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From: subliminalgen
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  • STOP SAYING WHO IS BETTER, thats just mean... they're both great why cant you people leave it at that??

  • Oh what a silly comment ... Sylvian is talented, yes, but he has about 10% of Bowie's talent. That's why he never got anywhere.

  • I'm sorry but... I couldn't even tell the difference. lol

  • OMG it was for 20 years that i hear this song, and I feel sad I forgot it almost... I'ts such a good record!!! thanks for posting this!!!!!

  • Glad to see people are still watching and commenting on this upload. This is a regular watch of mine. Such a great track.

  • much more talented i would say , they are different people bowie is all show and hair or was and d sylvian is all talent & substance plus a musical genius !!

  • @citic101 lol!

  • @citic101 Is David bowie not a "musical genius" too???

  • 2 Davids, beide suppergutt, aber Sylvi hat mich noch mehr bewegt, seit `Japan`hab ich ihn lieb,mucis with brain, heard y cojones, over30 jahre,chapeau!

  • Featuring that beautiful bass of Karn's... there's a loss and a half.

  • @CurriedUnicorn karn is dead, kein Freispiel drin (Que lastima)

  • NEW MUSIC GROUP CAN DIN SKY

    Where your attention is directed. Your Energy there flows!

  • Sylvian= WAY BETTER!!!! :) bowie=EWWW!!!

  • @xnonsuchx Silvian is most famous for the vocal version of the song, "Forbidden Colours", which is the theme to the Nagisa Oshima film, "Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence", starring David Bowie.

  • @Protector0ne Goodness, I thought he was famous for much, much more than that collaboration! He made wonderful music on his own as well as with Japan, please don't forget!

  • This song reminds very much of Ashes to Ashes!

  • where is the sense in this video??? sylvian + bowie!!! ahahahahhahaha

  • its very ridiculously silly to compare great musicians and art...

    its not a football match lads, wake up your feminine side....

    ... like these guys haha :-P

  • Sylvian because more thought is put into each song

  • What is the name of this song.

  • @7193ds My new career

  • he was never sell out that is why he never achieved as much as bowie but bowie is cool to...not as cool as david..no one is as as cool as david...maybe morrissey

  • No because David Sylvian is better than Bowie. He is a genius and soul searcher. David S experiments in music always breaking boundaries and taking music to its outer limits. Bowie is a rock musician and a star, not Sylvian. You cannot compare the two. Sylvian is for the chosen few let us apprecuate and cherish him.

  • @viooltjie That's simply wrong.  You're a moron if you think that's true.

  • they are both marvelous but Bowie has proven that he can act - an additional dimension. But despite their physical similarities, their music styles are different and each should be appreciated for their own greatness

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  • bowie always years ahead of the pack..biggest influence on british music .if u were a teenager in the 70s what would u rather want to be ..short baldy elton or the thin white duke ..class .. a lot of popstars owe a lot to bowies influence.. sylvian great too.

  • This video is just perfect! I love it soo much! Pictures and music fit beautifully together. Bravo! ^^

  • David Sylvian e David Bowie....quem diria - juntos

  • I have to agree with jonomurphy3, Sylvian is almost nearly equal to Bowie....

  • @IRONJUNK625 Almost nearly equal??? I've been a Bowie fan forever too. However, I'm sorry to say that I believe David Sylvian surpasses Bowie in talent and in the amount of wonderful material that he has written and recorded over the years. I am amazed at the volume of wonderful music that David Sylvian has recorded. He must hardly have time to brush his teeth. Anyhow, yes it's true he hasn't achieved as much fame as Bowie, but he is definately in the league with the greatest.

  • @rwiecnkd712y Love them both dearly,very deep meloncholic,erotic and sensually dark styles from them both!!! maravilloso, beso beso x

  • Love tis mashup thanks for bringing back so many cool memories I have of them both ,,

  • I love both Davids. Though my name is in tirbute to the Dame :)

  • Art, Musc, Fashion, what more do ya need ? ok, food and water and shelter, granted!

    I feel sad that most humanoid slop consumers never either savor or understand such wonderful art-music or are even capable of appreciating it ! If that sounds elitist, so be it ! Its merely a sad observation I take no pleasure whatsoever in making having watched the music scene for the last 40 years or so !

    What a fantastic bassline from M. Karn ! the man has rubber arms, liquid hands,

    and golden ears !

