David Bowie is (part 2): 'When I'm Five'

David Robert Jones was born on 8 January 1947. His mother, Margaret 'Peggy' Burns and father, Haywood Stenton Jones, originally from Yorkshire, lived at 40 Stansfield Road in Brixton, South London with two other families. David Jones would live there with his half-brother (on his mother's side) Terry, who was ten years older than him, for eight years before moving to Bromley, about ten miles south-east, in Kent.

Peggy Burns' family was known for 'madness' and David's 'frightful' aunt Pat spoke to the tabloids about it in the 1980s. Although not directly affected himself, some in David's family, most obviously Terry, did suffer and this undoubtedly had an imapct on David's life.

In 1953, David Jones secretly watched The Quatermass Experiment on television, giving him a lifelong love of science fiction.

When David Jones arrived in Bromley he went to Burnt Ash School, but it was after he joined the scouts and the church choir that he met Geoff MacCormack and George Underwood, two of his most enduring friendships.

One evening in 1955, David's father came home from work with a bag of records he had been given. That night David played each single in turn: Fats Domino, Chuck Berry and Franke Lymon and the Teenagers. He was already very excited by his discovery of rock 'n' roll, but the best was yet to come.

He played 'Tutti Frutti' by Little Richard and, according to the future David Bowie many years later, "I hit gold... my heart nearly burst with excitement. I'd never heard anything even resembling this. It filled the room with energy and colour and outrageous defiance. I had heard God."

Little Richard was not a traditional Mississippi bluesman; he was from New Orleans and his music exploded from the speakers. Richard was inspired by the cross-dressing scene and he used brightly-coloured suits and over-the-top showmanship. He was also gay, although he did not come out until much later. On 16 February 1957 Little Richard became the first American rock 'n' roll star to appear on British television on the BBC's Six-Five Special. The show aired this extract from the film Don't Knock The Rock.



About a year after they had first met, in the summer of 1958, David Jones and George Underwood produced their first public performance around the camp fire at a scout camp on the Isle of Wight. George owned a Hofner acoustic guitar and David a ukulele and on this ocasion David strummed while George sang.

When David and George went to Bromley Technical College, David was taught art by Owen Frampton. Not only did he work very hard sketching and developing an ability for art, he was also inspired by Frampton to develop an interest in appreciating art and it was from him that David developed a love of Egon Schiele's work. Frampton was also the father of Peter Frampton who was a few years below David at the college.

By the age of fourteen, David Jones was spending all his spare time at Medhurst's department store in the record department, checking out the latest records, and the girls. Here he developed a taste for jazz as well as rock 'n' roll. Around 1960, his father bought him a plastic alto saxophone and David got a Saturday job at Furlong's, a record and instrument store.

David and George were developing a friendly rivalry in both their musical ambitions and their attempts to chat up girls. In one infamous incident in 1962, David Jones told George a girl that he was on his way to meet, could not make it. After the girl waited for an hour and went home distraught, David intended to go round to her house to 'comfort' her. On the way, however, he met George who had uncovered his plan and, understandably, punched him in the face. Somehow he managed to scratch the eyeball and David had to go to hospital. The result was a pupil that was permanently dilated giving the impression that he has two differently-coloured eyes.

Shortly after this incident George Underwood, who had been in several bands and was now in the Kon-Rads, invited David Jones to join. Their first public performance was at the Bromley Tech PTA Fete. Late in 1962, George Underwood was kicked out of the band but David Jones stayed. In 1963 the band played a number of gigs and managed to get an audition with Joe Meek, a successful producer, but they were turned down. They then got a slot on the TV talent contest Ready Steady Win! The Kon-Rads, who only did covers, were mocked whilst the band that won boasted a great young guitarist, Peter Frampton, now at Bromley Grammar School. Their third break, an audition with Decca Records also ended in disaster with the drummer 'a nervous wreck'. By the time they were turned down, David had already left.

Later that year David Jones found out he had failed every O'Level except art. Undettered he continued with music, although he did accept a job as a paste-up artist at an ad agency wangled by Owen Frampton. After a brief period with George playing as The Hooker Brothers, the pair teamed up with a trio called the King Bees.

Next time: the story continues to 1965.