David Bowie – Imagine, Live in Hong Kong 1983

The final concert of David Bowie‘s Serious Moonlight Tour was in Hong Kong at the HK Coliseum on 8 December 1983. It was also, sadly, the third anniversary of John Lennon’s murder and after performing Fame Bowie and spoke to the audience about Lennon.

“I co-wrote that song with John Len­non.And I asked him one day ‘How do you write your songs’, and he said ‘lt’s easy, you just say what you mean, and you put a back-beat to it’.
I said ‘What do you think of my kind of rock & roll’. He said ‘It’s great, but it’s just rock & roll with lipstick on’”.

Bowie pauses for a moment, as the audience cry out, “Last time I saw John Lennon was in Hong Kong, we went to a Hong Kong market and there was a stall that sold old clothes, and there was a Beatles jacket on the stall, and I did something that is not usually in my character – I asked him to put it on so that I could take a photograph, I took a photograph, and I’ve still got the photograph. The jacket doesn’t fit properly, it looks like John had outgrown it”.

Bowie then performs a beautiful version of Imagine in honour of his late friend. An upgraded 4K version of this iconic performance has been uploaded to Youtube – enjoy.

There’s also an audio bootleg of the whole concert.

image: screenshot

Upcoming Gigs, Early 2019

Here’s a round-up of some of the recent gig announcements you may have missed over the holiday period. Lots of good bands large and small coming to Hong Kong… Check out the events diary for details of all the local shows.

Kraftwerk return to Hong Kong with their 3-D Show on Monday, 29 April at Kitec’s Star Hall.
Kraftwerk 3-D Show
Date:
8pm, 29 April, 2019
Venue: Kitec, Star Hall
Tickets: $880, $680

Ed Sheeran
Date:
4pm, 17-18 April, 2019
Venue: Hong Kong Disneyland, Fantasy Road Outdoor Venue
Tickets: $1,288, $888 from HKTicketing

John Mayer
Date:
8pm, 8 April, 2019
Venue: HKCEC, Hall5BC
Tickets: $1,198, $898, $698 from HKTicketing

Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe show-off their pop artistry at AsiaWorld Expo on the 29 March.
Pet Shop Boys – The Super Tour
Date: 8pm, 28 March, 2019
Venue: AsiaWorld Expo, Hall 10
Tickets: $1,288, $1,088, $888, $588 from HKTicketing

Inspired by Bowie’s Heroes album, Philip Glass’s Heroes Symphony is his tribute to the musician, performed by the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra
Philip Glass’s David Bowie
Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra
Date:
8pm, 15-16 February, 2019
Venue: Tsuen Wan Town Hall, Auditorium
Tickets: $320, $280, $180, $120 from Urbtix

Envy
Date: 8pm, 24 February, 2019
Venue: This Town Needs (TTN)
Tickets: $480, $380 (Advance) from Ticketflap

Music from one of the most interesting shows streaming today.
Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein: Perform the Music of Stranger Things
Date: 8pm, 8 May, 2019
Venue: MacPherson Stadium
Tickets: $550, $495, $450

Park Bo Gum – Good Day: May your everyday be a good day
Date:
8pm, 16 March, 2019
Venue: AsiaWorld Expo, Hall 10
Tickets: $1,380, $980, $680 from HKTicketing

Dean Fujioka – Born to Make History
Date:
8pm, 20 April, 2019
Venue: Kitec, Music Zone@E-Max
Tickets: $888, $688 from Cityline

Bowie/Collector

David Bowie-gavin-evans

Many people know of David Bowie through his music and films and his influence transcended music to shape the wider culture of our time. As well as being a talented artist, Bowie loved art and in a way that isn’t possible today, courtesy of social media and camera phones, took an active role in the art world both buying art at auction, meeting artists and sitting on the editorial board of renowned art magazine Modern Painters.

“Art was, seriously, the only thing I’d ever wanted to own. It has always been for me a stable nourishment. I use it. It can change the way I feel in the mornings. The same work can change me in different ways, depending on what I’m going through.” David Bowie – NYTimes 1998 

The breadth and scope of Bowie’s personal art collection was revealed with the release of Sotheby’s online auction catalogue earlier this month. It features over 400 pieces including a ‘spin’ painting that Bowie created in collaboration with Damien Hirst, an altarpiece by Renaissance master Tintoretto, as well as works by 20th Century British Masters such as David Bomberg, Stanley Spencer, Frank Auerbach and Leon Kossoff.

Damien Hirst-with-bowie-beautiful-hallo-space-boy-painting

A selection of Bowie’s collected artworks are on display in Hong Kong ahead of next months Sotherby’s auction. For further information: www.sothebys.com/BowieCollector

Bowie/Collector – Hong Kong Preview
Date: 10am-6pm, 12-15 October, 2016
Venue: Sotheby’s Hong Kong Gallery,  5/F, One Pacific Place, Admiralty
Tickets: Free

peter-lanyon-witness-1961