  • Sylvian is an erotic red wine; Bowie is a luxurious whiskey: both are something to have; both are delicious, but if you have to chose, chose the sweetest...

  • I'd LOVE to LICK red wine off the bodies of those two GORGEOUS CREATURES!!! SLURP!!!

  • Maybe the fucking comment will stay POSTED this time!!!... Bowie could've been David Sylvian's DAD if it hadn't been for the 11 year DIFFERENCE in AGE!!!... They must be RELATED somehow 'cause they're BOTH so fucking STUNNING even NOW in their 50's and 60's!!!.... Bowie MUST also be RELATED to my other GOD= Peter Murphy!!!....

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  • To me Sylvian has achieved a lot more than Bowie.. and he is still going strong. Actually getting better year by year. Bowie was is (inspite his great talent) a burned out ex Cokehead ;)

  • Bow's career went on and transmuted. So did Sylv's but in the shadow

  • I would argue that Bowie was treated with as much disdain as Sylvianwas for quite a while, difficulty is Bowie has no regard for critics, whilst Sylvian seems to move away from confrontation or the arena where he might come up against it - shame really I would like to meet and talk to both of them really....

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  • @UnrealPharaoh "My New Career" sorry.

  • Bowie was always more 'definate' than Sylvian...i dunno...maybe it was their choice of drugs? Althugh 'Red Guitar'..might be the exception...open to discussion ;0)

  • what's this got to do with Bowie?

  • What's the name of this song?

  • My New Career from the Gentlemen Take Polaroids album

  • my new career

  • They do look uncannily similar...though Imo Bowie's way better looking...probably by virtue of his worldly aura. Oh, and great bone structure doesn't hurt, too. ;-)

  • Karn. It's Mick Karn. Though he was originally a basson and sax player, he quickly became a fretless bass hero. Some even called him Jaco Pastorius the second. I had the chance to meet him long ago, so I can tell he's a real nice man, too.

  • Mick Kahn is a unbelievebale unique bassplayer.

  • @colorsfly yes i think so, sylvian voice and is bass make japan group

  • what f..kin bass player

  • hello .where can i find this track? ty

  • Gentlemen take Polaroids .. the whole album is brilliant!!

  • Bowie is always ill at ease in whatever skin he chooses to dress up in, and that gives him the difference and the advantage; Sylvian is a great artist but he lacks that "otherness", he may feel weird sometimes but not always, as Bowie does. IMHO

  • I married a blonde englishman named David. Could it be from my teen -aged obsession with these two?

  • I love both. They're geniuses. They're beautiful.

  • SO VERY TRUE!!!!

  • What's the name of this song?

  • At the time when DS was Japan's frontman, from the album "Gentlemen Take Polaroids" song is called "My New Career"

  • Thank you.

  • They say that genius gets thrown up in waves. For every Bowie there is a Sylvian.

  • New York Dolls influenced early Japan, Roxy Music more so post 79 'Quiet Life' album

  • I think Bryan Ferry was a bigger influence on Sylvian whereas Bowie was an influence on Gary Numan, all 4 remain amazing

  • @cisco9x I agree.

  • freeze at 2:06 ...........Micheal Jackson's eyes.

  • Not really.

  • Sylvian will never be - and should never try to be - Bowie. But theyre both biggest or at least very big in last century - love them both each their ways. Thanx for the post. TRIGGER

  • But Sylvian was influenced by Bowie in his youth .... ;)

  • david sylvian cud tell bowie where it was at...

  • Listen to the music and then you may understand that the sylvian project was different to Roxy. My personal take is that Japan became very good indeed.

  • Ok......Sylvian wanted to be Bryan Ferry and Bowie is Jesus lol

    Bowie once said, 1980 i think...Love these new bands, Japan r great, the influence me!!!!

    Better them than Hircut 100 Mr Bowie,,,,oops, Blue Jean etc

    Sylvian now..........amazing music and voice...try Nine Horses....Snowborne Sorrow....that gets a 4 Wowies

    Bowie.....if he blows his nose he gets 10 Wowies out of 5

  • The secret is preparation. if your surface hasn't been sanded down properly then forget it tonto.

  • I am a huge fan of Sylvian, but I don't think you quite grasp the subtlety of Bowie's art. To say put it simply: Sylvian's subtlety is self-evident, Bowie's is, well, more subtle...

