The measure of the talent that was lost to the world when David Bowie passed away of cancer continues to grow and grow.
A newly-discovered recording has shone even more light on what an incredible chameleon the backstarman was. I mean, we all knew he was an amazing singer, songwriter, performer, artist, style guru and master of his own musical and visual evolution, but who knew he was also dynamite at doing impressions.
As in, Bowie would have given Jimmy Fallon a run for his money.
As Oyster reports, producer Mark Saunders worked with Bowie on a handful of projects, including his collab with Mick Jagger for Dancing in the Street, and the Absolute Beginners soundtrack. And it was during the latter that Bowie apparently began jerking around and impersonating some of his mates, just for shits-n-giggles.
Said mates included Bruce Springsteen, Neil Young, Iggy Pop, Tom Waits and Lou Reed.
And luckily, Saunders got the whole thing on tape.
Now, following Bowie’s tragic passing, a man named Zach Staggers – the son of Saunders’ close friend – has remembered the tape’s existence and shared it – along with some touching memories of Bowie – over at The Talk House.
“I think it helps to listen and to laugh or to cry—or both. Rest in peace, one of the greatest of all time,” Zach wrote.
Bowie’s impersonations are pretty bang-on (although as YouTube commentators have pointed out, his Neil Young does sound a bit Tom Petty-ish). But one of the most endearing things is that, even though Bowie’s Iggy Pop is pretty sensational, afterwards he says self-depreciatingly, “I could never get anywhere near to him.”
Check out Bowie’s excellent impressions of his bros below, and continue to miss his genius forever.
Listen: David Bowie Impersonates…
