synonym Campers

Author:David Bowie

“I've made over 25 studio albums, and I think probably I've made two real stinkers in my time, and some not-bad albums, and some really good albums. I'm proud of what I've done. In fact it's been a good ride.”

Thinking Made Two Real Done Facts Proud Albums Studios My Time

Author:David Bowie

“It's not the side-effects of the cocaine - I'm thinking that it must be love. It's too late to be grateful, It's too late to be hateful, It's too late to be late again, The European cannon is here.”

Thinking Sides Effects Late Grateful Too Late Be Grateful Hateful Cocaine Cannons Side Effects

Author:David Bowie

“You would think that a rock star being married to a super-model would be one of the greatest things in the world. It is.”

Thinking World Would Be Stars Rocks Married Models Rock Star Being Married Superhuman Supermodel

Author:David Bowie

About the Author

Born: January 8, 1947
Died: January 10, 2016
Known for: Musician
Quotes: 412

Related Topics

Thinking People Ifs Writing Kind Artist Rocks Wanted Feels I Can Knows Mean Song Want Way Years Superhuman World Art Looks

Popular Topics

People Ifs Thinking Knows Men World Way Want Love Life Inspirational Needs Giving Feels Should Writing Trying Years Mind Firsts

Books & Sources

David Bowie: The Last InterviewRelated source material

David Bowie: The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars - Off the RecordRelated source material

David Bowie: The Last Interview: and Other ConversationsRelated source material

The pocket book of David BowieRelated source material

Similar Authors

Patti SmithBrowse related quotes
Dolly PartonBrowse related quotes
Taylor SwiftBrowse related quotes
Madonna CicconeBrowse related quotes
Kristen StewartBrowse related quotes
George SaundersBrowse related quotes
Chuck KlostermanBrowse related quotes
Bruce SpringsteenBrowse related quotes
Marilyn MansonBrowse related quotes
Billy CorganBrowse related quotes