21 years ago today, David Bowie celebrated his 50th birthday in the most Rock Star way possible – by rocking out to a sold out Madison Square Garden in New York with an incredible line-up of musicians. The show, billed as David Bowie and Friends: A Very Special Birthday Concert, featured Bowie’s own amazing band (Mike Garson, Gail Ann Dorsey, Zachary Alford and Reeves Gabrels), and he was joined by a number of special guests, including Foo Fighters, Frank Black, Robert Smith, Lou Reed and Billy Corgan. The concert was filmed and aired a few months later, with proceeds benefiting the Save the Children charity.
It was a truly epic night of music, and although the footage is a bit grainy, you can enjoy it in full and be reminded of what an outrageously gifted artist and performer he was.
The full setlist from the show...
- Little Wonder
- The Hearts Filthy Lesson
- Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps) [with Frank Black]
- Fashion [with Frank Black]
- Telling Lies
- Hallo Spaceboy [with Foo Fighters]
- Seven Years in Tibet [with Dave Grohl]
- The Man Who Sold the World
- The Last Thing You Should Do [with Robert Smith]
- Quicksand [with Robert Smith]
- Battle for Britain (The Letter)
- The Voyeur of Utter Destruction (As Beauty)
- I’m Afraid of Americans [with Sonic Youth]
- Looking for Satellites
- Under Pressure
- “Heroes”
- Queen Bitch [with Lou Reed]
- I’m Waiting for the Man [with Lou Reed]
- Dirty Blvd. [with Lou Reed]
- White Light/White Heat [with Lou Reed]
- Moonage Daydream
Encore:
- Happy Birthday [Performed by Gail Ann Dorsey]
- All the Young Dudes [with Billy Corgan]
- The Jean Genie [with Billy Corgan]
- Space Oddity
Today also marks 2 years since the release of Blackstar, Bowie's final studio album.
Listen to our I Like: David Bowie playlist on Spotify here...