  • I love both bowie and sylvian, but strangely the way you cut the clip portrays sylvian as the imitator. every shot of bowie is at least five years earlier than the similar shots of sylvian. the music with that sax solo is very reminiscent of sweet thing- diamond dogs 1974. it goes to show how much influence bowie had on future generations. to be tarred by the same brush as bowie is no disgrace! both japan and bowie rock my world!

  • its a shame that Sylvian hasn't achieved quite as much as Bowie because he's just as talented

  • @jonomurphy3 depends on what you want to achieve in life, he went his own road, and is happy I think :)

  • @jonomurphy3 bad marketing ;)

  • @jonomurphy3 I love Bowie's work nearly as much as Sylvian's. The reason why Bowie is more popular is because he enjoys very much the commercial side of the business and went mainstream in the 80s, but still made some (not all) great music during that time. Also he also started a lot earlier, being a lot older than Sylv.

  • @23sugarcane

    Just FTR, Bowie was mainstream well before the 80s. "Space Oddity" was a top 10 hit in '69, and Bowie had numerous top 10 hits in the 70s ("Fame" was #1 in '75 and was played on the radio so much that it became part of my musical psyche). He had lesser success for a few years before the mega-success of "Let's Dance" in '83.

    But you're right; in general, he clearly was more mainstream than Sylvian.

  • @jonomurphy3 I think the history books would suggest otherwise.

  • Cool comments x

  • Nice posting. Amazing song, amazing arrangement & amazing bass! Too bad we can't find anyone like Mick Karn who can be so magical and magnificent ever since.

  • ... i filmed the Concert in Berlin 2007 focused on Mick - i love his playing - read his face while he´s playing his E- Bass...

  • Bowie´s a knife and Sylvian can mildly butter toast! One has an edge and the other has a wedge.

  • lol, that's exactly what I was thinking too while watching this. It's not only physical. Nice way to put it :-)

  • Yes perhaps. But it's a far more painful and drawn out process being stabbed to death with a butter knife.

  • Yeah, for the victim and the perpetrator. Morose and boring for and from the perpetrator, no to mention to the audience, isnt'it? How milquetoast of him! Anyway, if i didn't liked to be killed softly a bit, i wouldn't have landed here, would i? Love both knives (bowie and butter)! Or is it Knives?

  • Hmmm, it would entirely depend on the offender's character. Were he possessed of a vigor and stamina befitting his passion, than a protracted assault with a butter knife might prove both cathartic and enjoyable. In which case such an artistic endevour would prove entirely appropriate audience fodder. Milksops and Milquetoasts posses no such impassioned proclivity. It's just not in there nature. Butter Knife it is then. Pass the toast.

  • Do you mind if we skip it? These days the audience needs to be buttered raw. It's either that, or the promise of a free toaster.

  • Good thinking. Actually, let's just throw bottles of Olive Oil at them. The last man standing gets the free toaster.

  • Someones got a dirty/oiled mind and i like it. The slicker the better. Start throwing toasters too, wake'm cos we want more

  • Or are they knaves? They certainly look the part.

  • Wow what a metaphor! Lol

  • I've been listening to japan since 1984, and sylvian has the best voice of them all...but, Bowie is one of the most creative artists ever.And, sylvian wouldn't be who he is without him.

  • Numan had his own vocal style well before Sylvian discovered his own voice. If you listen to Replica's or even Tubeway Army, his vocal style is there, while Sylvian was still in his Glam phase ( Adolescent Sex / Obscure Alternatives era ). Now unless Numan was warbling like David Johanssen in 1978...then we have an argument !

    BTW.....I love both Sylvian and Numan as artists in their own right !

  • You're right. There IS no comparison ! They are hugely influential, talented and original in their own right. Bowie took his cue from Lindsay Kemp , Syd Barrett and Little Richard, whilst Sylvian took his cue from The NY Dolls, Bowie, Eno and Ferry. However Sylvian has continued to grow artistically, whilst Bowie due to drugs had stopped being a front runner and joined the pack. He started making album that sounded more like NIN than himself. But both amazing in their own right !

  • There is simply no comparison.....Sylvian copied his hair from Bowie in 1974...he copied his voice from Bryan Ferry and chose his name from Bowies Drive in Saturday song, although i suppose you cant blame him, after all, Bowie is so influential in many ways, but there is no comparison im afraid...love-on-ya!

  • wondering if they ever meet each other...

  • Brilliant thanks for another great Sylvian video and ace choice of song. Gary Numan deffo ripped off Dave's vocal styling.

