Berlin bids farewell to David Bowie

Hundreds of David Bowie fans on Friday flocked to a memorial event for the pioneering rock artist held at the Berlin studio where he recorded three of his landmark albums.

In a bittersweet atmosphere, they grieved and celebrated the life and work of Bowie, who succumbed to a secret battle with cancer on Sunday, in a service at Hansa Studios near where the Berlin Wall once divided the city.

On stage in the wood-panelled grand hall stood a large photo of the iconic star, framed by white roses, church candles and a black ribbon with the message "We can be heroes, forever and ever".

It's a refrain line from the Cold War anthem "Heroes" which Bowie recorded during the three years he spent in the city, self-exiled from the Los Angeles rock 'n' roll lifestyle, broke and trying to kick cocaine and liquor habits, together with his friend US rock musician Iggy Pop.

Some fans had painted their faces with the flash symbol of 'Aladdin Sane', one of the many characters invented by the chameleon-like star, while others performed their favourite Bowie songs.
"The beautiful thing about Bowie is that he transcends his time," said writer Beatrice Hanssen, who was first in the queue, clutching a picture of the singer, songwriter and actor.

"He captured the spirit of his time but was also always a step ahead of it."

- 'Completely heartbroken' -

Many fans said Bowie's death at age 69 touched them like that of a close friend or family member.

"He did everything and he never stopped. He never stopped challenging himself or his audience, and I think that's incredibly special," said Ruth Bartlett, 33, a Berlin-based designer from London.

"I mean when you look at today's artists, no-one is pushing it like that."
When she learnt of Bowie's death, she and many friends were "completely heartbroken. All of Monday, everyone was just messaging each other, constantly and just really in pieces. 

"I've never seen anything like it. It's almost embarrassing. I haven't cried like that in the longest time."

Bowie holds a special spot in Berliners' hearts, and has in turn credited his 1976-78 stint there with fuelling one of his most creative phases, the Berlin trilogy of albums "Low", "Heroes" and "Lodger".

He would return, two years before the Wall fell in 1989, for a show at the Reichstag as fans also massed on the other side of the Cold War-era divide, shouting "The Wall must go", before they were beaten by East German police.

Germany's foreign ministry marked Bowie's death by tweeting: "Good-bye David Bowie. You are now among #Heroes. Thank you for helping to bring down the #wall."

Bowie had stunned Berlin again when he released the song "Where Are We Now?" on his 66th birthday, with a video that featured the Reichstag, Potsdamer Platz and his old West Berlin flat.

- 'Forever and ever' -

Bowie's former home in Hauptstrasse 155 has now become a shrine, with a mountain of flowers and candles growing outside.

One fan on Friday announced an online petition to change the street's name to David-Bowie-Strasse, an idea that earned thundering applause.

Leading the eulogies was former sound engineer Eduard Meyer, 72, who worked with Bowie, remembering him as "relaxed, human and warm-hearted".

In the studio, he recalled, Bowie would cut pages of his song lyrics into strips and then "rearrange the text like a puzzle".

"We looked straight onto the Wall and there were guards with binoculars who could see everything that was happening, because in summer we worked with the windows open," said Meyer.

It was here that Bowie famously spied a couple locked in a passionate embrace, which inspired a line in Heroes:

"I can remember/Standing by the wall/And the guns shot above our heads/And we kissed, as though nothing could fall."

"It was a terrible and important time in Berlin, and Bowie captured it," said Hanssen. 

"The Berlin Wall isn't there anymore, but in a way he immortalised it," she said, adding with a smile, "forever and ever".

Source: AFP