Three years have passed since the sad death of David Bowie, it seems like yesterday that the news dropped early in the morning, the anniversary being tomorrow. On his birthday in 2013 I remember the excitement that he had suddenly reappeared with no warning and released 'Where Are We Now?' and there was a feeling that he might tour. This was sadly never to be, I personally wonder if he knew then that he was on borrowed time. When you think about it he did things the right way round, usually you work all your life before retiring if you are lucky to get that far. However people in the entertainment industry tend to work until they drop without enjoying that well deserved rest. David Bowie did it in typically skewed fashion by spending ten years doing very little work-wise so he could be at home and be a dad to his daughter before hitting a final creative peak right before the end. It is easy to listen to the album Blackstar in retrospect and read between the lines looking for clues, especially within the video for 'Lazarus'. 

Although I observed his birthday as I will the anniversary of his death tomorrow, quietly to myself, there was something that disturbed me slightly. The news showed up on the official Bowie Twitter feed (I am against the practise of verifying Twitter accounts for people who get someone else to do it, which was the case when Bowie was alive, but that's a different story) that Parlophone are going to release a collection of rare tracks and demos. 

Maybe Bowie made provision for this, he did seem quite organised after all, if you saw the David Bowie Is... exhibition you would realise the attention to detail that played a part in his life. I don't doubt that there is a lot of music in the vaults, but what I am worried about is the over selling of the legend. Spying Through A Keyhole isn't an album, it is a collection of 7" singles of rare tracks and previously unheard demo versions of well known songs. Once upon a time I would have bought anything, I would have bought a tape of David Bowie reading takeaway menus but my feelings are changing. 

Since the death of David Bowie, his social media has turned into advertising space for reissues, picture discs, and other such lucrative endeavours. You only have to look at the way that Brian May and Roger Taylor has squeezed every drop of goodwill out of the Queen legacy to worry that David Bowie will be the next victim of this. After all, they do say that death is the best career move for a musician.

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