During a career that spans four-and-a-half decades, a weighty percentage of Bowie’s catalogue has gained canonical status. Additionally, he’s achieved the near-peerless feat of upholding his artistic intellect, mysterious charisma, and most importantly, his ability to pen a great tune. “I was staggered with the way he rolled out that last record, The Next Day,” says Melbourne musician Davey Lane. “Up until then, there were rumours flying around that maybe he was really quite ill with something and that’s why he was so quiet. Who else would there be who’s been able to sustain that level of mystique for that long?”
A phenomenon that’s perhaps even more impressive than Bowie’s enduring spark is the living, breathing quality of the music he’s created. Accordingly, revisiting the records he made several decades ago isn’t a tiring exercise whatsoever, which is exactly why Lane will join a cast of suave Melbourne players and vocalists next weekend at The Yarraville Club for a Bowie celebration. The event specifically marks the 40th and 41st anniversaries of Diamond Dogs and Young Americans. The Underlings, led by music director and guitarist Ashley Naylor (Even), will take house band duties, while vocalists Lane, Tim Rogers, Kat Spazzy and Ron S Peno will contribute throughout.
Both Diamond Dogs and Young Americans are dependable desert island discs, but when dealing with a backlog of material this vast, it’d be criminal not to explore a little further. “It’ll be a bunch of selections from both of those records, as well as a set of assorted hits,” says Lane. “I will be doing the song Diamond Dogs and his cover of Across the Universe from Young Americans.I also put my hand up to sing something off The Next Day… I enjoy all those songs, but as a music fan, my favourite songs are often the deep cuts that fall through the cracks of classic rock radio.”
When it comes to world of rock and pop, Lane’s basically a walking encyclopedia of anglophilic knowledge. His introduction to Bowie came very early on. “Growing up, my dad had Ziggy Stardust in his collection,” he recalls. “That was the first Bowie record that I really listened to. And of course, that’s gone down in history as one of his classics.”
Picking a favourite Bowie album can be a dizzying exercise, as one after the other they nominate themselves as a worthy contender. Lane manages to pin down a couple of favourite eras. “I love the adventurousness of records like [1977’s] Low,” he says. “It would’ve thrown people a curve ball in that there’s quite a few instrumentals on there. Lodger [from 1979] I really like too. I [also] can’t go past a song like Boys Keep Swinging on Lodger.”
The Next Day, which came out in 2013, isn’t far behind. “I was obsessed with it when it came out.”
Even when performed by a so-called supergroup, tribute shows run the risk of seeming somewhat artificial or else being a bit of a drag. Great material is great material, but there’s no point revisiting it if one’s not able to inject the appropriate feeling of purpose.
“A lot of the people involved with this one are all good mates and people that I know will treat the material with respect,” he says. “Sometimes, if you don’t treat it with a bit of healthy irreverence then you come off sounding like a third-rate cover band. The guys in that band are all really strong musicians and they’ll play it with the requisite fire.”
BY AUGUSTUS WELBY
