The Tumultuous Relationship of Frank Zappa, Adrian Belew, and David Bowie

As many know, Frank Zappa has many notable musical partnerships. One of my favorites is with guitar player and vocalist Adrian Belew, who is well noted for collaborations with King Crimson and Talking Heads. The story goes that David Bowie had been headhunting for a new guitarist. Belew was touring with Zappa in Berlin for the 1978 European tour when, at the recommendation of Brian Eno, Bowie attended the show.

Bowie approached Belew after the show expressing his interest, and asked him to join for dinner. Somehow, out of all the restaurants in Berlin, the two wandered into a place only to see Zappa and the rest of the band dining. It was obvious Belew was being poached by Bowie – Zappa took notice and the three crossed paths.

During their interaction, Bowie remained polite and cordial, complimenting Belew on his musicianship, when Zappa replied “Fuck you, Captain Tom.” As many are familiar from Bowie’s song “Space Oddity,” Major Tom was the song’s protagonist. It appears that Zappa had demoted him. Horrified, Belew left with an unbothered Bowie, who exclaimed “I thought that went rather nicely!”. The rest is history, as Belew joined Bowie on tour from ’78-’79 and again in 1990.