Re: Presley,Lennon,Bowie,Jackson .
Posted: Mon Jun 29, 2009 6:13 am
For the sake of the argument, I'd say David Bowie is a completely different kettle of fish to the other 3, and not just cos he's alive.
Their was a wall of illusion built up around the other 3 (deliberate in the case of Presley & Jacko, more post-humous in Lennon's case) that made them untouchable, primarily because they would prove shallow and disappointing in reality in comparison to the 'legend'. The illusion has helped hide their true selves (and serious addictions) from tainting their 'legend'
For all Bowie's talent and 'otherworldliness', he remains an approachable and affable 'superstar' and not someone cloaked in bullshit.... He's more in league with Jagger, Richards, Macca and so on. These men are wealthy beyond our wildest dreams with a sustained success over 40-odd years, yet remain mere mortals, not over-protected caricatures.
Lennon can be compared to Jacko in that both men claimed to be "honest" and "forthright" etc, but both chose to wallow in their problems rather than get over them. Both 'legends' in reality have a distinct wiff of bullshit about them.
Presley can be compared to Jacko for many reasons (the career demograph, the lifestyle, the deaths etc) but both represent "The American Dream" for what it really is - greedy, unforgiving & destructive.
All 3 (Presley, Lennon & Jacko) produced a body of work that defined excellence, and then spent their final years as a spent force.
More of a comparison (instead of Bowie) would be Frank Sinatra, another deeply flawed American idol with over 20 years as a 'spent force' (which, in fairness to him, was mostly spent in retirement) who attracted a rabid following and could seemingly do no wrong whatever he did as far as his fans were concerned. Sinatra can also be compared to Jacko career-wise as he several different 'periods' to his career. The main difference there though being Sinatra died an old man and not a drug-addled middle-aged mess
Their was a wall of illusion built up around the other 3 (deliberate in the case of Presley & Jacko, more post-humous in Lennon's case) that made them untouchable, primarily because they would prove shallow and disappointing in reality in comparison to the 'legend'. The illusion has helped hide their true selves (and serious addictions) from tainting their 'legend'
For all Bowie's talent and 'otherworldliness', he remains an approachable and affable 'superstar' and not someone cloaked in bullshit.... He's more in league with Jagger, Richards, Macca and so on. These men are wealthy beyond our wildest dreams with a sustained success over 40-odd years, yet remain mere mortals, not over-protected caricatures.
Lennon can be compared to Jacko in that both men claimed to be "honest" and "forthright" etc, but both chose to wallow in their problems rather than get over them. Both 'legends' in reality have a distinct wiff of bullshit about them.
Presley can be compared to Jacko for many reasons (the career demograph, the lifestyle, the deaths etc) but both represent "The American Dream" for what it really is - greedy, unforgiving & destructive.
All 3 (Presley, Lennon & Jacko) produced a body of work that defined excellence, and then spent their final years as a spent force.
More of a comparison (instead of Bowie) would be Frank Sinatra, another deeply flawed American idol with over 20 years as a 'spent force' (which, in fairness to him, was mostly spent in retirement) who attracted a rabid following and could seemingly do no wrong whatever he did as far as his fans were concerned. Sinatra can also be compared to Jacko career-wise as he several different 'periods' to his career. The main difference there though being Sinatra died an old man and not a drug-addled middle-aged mess