No producer worked with David Bowie as much as Tony Visconti. From co-producing Bowie’s 1969 second album to helping craft the sumptuous farewell record Blackstar, Visconti was as close as Bowie had to a constant artistic companion. “Bowie and I were idealists,” the producer told Classic Rock’s Harry Doherty. “We saw our relationship like a friendship, with an arts lab that was part of it. I was very active [with him]. I would be an all-round person to play bass, work the sound, work the lights.”
The songwriter and singer was still looking for his big break when Visconti first encountered him, but he could tell there was something extraordinary there. “The minute I met him I thought he was a special guy. I heard his first album, and I thought the guy was talented even though he lacked direction, and I could hear the star quality in his voice. I was surprised to find out that he was only 19. His personality was very mercurial. A non-stop talker. He was fidgety and very aware of his physical presence. I knew it was going to be a long haul with him, like Marc Bolan. Marc gave me the same goose bumps in the beginning.”
