Re: None of that "Ahead of His Time" nonsense

I don't think Bowie has been much of a musical influence at all. With the exception of a few talentless copyists (Bauhaus, Numan, etc), his influence has been more cultural in the sense of how gender and theatre have been represented in popular music.

Why? Simply because his music is itself a pastiche; only the truly superficial (bauhaus, Numan, etc) would ape that. Boy George - an artist I have no time for - is an example: he looked to Bowie for attitude, but to reggae and soul for musical inspiration. The best artists who were influenced by Bowie are those that don't sound at like him at all.

Sarah