• David Bowie's "Holy Holy" Featured on 'Five Years: 1969 – 1973' Box Set

    The recent announcement of David Bowie's plan to release a 2-disc box set titled 'Five Years: 1969-1971' brings rare recordings, B sides and singles--all of which were compiled onto one disc called 'Re: Call 1.' An extremely rare and original version of "Holy Holy" made the cut as Bowie expressed his desire to dance with the devil and yearned for solidarity.

  • Greece, Colonel Tom Parker, Allen Klein and Other Bad Money Managers

    Odds are, if you're reading Music Times right now, you aren't all that interested in the current financial crisis of Greece, or the fact that the nation failed to pay the 1.5 billion euros it owed the International Monetary Fund as its bailout expired. It's a big—and very complicated—deal, but we're not going to take up your time explaining the sticky situation it puts both the Mediterranean nation and the European Union in. Instead, we figured we'd show you some of the worst money management issues in music...or more specifically, the managers that ran their clients through the cleaners worst. Performers such as Elvis Presley, Beyoncé and NSYNC get hosed.

  • David Bowie's 6 Epic Duets with Freddie Mercury, Mick Jagger and More

    Thirty years ago today, the world was in rapture over Live Aid and the dozens of musicians who were finding ways to help the cause. Two of those musicians were David Bowie and Mick Jagger, who paired up for the iconic song (and video) for "Dancing In The Street," with the proceeds from sales going to Bob Geldof's Live Aid. The song, a cover of the classic hit from Martha and The Vandellas, was as raucous as any, but ultimately became better known for the comical video of its stars literally dancing in the streets. Bowie was among the most iconic performers in music's most iconic generation...and he's shared the stage with more iconic performers than just about anyone. Here are five other original songs that Bowie wrote and performed with legendary acts.

  • 70 Years of Carly Simon: Her Biggest Charting Singles, 'You're So Vain' and More

    This year has been full of iconic musicians celebrating seven decades on Earth: Eric Clapton, John Fogerty, Bob Seger and more. Today marks the 70th birthday of one more classic performer, as Carole King celebrates the big day on June 25. Music Times is reflecting back on 70 years of King by looking at her seven highest-charting singles, from "You're So Vain" to "Nobody Does It Better." Check them out below.

  • Casting David Bowie in Musical Adaptations: Labyrinth, The Last Temptation and More

    David Bowie has been working on a musical adaptation of the 1976 film The Man Who Fell to Earth for some time now, and today fans were greeted with the news that the title character Lazarus would be portrayed by Michael C. Hall of Dexter fame when the off-Broadway theater production begins its run later this year. Unfortunately, alas, Bowie himself won't play a role in the actual stage portion of the production, although he will work with Tony-winning writer Enda Walsh (Once) to write original songs and arrangements for the performance. Hall is a solid choice for the role of an alien who comes to Earth, seeking water for his famished planet, only to be turned to the temptations of drugs and sex. If you've watched him in Dexter, you know how much emotion he can bring to a character that struggles with expressing emotions. Hall has a decent block of Broadway work as well however, including stints in Hedwig and The Angry Inch, Chicago and Cabaret. It got us thinking…if we were to create musical versions of other Bowie films, who would we put in the Thin White Duke's shoes? Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence (1983) Certainly one of Bowie's more challenging and underrated roles in film, the performer's turn as Major Jack "Strafer" Celliers during Nagisa Oshima's Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence demands an actor that can sincerely portray the sexually ambiguous nature of Bowie's character, along with all of the other traumatic occurrences that take place during a film set in a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp during World War II. Celliers serves as a foil, perhaps even a romantic one, to the character of Captain Yonoi (played by Ryuichi Sakamoto), but there is no hope to be had. One man is executed before the war is over and the other is executed after the war has concluded. We recommend Andrew Garfield for a potentially breakout role…he was Tony-nominated for his role in Death of A Salesman during 2012…does he have the voice to make a musical out of Merry Christmas? Labyrinth (1986) If any of the films suggested in this list have the potential to hit Broadway, Labyrinth is probably at the top. Although a commercial failure upon release, children of that generation and later have formed a cult audience around what is probably Bowie's best-known film appearance. Also consider the fantasy realm in which the film takes place and the current pro-puppet attitude on Broadway (Avenue Q, Warhorse) and this Henson Studios is just begging for a rebirth. Bowie of course plays Jareth, the goblin king, and we're going to play the Neil Patrick Harris card here. Sure, it seems like a obvious notion, casting NPH in a prominent role in a musical, but think about it: for all of wacky musical numbers he's done on awards shows, rarely have we gotten to see him play anyone…weird (outside of Dr. Horrible). Just imagine him with Jareth's blonde coif and the rest of the glimmering outfit will just fall into place. The Last Temptation of Christ (1988) If you think Martin Scorsese's The Last Temptation of Christ is too touchy for Broadway…you obviously haven't been on Broadway recently. Religion is as fair game as anything, from The Book of Mormon to Jesus Christ Superstar. The latter is actually a rather watered-down version of Christ, one of the most controversial films of the '80s. Bowie, alas, did not play Jesus, but he did play a rather hard-up Pontius Pilate (give Scorsese credit…while many directors try to make Pilate out to be a sympathetic character, Bowie wants blood). It's not a headlining role, to be sure, but it's a necessary one that Bowie performs with his usual pleasant intensity. We're going for a more strapping Pilate, played by an actor who has excelled at keeping his cool while dropping the axe for years on Mad Men: Jon Hamm. Basquiat (1996) The focus of the film Basquiat should of course be upon the work of real-life artist Jean-Michel Basquiat (and the excellent performance of Jeffrey Wright in the role) but inevitably attention heads back to one of the most possessing cultural figures of the 20th Century, the artist's friend and sponson Andy Warhol. The pop art figure dominated the cultural landscape of New York City simply by knowing how to present himself, and anyone planning on featuring Warhol in a stage of film project needs to present him in a similar way, regardless of how little the plot focuses on him. If you want a replication-level performance, it's tough to do much better than Daniel Day-Lewis. The guy takes method acting to the extreme, and the results are usually good. And yes, he's sung a bit…although Nine was one of his least popular works. The Prestige (2007) This production—a battle between two turn-of-the-century magicians—hardly revolves around Bowie's character at all, yet the musician plays one of the most curious characters in both science history and regular history: Nikola Tesla. We want to throw out Joseph Gordon-Levitt's name to play the genius and theoretical physicist…and maybe not just for the sake of a Prestige musical but a whole project dedicated to Tesla himself. It got us thinking...if we were to create musical versions of other Bowie films, who would we put in the Thin White Duke's shoes?

