Having last stopped into Florida in 1990 for his Greatest Hits tour, "Sound + Vision," David Bowie's absence from Florida for seven years and two world tours was made up for in two intimate, spell-binding evenings at the 1,000-person capacity Chili Pepper in Fort Lauderdale. Though both shows were characterized with obscure cuts, a sprinkling of covers, a dash of hits, and a heap of selections form his new album, Earthling, they were both distinctively different experiences.
The October 7th performance was a strong and tight example of why Bowie's latest band is one of his best, ever. Reeves Gabrels and Mike Garson, both veteran Bowie players with eerily angular playing talents, exemplified why they came from Bowie's only two other true band projects. Guitarist Gabrels was an important part of the genesis of Bowie's pioneering return to hard rock with Tin Machine, in the late eighties, and keyboardist Mike Garson originally helped define Bowie's glam rock sound with The Spiders From Mars, in the early seventies.
But the chemistry couldn't have been complete without Bowie newcomers drummer Zachery Alford and vocalist/ bassist Gail Ann Dorsey. In fact, the highlight of the performance came when Bowie took a back seat to meld with the band on the Laurie Anderson cover of "O Superman." Dorsey took lead duties as Bowie backed her up on the chorus and shimmied and twisted along with her during a drum & bass segment. The huge horn refrain and fade-out toward the end of the piece was characterized by monstrous, fat notes on Gail's keyboard. She gave a comical smile as the foreboding notes just came rumbling out. During a second refrain Bowie strapped on a humongous baritone sax, and boom!
Other highlights included "Waiting For The Man," a Velvet Underground cover, which Bowie up-dated exceptionally well to his new electronic/hard rock sound. A majority of his new Earthling material translated well live, as well, thanks to the presence of pre-recorded backing tracks, something Bowie should have done on many previous tours.
But the real magic didn't happen until the second evening. The show started 15 minutes early, and Bowie said hello and asked audience members if they were in a hurry to leave. "Do you want a short set or a long set?" he asked. Bowie just laughed at the crowds default response. He said, "Good, 'cause we feel like being here for a long, long time, so call your mothers and tell them you'll be home late." The show turned out to be three and a half hours long, including every song Bowie's performing on the current tour, minus one, which he probably only forgot to play.
Selections included the live Ziggy Stardust-era staple, "My Death" and an instrumental interlude featuring "V-2 Schneider," "Pallas Athena," and "Is It Any Wonder?" a new piece derived from Bowie's 1975 hit "Fame." Toward the end of the show Bowie seemed to be waving off someone backstage who seemed to be trying to hurry him off. Bowie just kept doing song after song after song. By the finale of "All The Young Dudes," Bowie's tongue was literally hanging out of his mouth while he smiled brightly. With a gracious wave goodnight, Bowie admitted it was the longest performance he had given on tour so far, lasting way beyond his previous two hour and 40 minute record.
In these two evenings, Bowie proved himself a true anomaly among his rock 'n' roll peers, defining a new standard for popular rock artists over 50. While everyone else has turned their live performances into cabaret shows, Bowie continues to develop as a true artist. He did not rely on old hits to captivate the audience but did what he has always done best-- perform and transform, and the fans loved him for it. Can the Rolling Stones, Aerosmith, or even U2 say that?