CGM blog: Bowie – hero for many days

11 Jan CGM blog: Bowie – hero for many days

Courtesy of Classic Lines Design.

By Chris Green

One word sprang to mind when I heard the sad news about the death of David Bowie – legacy.

Bowie dotted all the ‘i’s – he was an innovator, he influenced and inspired, had endless ideas and was a genuine individual and instigator. That’s some legacy.

He was also brave – starting conversations about sexuality and gender identification – and it ran through his music. Bowie was rarely a safe bet for pigeon hole fanciers.

He was determined too. Success didn’t come easily. Like his fellow traveller, Marc Bolan, Bowie appeared to have missed the mid 60s Mod boat having scored a couple of minor hits and a novelty record or two.

But from Starman and Ziggy Stardust it was all one way for the best part of the next 15 years.

Generations of people in all walks of life can today rightfully say they were in one way or another influenced or inspired by David Bowie.

Not that Bowie would have fared well on The X Factor or gone far on The Voice – he wasn’t ripe for reshaping, ripping off and casting aside after a brief flicker of fame. Whether today’s music industry could spawn a David Bowie is a good question to ask.

Another question we could all ponder with poignancy is what memories do we want to leave behind when we shuffle off this mortal coil – what might they be, who for and how could we make them happen?

Maybe we should all strive to be heroes: not just for one day – but for the rest of our lives.

Chris Green is managing partner of Chris Green Media.