David Bowie/Awesome


 * "Under Pressure" from the Freddie Mercury tribute concert...performed by Bowie and Annie Lennox. Chills guaranteed every time.
 * His 1996 set at the BRIT Awards. Michael Jackson was on the same bill with "Earth Song", so as the show's closer -- and pushing fifty to boot -- Bowie, with backup from Pet Shop Boys on "Hallo Spaceboy", had no choice but to unleash his full powers of awesomeness in a three-song medley. Not only did he sing live (Jackson did not), he did it all in a darling pair of heels. And that's why we love 'im.
 * The words in the song 'Quicksand'... "I'm not a Prophet or a Stone age man, just a mortal with potential of a superman." Awesome.
 * ""Heroes"", just """Heroes"".
 * From 1971 to the end of 1977, the man made ten albums. And forgetting how impressive it is for a mainstream artist (who would have to juggle all that with touring) to make that much music in that period of time, eight of them are some of the greatest albums of all time.
 * Alongside all this -- and producing material for artists such as Lou Reed and Iggy Pop (co-writing and performing on both of the latter's 1977 albums and touring with him that year as his pianist) and making The Man Who Fell to Earth -- he would deal with a crumbling marriage (with a toddler-aged son caught in the middle), substance addictions that damaged his health and sanity, money problems, and a drawn-out split from manager Tony DeFries during this period. He wouldn't fully move past all of these problems until the early 1980s. Far too many musicians have died for fewer problems than these, and yet he not only lived through it but accomplished so much of worth...