  • did anyone else love sylvian's solo album "dead bees on a cake"?

  • On a sidenote. Just how fucking incredible is Karn's bass playing on this track. He's a god.

  • mega stuff, you have done what i've been thinking since 1982...........inspired.

  • Two of South London's finest......

  • anyone who stopped following sylvian at end of japan have missed so much. his songwriting is even better. his music has so much depth. amazing musician.

  • Wo.w! I spent many many nights listening to these 2 Davids back in the '80s. Kinda lost them for the '90s and early '00s, but have recently come back to both of them. Their music is timeless

  • One of the greatest tunes ever released.

  • I Love japan. david sylvian is so different to everything else at the time but at 2:47, isn't that "Edward Fox" in "The day of the jackle"? (Another fave)

  • Somehow they must have similar dna...Obviously Sylvian, in the early japan years, was, still is, the best Bowie-clone ever. He must have studied the older David extremely well. He never hided his love for DB. He was much influenced by Bowies instrumental work as well. DS became a very inspirational artist in his own right and upon till today I love both Davids very much.

  • Oh what a joy, to see my hero Sylvian immortalized next to another genius. Still there is something more connected with David. He still is everything to me, and how cool does he look reading the newspaper or standing next to a window. Sheer art. Thanks for doing the comparison, really loved it!

  • i could n`t hurt anyone..most of you.....david batt is totally different from david bowie so it was nice but not right!! sylvian is king

  • Hey that worked well! Enjoyed very muchly!!! Very Nice!!!

  • Sylvian = Princess Diana,

    Bowie = Camila Parker Bowles. (dental part only.)

    Thanks for this, these two Davids rock.

  • Haha. LMFAO! Since you pointed that out I can totally see it!

  • Very well put.

  • By the way... did you think about reuniting 3 Bowies??? I mean... note: Bowie, David Sylvian and Nick Rhodes (Duran Duran)!!! I´d really like to watch a video with these 3 brilliant men!!!!!

  • AH! Maybe the film m"Man Who Fell To Earth! is a film about Sylvian/Bowies real experience of being Aliens who fell here that their really not allowed to reveal! Come on look at the two of them and look at the avarage human race their complections are too perfect do research on arians and nordick race!

  • for me both are great. David Bowie is a big influence in music and David Sylvian is a big influence to musicians, so they both are great in all aspects... Besides both are georgeous!

  • David S OK...

    David B <3 <3 <3 <3

  • Los dos!!!

    Sylvian es el ángel ;-)

    Bowie... tiene mis ojos!

    Excelente video!!

  • Though Bowie was an obvious influence on Sylvian, he proved to be ahead of his time as well, developing a stunning career either solo or with Japan.

    Two of the most brilliant artists of our time.

  • Bowie is the best !!!

  • Anyone got any hash for me to smoke?

  • GOT SOME CORN BEEF HASH.

  • JUST RIP WITH ME

  • You can keep your Corn Beef Hash. I am looking for some Hawaiian Black, if you know what I mean :-)

  • I love both artists, despite being on the opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to their approach to music and life. Truly amazing artists. Brilliant Trees and Low are up there at my top five albums list. :)

  • Sylvian the best !

  • Do you mean sylvian IS the best?

  • One thing's for sure, Bowie's dentist was obviously NHS - Sylvian's sweet straight smile is incredible (not that you see it anywhere often).

  • My new career

  • thanks doc

  • hi, whats the name of this song?

  • My New Career - its from the album Gentlemen Take Polaroids

  • As much as I like them both, their dabbling-in- looks phase strikes me as somewhat pathological.

  • hi, whats the name of this song?

  • I love you, David.

    Both of you.

  • Sylvian, what an amazing looking guy, 'i'd do him and I'm straight"

  • You're not straight anymore, buddy.

  • You have impeccible taste! I agree, and I'm a mere female.

  • That was terrific! It's sad to see that people have taken a unique accomplishment like this and gone off about it. People are weird. This was cool, thanks for putting it up. Loved it!

  • good vid,never mind the bad comments.

  • no comparison .

  • Wow, this video rules! Two great Davids' and a great song :D

  • MMM, not read all the thread, so forgive me if somebody has pointed this out.

    Now, if you were to try this again, but instead of Bowie - use DIANA !!!!!

    Stunning similarities!!!

  • I love Nick Rhodes, but he surely stole Sylvian's look.

