The man who whirled the soul

When Bowie released The Next Day, he did no interviews to promote it. Badgered for information about his new work and the “meaning” of his songs, he relented by offering 42 words, which were “clues” to his thoughts. Of course, this generated feverish activity among the cognoscenti.
So, in a similarly capricious manner, here is a list of words, which, if you spot in any features or books on Dave, should alert you to “bullshit overload.”

chameleon

persona(s)

visible

invisible

transformation

kaballah

trilogy

avant-garde

visionary

modernity

methodology

innovation

dystopian

insanity

concept

characters

pioneer

ambiguous

provocative

outrageous

transition

ground-breaking

game-changer

identities

bohemian

experimental

skeletal

mortality

message

transcending

hero

starman

glam

icon

musicological

anthem

embodiment

quintessential

reinvention

curator

genius

When the box set for The Next Day Extra was released, Bowie included a booklet, entitled ‘You.’ It had blank pages for fans and critics to write their own notes and ideas about what it all meant. Nice one, Bob!