David Bowie Record Named The 'Gayest' Of All-Time
By Brian FairbanksDecember 16th, 2009, 3:34 pmComments (7)
We're not sure why a list like this exists or what constitutes a gay record (besides, you know, by having the name Village People on it), but David Bowie's most famous release topped a poll of the "gayest" of all-time, whatever that means.
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars, the quintessential glam-rock/space-rock/early 70s-rock album, was named #1 by Rufus Wainwright, Cyndi Lauper, and other judges for Out Magazine. The top 10 contains some surprises, at least for us:
6. The Smiths: The Queen Is Dead (1986). We had no idea this was a "gay record"-- with "Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others" and the pronoun-free love song "There Is A Light That Never Goes Out," you would think the very-gay The Smiths (1984) would overshadow this entirely. (It's #2 on the list, for good reason.)
5. Judy Garland: Judy at Carnegie Hall (1961). We're surprised this wasn't #1. Isn't it a cliche/stereotype that this is a very popular album with the gays? Is the record itself considered somewhat homosexual because her daughter grew up to marry so many closeted dudes?
9. Cyndi Lauper: She's So Unusual (1983). She Bop is on here, but isn't that about masturbation? Why would it be a gay album -- just because Cyndi's so damned flamboyant? Puzzling...
See the full list here and let us know what you think.
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Commentarium (7 Comments)
To find the answer we must track the problem to it's source - the readership of Out magazine, eg. gay men in their early 40s and 16 year-old closeted boys, and to do that, we need to go their mecca. Cyndi Lauper? The Smiths? David Bowie? All disco remix classics at your favorite cheesy Chelsea gay bar. Why? no one really knows...
Hmmmm. You sound a bit peeved about the Bowie selection, and the list generally. Maybe even a bit defensive? Maybe even a bit threatened . . . ? A visit to the therapist might be in order. But, it's okay. Everybody's a little bit gay . . . .
I assume you mean me and not bwr...
I have all of those albums except for the Judy Garland one (although I haven't listened to She's So Unusual in many years and only have it on a beat-up cassette), so I'm definitely not disappointed with their list. I just don't get why something would be a "gay" album vs. a "straight" one. Did they mean gay people are the biggest fans of that record? Is it the record a gay person is most likely to own? Or is it about the lyrics? It wasn't clear.
Ziggy is my boyfriend's favorite album of all time. So, maybe they've got a point.
I remember there was a list out awhile back of "Gayest Cars" and never knew what the hell that meant. I mean, did they catch them out back sucking off a fire truck or what? It's a car...
Brian, I completely agree with you - unclear what criterion makes for the "gayest" music. Just needed to get this one thing off my chest though: you are killing me with the repeated use of "all-time." That is not a word. All and time should be separated by a space. The hyphen is only acceptable when it is an adjective phrase modifying a noun (as in "the all-time best"). OK... thanks for letting me vent.
Nah. I was just razzing you, Brian. The entire need to categorize, whether as a matter of religion or politics or music, is a bit "gay," by which I mean . . . what? If owning Rufus Wainwright music is a measure of gay, guess I'd better start measuring.