Coming tomorrow: Exclusive Interview with Bowie Odyssey Author Simon Goddard!

David Bowie is having a moment. I don’t mean today, or this week, or even this year. But we’re at a point in our cultural history where Bowie has transcended his rockstar status in life and has joined the ranks of Elvis, Marilyn Monroe and James Dean as a cultural symbol. I live in New York State—when I visit Manhattan, it’s hard to go for a walk and not see the image of Bowie somewhere (I can only imagine how it must be in London). Bowie is studied in academia. His songs are covered by other artists. He’s the subject of visual art. If you are reading these words, you are likely part of an international “Bowie community.” And then… there are the books.

Hardly a month passes without a new book published, somewhere, that is somehow related to David Bowie. I’ve read some great ones and some… not so great ones (I don’t mention those in this blog). But Simon Goddard’s Bowie Odyssey series hold a special place in the pantheon.

Simon is writing a book per year tracking ten years in Bowie’s life, starting with 1970. Though I was too young to remember what it was like, Bowie himself was releasing at least one studio album per year for that entire decade (OK, technically not 1978, but he did two in 1977, released the Stage live album in ‘78 and was busy with the Isolar II tour). I did experience the 1990s, however, when Bowie released six studio albums (counting Tin Machine II). I mention all this because for many of us, the annual release of Simon’s books echo the sensation of waiting for a new album to drop from Bowie.

And it’s not just Bowie. Simon’s books remind me of Robert Caro’s Lyndon Johnson biographical series, which are as much about the time as the man. Though Simon’s books are much shorter than Caro’s, he really captures the sense of the world in which Bowie was rising and falling. I was five in 1974, which is about as early in my life as I have anything like concrete memories. I remember Evel Knievel and Jimmy Osmond and David Cassidy, all of whom make appearances in Odyssey ‘74.

It’s an interesting sensation, tapping into a feeling from a long, long time ago. I could relate a bit less to the earlier books, which are dramatized but not quite fictionalized. But the whole series is excellent and has received great praise. Books from the series have been recognized as a Sunday Times Music Book of the Year, a Mojo Book of the Year, and were included in The Times’ list of the best music books of 2024.

So, you’re going to want to come back tomorrow for the interview. And before that you’re going to want to start reading the series!