Who is David Bowie

David Robert Jones was born in Brixton (a London suburb) on the 8th of January 1947. In 1953 the Jones family moved to Kent where David went to Bromley Technical High School. David has two half sisters, Myra Ann and Annette and one half brother, Terence.

At the age of 15 David and George Underwood got into a fist fight over a girl. During the fight David sustained eye damage. Doctors were able to save the eye but his pupil is permanently dilated. Due to this condition many people have mistakenly thought that his eyes are different colours. They are both blue.

In 1962 David formed his first band, The Konrads. For the next five years David would play with a variety of different bands: The Lower Third, The Riot Squad, The Mannish Boys and The King Bees. Up until 1966 David had been using his own name on stage 'David Jones' but this was causing confusion with the lead singer of the Monkees, Davy Jones. To end the confusion, David decided to change his name to Bowie, after the great American hero Jim Bowie.

David's first two solo efforts were under the Deram label. The first in 1967 was called 'David Bowie' and the second was titled The Laughing Gnome. Neither album did very well. It was not until the release of "Space Oddity" in 1969 that David would gain any kind of fame.

David's first real personality make-over came with his concept album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. Bowie began sporting his wild outfits and his flaming red hair to go along with his androgynous alter ego 'Ziggy'. David was also promoting and producing other bands by this time. Among the stars that Bowie was working with were the legendary Iggy Pop and Lou Reed.

With his rise to mega stardom David began venturing into the world of acting. He has starred in such films as The Man Who Fell To Earth and Just a Gigolo. In 1986 he not only starred in the Jim Hensen classic Labyrinth but he wrote five songs for the film.

David has gone on to make more than twenty different albums over a career which has spanned more than five decades. His record sales are over 196 million copies world wide.

David Bowie's first wife was Mary Angela Barnett who was born in Cyprus in 1949. The couple was married in Kent on March 19th 1970. They had one son together Duncan Zowie Haywood Jones who was born in Kent on May 30th 1971. The couple divorced in 1980 in Switzerland.

After David's separation he retained custody of Zowie. Zowie attended Wooster College where he received a degree in philosophy. He then went on to The London Film School, where he graduated as a director.

David Bowie married his second wife on April 24th 1992. He married super model Iman Mohamed Abdulmajid. She was born in Somalia and is fluent in five languages. They have one child together, Alexandra Zahra Jones. "Lexi' was born on the 15th of August 2000. Iman and David are still together and are living in both London and Manhattan.

David Bowie was ranked 29th on the BBC's poll of the 100 Greatest Britons

He has sold over 196 million albums

David is five foot ten inches tall

Bowie quit smoking in 2002

Twiggy is the model on the cover of Pin-Ups

David has a pet dog named Max.

Bowie was ranked 39th on Rolling Stone's list of 100 greatest artists of all time.

David Bowie timed the release of Space Oddity to coincide with the lunar landing.

On February 12th 1997 David got a star on the Walk of Fame

Bowie declined Knighthood in 2003

In 2006 he won a Lifetime Grammy Award

He plays 14 different instruments

In 2004 Bowie underwent Triple bi-pass surgery

Bowie turned down the lead in the film 'Hook'

David has two children Zowie and Lexi

David has been married twice

Bowie is ranked as one of the richest British rock stars of all time

Talking about art is like dancing about architecture.

I don't know how many times someone has come up to me and said, 'Hey, Let's dance!' I hate dancing. God, it's stupid.

I'm not a prophet or a stone aged man, just a mortal with potential of superman. I'm living on.

I don't know where I am going from here, but I promise it won't be boring.

You can never win nor lose if you don't run the race.

When you think about it, Adolf Hitler was the first pop star.

Pixies and Sonic Youth were so important to the eighties.

Nearly all the synth work on Heathen is mine and some of the piano.

I'm an instant star. Just add water and stir.

I re-invented my image so many times that I'm in denial that I was originally an overweight Korean woman.

I'm always amazed that people take what I say seriously. I don't even take what I am seriously.

I'm just an individual who doesn't feel that I need to have somebody qualify my work in any particular way. I'm working for me.

But I am pretty good with collaborative thinking. I work well with other people.

But I've got to think of myself as the luckiest guy. Robert Johnson only had one album's worth of his legacy. That's all that life allowed him.

I always had a repulsive need to be something more than human.

You would think that a rock star married to a super-model would be one of the greatest things in the world. It is.

I believe that I often bring out the best in somebody's talents.

I think Mick Jagger would be astounded and amazed if he realized that to many people he is not a sex symbol, but a mother image.

I once asked John Lennon what he thought of what I do. He said 'it's great but it's just rock and roll with lipstick on.'

I wanted to prove the sustaining power of music.

• 2003 Reality


• 2002 Heathen


• 1999 Hours


• 1997 Earthling


• 1995 Outside


• 1993 Black Tie White Noise


• 1987 Never Let Me Down


• 1984 Tonight


• 1983 Let's Dance


• 1980 Scary Monsters and Super Creeps


• 1979 Lodger


• 1977 Heroes


• 1977 Low


• 1976 Station to Station


• 1975 Young Americans


• 1974 Diamond Dogs


• 1973 Pin Ups


• 1973 Aladdin Sane


• 1972 The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars


• 1971 Hunky Dory


• 1970 The Man Who Sold the World


• 1969 Space Oddity


• 1967 The Laughing Gnome


• 1967 David Bowie