  • David Bowie Teams with Michael C. Hall for 'Lazarus' Off-Broadway

    Rumors were rampant earlier this year that David Bowie was looking for a way to bring 'The Man Who Fell to Earth' to the theater, and now it seems he's booked Michael C. Hall to star in the lead role. The stage play will be titled 'Lazarus,' after the main character in the film (slash novel by Walter Tevis).

  • The David Bowie Box Set Will Include 6 Remastered Albums and 2 Live Albums

    David Bowie has confirmed that he's dropping a box set, bridging the eminence of his entire career. The 12 CD or 13 LP set titled 'Five Years 1969-1973' gathers material recorded during the specified time period along with six remastered albums, two live albums and rare recording compilations.

  • Bill Murray, David Bowie and The Clash Hit 'Rock The Kasbah' Trailer [WATCH]

    Bill Murray is hilarious so we're glad that the trailer for his new film features David Bowie, Deep Purple, The Clash, Elvis Presley and Guns N' Roses, so we can write about it for Music Times. OK, so there are mostly just references to the aforementioned bands, but we're still pretty stoked to check out 'Rock The Kasbah,' a film starring Murray alongside Zooey Deschanel, Bruce Willis, Kate Hudson and more.

  • James Murphy Covers David Bowie's "Golden Years" for 'While We're Young' Film

    James Murphy recently shared the new song "We Used to Dance" from the soundtrack for While We're Young. The former LCD Soundsystem frontman scored the film, which stars Ben Stiller and was directed by Noah Baumbach. Murphy's latest track from the collection is an instrumental cover of David Bowie's "Golden Years."

  • 5 Musicians with Alien Encounters Aside from Tom DeLonge: Elvis Presley, John Lennon, Sammy Hagar and More

    Tom Delonge has apparently had enough of discussing his role in the recent breakup of Blink-182...so he recently unleashed the news that he had an extraterrestrial experience while camping "near Area 51" in Nevada and that since the occurrence his phone has been tapped by the government. Here are six other musicians who have claimed experiences with aliens. Not just the belief in extraterrestrials, but actual encounters of the third kind.

  • Lou Reed Says He Never Actually Liked The Beatles

    PBS series "Blank on Blank" recently shared a lost interview involving Velvet Underground mastermind Lou Reed. The singer threw shade at two famous bands -- The Doors and The Beatles -- revealing that he thought the former was "stupid" and the latter was "garbage." The lively chat took place in 1986 between him and music executive Joe Smith.

  • 7 Hit Albums We Waited More Than 10 Years For (David Bowie, Sade and D'Angelo Have Nothing on Harper Lee)

    The world was pleasantly surprised to find out yesterday that Harper Lee, the Pulitzer Prize winning author of To Kill A Mockingbird, would finally be publishing her second book during 2015 after years of hiding from the spotlight. The new title, Go Set A Watchman, was actually written before Mockingbird yet is set 20 years following the events of her published book. It should be noted that Lee is not in the best of health, and some allege that publisher HarperCollins may have swooped in following the death of her sister and lawyer Alice Lee and taken advantage of the situation. We hope for the best, like what happened with the seven albums listed below, which were critical smashes when performers such as David Bowie, D'Angelo and Sade released them after decade-long spans.

  • 5 Great Rock Docs Focusing on UK Acts and The '70s: David Bowie's 'Cracked Actor,' 'The Kids Are Alright' and More

    David Bowie has had several documentaries made about his legendary and varied career but none have come close to the original: Cracked Era, which debuted on the BBC during 1975 and caught the vocalist following the release of Diamond Dogs and his preparation for the tour in support of the album. More relevantly, it caught Bowie at the peak of his addiction to cocaine and gave viewers a look at the paranoia and mental exhaustion it caused him. Bowie was far from the only British musician from that era to be captured on film. Here are five other documentaries (some mad during the decade and some made later looking back) that give viewers a new understanding of that period in UK music history.

  • 'Guardians of The Galaxy' Soundtrack: 'Awesome Mix Vol. 1' Goes Platinum...Fans Looking Forward to Sequel, 'Vol. 2'

    Something skipped the attention of both Billboard and ourselves when reporting the Billboard 200 and album sales totals this week: Guardians of The Galaxy Awesome Mix Vol. 1 broke the million-albums sales mark last week with its 35,000 haul last week, bringing it to platinum status. Had it managed to sell just a tad faster in the last weeks of 2014, the mainstream soundtrack accompaniment to the film Guardians of The Galaxy would have been just the third album released during the year to attain platinum status, joining Taylor Swift and 1989 as well as Sam Smith's In The Lonely Hour as albums reaching platinum. The soundtrack for Frozen was the second highest-selling album of 2014, being the last soundtrack album to reach the million-album mark (although it was technically released during 2013).
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