Yesterday I wrote about Clarence Clemons’ session work on 2 tracks of Lady Gaga’s newly released Born This Way album, and how this heralded the saxophone’s return to mainstream pop, after 2 decades of more or less being absent in the genre. However, before this relegation into pop music oblivion, the saxophone—and saxophone solos—had been a staple of mainstream popular music for decades.
From the birth of rock ‘n roll in the 1950s, the saxophone had a strong foothold in the the bands that played and recorded the music that parents around the world hated. That music, with its simple back beat, became an anthem of teenage rebellion, and underwent many different metamorphosis over the decades.
One such metamorphosis was the glam rock style of rock ‘n roll that found its beginnings in the UK during the early 1970s. If you were to look in the dictionary under the term glam rock, you would most certainly see a photo of David Bowie. Bowie is considered by many to be the most quintessential glam rocker of all time, and certainly the most recognizable.
One song from Bowie’s glam rock days which uses a saxophone, is Sorrow. In this tune it is Bowie himself who plays the alto saxophone solo.
According to John Laughter & Steve D. Marshall, David Bowie first played saxophone when he was 13 years old. After high school he went on to study at an art school, after which he started looking for art jobs.¹
However, eventually he ended up in the music industry, and through his 5 decade long career his music and styles have evolved with the times. Through his work as a musician, record producer, arranger, and actor, David Bowie became a megastar.
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