I can’t believe it’s the 10 anniversary of David Bowie’s passing tomorrow. I want to say that the decade since has been absolutely fucking crap, but it isn’t entirely true. Many good things, many wonderful things on a personal level have happened. More universally, within the world of politics especially – it has been ridiculous. The most awful decade. I do concede that there was something about Bowie’s presence and existence in the world that feels like it was somehow keeping the fabric of humanity together and now that he’s gone, it’s been torn asunder.
I do have to speak about one small passage in the book. One final mention of the thing before I never mention it again. This inflamed me more than just about anything else within it. How dare he! How dare he make this slight on Bowie! It was totally uncalled for. I really don’t need to defend David. But he had gone on record many times to state that he was never really comfortable with being a performer. He never considered himself a singer. He didn’t think his voice was very good. He described himself as a songwriter, as an artist and was never really comfortable with being on stage. So for Kerr to say that “Of the half-a-dozen times I saw Bowie, on three occasions I had been doing this job long enough to tell that he didn’t want to be there.” Well, slap my thighs and call the man Nostra-fucking-damus! What the actual fuck?! I can pretty much guarantee that he didn’t want to be at any of them. But he was there all the same. He still showed up. He still did it. What is your point?
Here’s the thing. I have been to nearly 40 Simple Minds shows and, yeah, I saw the consistency you were referring to in your Bowie reference. You consistently COASTING. You, consistently offering up the same soundbites, jokes, and anecdotal incidentals time and time again. Consistently checking your watch during the seven minute sing-a-long of “la la las” that is foisted upon the crowd night after night. Yes…I’m all too familiar with your consistency, Mr Kerr. And you can stick it!
I saw Bowie just once, and that once will forever mean more to me than those near 40 times seeing Simple Minds. I have to bear the cross of knowing that I only ever really went to all those Simple Minds shows from a desire to be in Jim Kerr’s presence more than any real love of seeing the band performing live, seeing him perform live. It was just to be near him. How very sad of me.
An intellect that was a gleaming bastion of proving that someone could be so much more than just a singer, a songwriter, a performer, an artist, an actor – he was nothing else – and THAT was his consistency. And boy…you only wish. You only fucking WISH, Jim Kerr, that you could be even HALF the man David Bowie was.
And that will be the very last bite back I will ever give.
David, you are still so loved and so deeply missed. This 10 years has already felt like forever.
“When you rock and roll with me / there’s no one else I’d rather be / Nobody down here can do it for me / I’m in tears again when you rock and roll with me”
P.S. I made this once because at the time I made it, they were equals. Equally vying for my love and adoration. I’m sorry David. I fucked up…
