David Bowie: Actually, We Won’t Throw the Homework on the Fire
A lot of you guys are always saying that Twitter is the devil’s tool: a toxic garbage dump of a site with virtually no redeeming qualities and a primary purpose of allowing groupthink mobs to form and randomly terrorize good people.
Well, you’re right.
Except that I did find this one delightful story there yesterday, and in these times of waiting for Kavanaugh and Rosenstein shoes to drop (what happens when both shoes are dropped at once?) I thought I’d lighten the mood by sharing it with you.
First, the background: as an avid David Bowie fan, I was always entranced with his album “Hunky Dory” and the whimsical song “Kooks”:
I had always understood that Bowie wrote the song to his newborn son, and the lyrics promise a fun, devil-may-care life to the young lad:
And if you ever have to go to school
Remember how they messed up this old fool
Don’t pick fights with the bullies or the cads
Because I’m not much cop at punching other people’s dads
And if the homework brings you down
Then we’ll throw it on the fire
And take the car downtown
“What a fun dad he would be!” I always thought. Well, yesterday on the Twitters people were musing about this, and how Bowie’s son Duncan Jones must have been able to use the song as an excuse to get out of homework:
"And if the homework brings you down
Then we'll throw it on the fire
And take the car downtown…"
David Bowie, Kooks, 1971. #WiseWords— Danny Baker (@prodnose) September 25, 2018
Can you imagine being @ManMadeMoon? His dad wrote that FOR HIM. Which possibly gives him the best note for teacher IN HISTORY.
— Alistair Barrie (@AlistairBarrie) September 25, 2018
Duncan responded that, no, not so much:
Unfortunately those lyrics were fantastical. I had to do my homework every bloody time.
— Duncan Jones (@ManMadeMoon) September 25, 2018
David Bowie, you were a good man and a good dad.
I think Marion the nanny probably deserves the credit.
DRJ (15874d) — 9/26/2018 @ 8:36 amGood post.
A side note… given these times, Bowie’s death in January 2016 may’ve been fortuitous for him in one sense… given the verified accounts of his predilection for underage girls years ago. Of course, the same could be said of many of the rock icons still on the sunnyside of teh turf.
Colonel Haiku (501bf0) — 9/26/2018 @ 9:03 ami wish they would do a Bowie expo like how they did for the Stones
happyfeet (28a91b) — 9/26/2018 @ 9:13 amthey did a tremendously good job of the Stones one even though the venue here (Navy Pier) was charmless and out-of-the-way
happyfeet (28a91b) — 9/26/2018 @ 9:15 amBowie *was* an underaged girl years ago Mr. Haiku
he grew out of it to where he could have become Sir Bowie if he wanted but he was too classy
happyfeet (28a91b) — 9/26/2018 @ 9:17 amThe only thing a heard of for Bowie here in Chi was some art exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Art in turn of 2015-16.
urbanleftbehind (5eecdb) — 9/26/2018 @ 9:18 ami never been there yet
i gave up my art institute membership cause it closes so early during the week it’s really only good on the weekends
and it’s so crowded on the weekends
happyfeet (28a91b) — 9/26/2018 @ 9:36 amWas a HUGE Bowie fan when I was young. Saw him at the Santa Monica Civic in 72 with the Spiders. Last time I saw him live I think was Oakland, early 80s.
From Space Oddity to Aladdin Sane there were gems galore. His style evolved and with Low I lost interest and never really liked what came after.
Some favorite tracks among his less famous in no particular order…..
The Width Of A Circle
Unwashed And Somewhat Slightly Dazed
Wild-Eyed Boy From Freecloud
She Shook Me Cold
Running Gun Blues
Eight Line Poem
The Bewley Brothers
Moonage Daydream
Hang On To Yourself
Panic In Detroit
Rosalyn
See Emily Play
John, I’m Only Dancing
Cygnet Committee – a great song about the unexpected consequences of revolution.
“A love machine lumbers through desolation rows
harkin (7f4688) — 9/26/2018 @ 9:40 amPloughing down man, woman, listening to its command
But not hearing anymore.”
He was a good dad, and it looks like that Mr. Jones bloke turned out alright. BTW, this song doesn’t get old for me. I miss Mr. Bowie.
Paul Montagu (0e687b) — 9/26/2018 @ 9:42 amWas raised in the 1970s and 80s, and we had homework. Typically you could bang it out in 20 minutes or a half hour, and perhaps there was some reading as well. You had a few examples of what you did in class that day and perhaps some introduction to what was coming next. But nowhere near what my sons faced time commitment and volume wise the last few years. It has exploded in the lower grades. If you are giving kids more than an hour of homework, have to wonder if you are spending school time productively. And when you assign more homework than anywhere near necessary you instill in kids a dislike of school that we never had.
Bugg (9f6506) — 9/26/2018 @ 9:42 amthis is garbage, you have about 1 billion people between china and india, who are very diligent at homework, now as to whether the work provides any useful thinking skills that’s another issue,
narciso (d1f714) — 9/26/2018 @ 10:01 amWell at least this former David Jones (who had to seek a different name to not be confused with Davy Jones of the Monkees) got to learn about Jim Bowie and the Bowie knife across the pond.
urbanleftbehind (5eecdb) — 9/26/2018 @ 10:18 am“…..now as to whether the work provides any useful thinking skills that’s another issue,
Back when I was a tutor I would tell the students that there was an almost-guaranteed way to raise their grade an entire point, do their homework twice with a half hour break in-between. It almost always worked.
harkin (7f4688) — 9/26/2018 @ 11:32 am8… Big Fan, as well. Saw the Ziggy show at the Long Beach Arena in March of ‘73… saw him again at the Anaheim Convention Center in September of ‘74 and then the Thin White Duke tour at the Fabulous Forum in Feb ( I think) of ‘76… and that was it. Dug all his stuff up thru “Let’s Dance” and then got interested again in ‘96 when he did his 50th birthday show.
His talent and sense of humor were truly inspiring. He had an eye and ear for outstanding musicianship. And I always admired him overcoming his addiction… those stories always get me.
Colonel Haiku (2601c0) — 9/27/2018 @ 3:38 am