How David Bowie Was Almost Killed On Tour

One of the most prominent artists of the 20th century, David Bowie, constantly changed himself throughout his decades-long career. In the 1960s, when he was first experimenting with blues and folk sounds, Bowie started to make a name for himself as a songwriter and performer. He became well-known in glam rock in the early 1970s as the androgynous Ziggy Stardust. Bowie enthralled the globe with his unconventional songs and bold clothing choices as Ziggy.

He continued to be creative after that. His eagerness to try out many genres and identities was demonstrated by albums like Station to Station, Young Americans, and Aladdin Sane. With his commercial hit “Let’s Dance,” which combined pop and dance music, he became a worldwide sensation in 1983 and gained even more admirers. He solidified his reputation in rock history during this period by working with rock icons like Lou Reed and Iggy Pop.

Health Issues and the End of His Touring Career

Bowie bounced back in the new millennium with critically acclaimed albums like Heathen (2002) and Reality (2003), despite some setbacks in the late 1980s and early 1990s, including several artistic blunders and financial difficulties. His standout performance at the Glastonbury Festival in 2000 was one of his highlights, and he continued to be a popular live performer. However, Bowie’s health took a severe turn in 2004 while he was touring with Reality in Europe.

During a performance in Prague, Bowie began to feel chest pain. Initially, he thought it was just a trapped nerve. His bandmates noticed that he looked younger and more energized than ever before. “It did seem like he had the gift from the gods — like he was never going to get old,” said guitarist Gerry Leonard. However, it wasn’t long before things took a darker turn.

After continuing the show with painkillers, Bowie collapsed in Germany a few days later. He had suffered two heart attacks while performing and had pushed through a full encore despite the serious health issues. Following emergency surgery to clear a blocked artery, Bowie issued a statement saying, “I’m so pissed off because the last 10 months of this tour have been so fantastic. Can’t wait to be fully recovered and get back to work again.” However, this would mark the end of Bowie’s touring career.

Bowie’s Quiet Final Years and Blackstar

Bowie maintained a low profile following his heart attack, avoiding the spotlight for nearly ten years. He didn’t intend to get back into the spotlight, but on his 66th birthday in 2013, he surprised fans by releasing “Where Are We Now?” The song alluded to a new, more introspective stage of his career and was a melancholic meditation on his time spent in Berlin in the late 1970s. “Where Are We Now?” marked the start of a new phase in his professional life.

Blackstar, which was published a few days before his passing, was the culmination of that chapter. The CD was created before his heart attack and was interpreted as a contemplation of legacy and death. It was praised by critics as his swan song, with others seeing it as his ultimate admission of his own mortality. Unfortunately, Bowie died on January 10, 2016, two days after the album’s release, from liver cancer.

Bowie’s last years were a time of introspection and intense personal reflection. Fans wouldn’t completely comprehend how his health issues and eventual death influenced his music until after his death. Even as he approached death, Bowie was able to reinvent himself, create meaningful art, and leave a lasting legacy for future generations, as evidenced by his latter work, particularly Blackstar.