The eclectic David Bowie passed away last night, two days after his 69th birthday. He’d just released Blackstar , his 25th album, as cutting edge now as he was when The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars blew our minds in 1972. The British Bowie, along with American counterpart Alice Cooper, changed the landscape of rock concerts forever. It wasn’t just about the music anymore, it was rock-as-theater, with elaborate costumes and stage sets. David Bowie’s visual style was as important as the music,  incorporating dance and art to create a unique experience for the audience.

Bowie gained some success in his native England with Space Oddity, The Man Who Sold the World, and Hunky Dory before Ziggy Stardust became a phenomenon on both sides of the Atlantic. His androgynous alter ego shocked parents and knocked the laid-back folk-rockers off the charts, ushering in…