Music Monday: Remembering David Bowie

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Team Lenny pays homage to Bowie with a list of our favorite tracks.

**Lena Dunham’s Favorite Bowie Song:**

David Bowie was a beautiful, important and generous artist whose work is braided into all our lives. My sister just said “it never occurred to me that David Bowie could die.” And the fact is, he can’t. My favorite Bowie song, and it’s a tough choice, is “Under Pressure,” which is swelling and cinematic and personal all at once. My favorite David Bowie clip is when he sang “Life on Mars” in 2005 at a VH1 Awards Show and reminded us all what real artistry is​.

**Jenni Konner’s Favorite Bowie Song:**

“Changes.” Runner up: “Oh You Pretty Things.” I had a very mean, very cool carpool driver who was a senior when I was in 7th grade. She drove a bunch of middle schoolers and we were all too terrified to talk. It was a very silent ride most mornings. One day “Changes” came on the classic rock station and the mean senior started to quietly sing along. One by one, we all joined her until we were all singing at the top of our lungs. It was the only time I’d ever seen her smile. The next day, things were back to normal, like it never happened.

**Jessica Grose’s Favorite Bowie Song:**

Mine is “The Man Who Sold the World,” which I listen to whenever I’m in a broody mood and I almost always tear up when I hear it.  I also have a soft spot for “Modern Love,” which is excellent for strutting (and/or dancing) down city streets, as demonstrated by Greta Gerwig’s character in the 2012 movie *Frances Ha*.​

**Laia Garcia’s Favorite Bowie Song:**

It seems unthinkable to live in a world without David Bowie. I don’t remember how or when I first heard of him, he was just always there, a part of my essential knowledge as a human being. Do unto others as you would do to yourself, never put metal things on the microwave, David Bowie is cool. Maybe I never learned it maybe it was all embedded in my DNA by then. My freshman year of college I needed to find a roommate after being assigned into a temporary space. While sitting outside the lounge I saw a girl walk by me wearing a Bowie shirt. I said “hey, I heard you need a roommate, can I move in with you? I like your Bowie shirt.” She looked at me, a little weirded out, but she said yes. She was obsessed with Bowie and through her I got my proper Bowie education. “Aladdin Sane” was the first song I fell in love with, it was the first song that fell mine. It was sensual and romantic and made me fall in love with him and also with my new life.

**Doreen St. Félix** **​’s Favorite Bowie Song:**

David Bowie released his last album last week, called *Blackstar* . It is a masterpiece. We knew it would be, of course, and as such the album didn’t make a huge splash—rather, it slipped easily into the current of otherworldly brilliance Bowie has been releasing for 40 years. That Bowie knew he was close to death but felt it pertinent to give us one more offering brings me to tears and brings me wonder. Here’s the aptly named single and video, “Lazarus.” And here’s to the impossible truth that Bowie will dissolve the line between life and death, as he did with most other human institutions.​

**Dianca London’s Favorite Bowie Song:**

Since I heard the news, I’ve felt like I’ve been living in an alternate universe. Like for so many of us, a world without David Bowie seems to defy scientific reason. I can’t wrap my mind around it. From his early recordings and well-loved b-sides, to the onscreen magic of *Labyrinth* and *The Hunger,*  The Thin White Duke’s presence, limitless imagination, and sheer genius will continue to influence and inspire until the end of time. Before braving today’s morning commute, I sat on the bedroom floor blasting the music video for “Let’s Dance” on repeat. Watching it loop on the screen of my laptop in all its ’80s glory, the song’s chorus reminded me of what the Starman gave us: an invitation to dance and dream. As we celebrate him, it is certain that the moonlight, the serious moonlight, will never be the same in his absence.​

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