  • don't waste your time, but it's there, trust me.

    i have gotten to the point where i just watch the vids and keep my thoughts to myself.

    you wouldn't believe the ammount of hate-mail i get.

    and for what?

    beats me.

  • great song , great face;)

  • I love the arguments in this thread. David Sylvian has written ALL his own material....what? like "I second that emotion"...great version by the way but he never wrote one word or note. And how many songs has Iggy ever written for Bowie? maybe he's covered a couple, but written FOR him????? none, that's how many. How many has Bowie written FOR Iggy? well, China Girl, Lust For Life, The Passenger, ...I could go on...

  • haha, yes I know. That "silmalila" person obviously has got her fact VERY wrong, while the one arguing against her has it very right. While I love both Bowie and Sylvian, you can't really compare.

  • This "silmalila" person is me, Juliet, and I said it before: I wasn't a music journalist, I was partying and having a good time.

    Must you people make a religion of music?

    I have a religion, and there are no "Gods" among any of the musicians that I have known.

    Period.

  • Good point.

    In fact "all tomorrow's parties", which has been covered by EVERYONE, is one of my fave Japan songs.

    So I was wrong.

    My bad.

    Hey: why not lynch me for it?

  • Actually Bowie didn't write The Passenger.. Just thought I'd mention that!

  • Only simalarities between Bowie&Sylvian-both called David,both from South London,both very pretty,both pretty talented!!!

    End of story-no more unpleasantness please!!!

  • Thanks sweetheart:

    Love you.

  • One more thing, dumpling; you claim to be such an expert, yet did not know that Steve and David are brothers. And that their true surname is "Bstt". And you know how I know this? Because the real expert, Maxiclaudi, told me so.

    I am not the expert.

    You are not the expert.

    Props where props are due: HURRY HOME MAXI,

    Juliet is missing you bigtime. And some sorry people need to be told a thing or two.

    BY YOU. THE FINAL WORD. :) Love ya baby.

  • typo:

    BATT

  • this is from an message you sent me:

    "barbieri on drums. karn on bass. jansen of guitar. karn is NOT the one who ever had shaved eyebrows, that would be David's brother, steve" FAIL. another quote from your messages: "But did you know that he and Steve Jansen (guitarist with the shaved eyebrows) are brothers? " FAIL.

  • and yet you say you said "i know my shit!" FAIL AGAIN. karn is the bassist, with the shaved eyebrows, jansen is the drummer, barbieri on keyboards, and rob dean on guitar. karn was the one with the shaved eyebrows, google mick karn and there you will see him all shaved eyebrows glory. go to any japan fansite and you will see jansen is the drummer not the guitarist. so it seems BOTH

  • you and your "friend" are in the wrong here.

  • and frankly, i always knew they were brothers. it's common knowledge. and you can notice by their faces that they are siblings. i suggest you search in "mick karn interview" on this site and see who mick karn really is. your ignorance is amazing.

  • Point being?

  • the bass line is amazzZZZzzing!

    mick karn is wooOow! (as usual)

  • Sylvian / Bowie ...

    where is Sakamoto?

  • he's one of the most famous composer in Japan (Furyo, the last Emperor, Little Buddah, Talons Aiguilles, the sheltering sky,...) and a good friend of david Sylvian

  • I love both davids and My New Career is one of my all time favorite tunes.. so thanks.

  • I don't understand how you can "classify Bowie's work based on the decade" but not do the same with Sylvian. If "Station to Station" came out tomorrow I would still think it was genius AND relevant. Same goes for some Sylvian works, like "Secrets of the Beehive". However, Bowie will always be the daddy of it all....how did Sylvian come up with that last name? "Drive in Saturday"....

  • He got the last name from Sylvain Sylvain of the New York Dolls haha.

  • Both are great, but point blank... Bowie's music can be classified by each decade that it came out it.

    Sylvian's, solo music, on the other hand, cannot.

    Therefore Sylvian's music is "timeless" in that aspect.

  • You cannot classify Bowie's music like that. Even today, many of Bowie's older albums, like the amazing Berlin Trilogy (which trust me, had they never happened, Sylvian and Japan wouldn't have found their way) still sound fresh and unique. That's the mark of timelessness: music stands the test of time. As for Sylvian, I would call his music timeless also, Japan, to me, was such a good band with a completely original sound not found today.

  • Aifor70: i couldn't have said it better.

    Very very pertinent to the argument.

    And undeniable.