Perhaps the single greatest modern musician ever to draw a breath, much less play a note, is David Bowie.
Our little blog has been an unabashed admirer of the UK shapeshifter — the godfather of glam, the nexus for new wave — for as long as we can remember. I personally have made it a point to scour the concert halls for the musical statesmen that carry Bowie’s inspiration forward (such as Spandau Ballet, Midge Ure, and Mike Peters) as well as new bands that demonstrate an affection for The Thin White Duke (such as Gardens & Villa and Jack Ladder).
And so it is remarkable that a fiendishly clever Bowie-related project that took root in London is actually coming to the United States to perform for at least 11 dates in 2016. The DC area welcomes Woody Woodmansey’s Holy Holy to the Birchmere Music Hall in Alexandria, Va., on Thursday, Jan. 14, 2016.
Now wait a sec — Woody Woodmansey, you say? Who is this fellow?
Well, you can call him David Bowie’s drummer! Yes, Woody was a founding member of Bowie’s backing group The Hype, which transformed into a little band you might have heard of called The Spiders from Mars. They performed on Bowie albums The Man Who Sold the World, Hunky Dory, Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, and Aladdin Sane before calling it a day as a performing group.
The band also featured superproducer Tony Visconti (who produced Bowie, T. Rex, and many others) on bass and the late Mick Ronson on guitar. Woody and Tony are part of the Holy Holy project, and they have recruited other musicians (like guitarist James Stevenson) to fill in for their old bandmates. Their goal: To perform Bowie songs from that period where they were active, and now to do it here in our area!
Watch Holy Holy perform “Five Years” from Ziggy Stardust live at Shepherd’s Bush Empire in London on June 30, 2015, on YouTube:
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OoovL84Xi98]
Oh, and of course they don’t have David along with them, so they have recruited an able substitute as part of their collective — Glenn Gregory, best known as the vocalist for another Bowie-inspired outfit, Heaven 17.
Tickets are available online! Don’t miss out on this incredible show, which I still cannot believe is touring to perform for us Americans! What an opportunity.
Woody Woodmansey’s Holy Holy
Birchmere Music Hall
Thursday, Jan. 14, 2016
Show @730pm
$39.50
All ages