Artists Like David Bowie: 12 Glam Rock & Art Pop Legends

The Bowie–Iggy connection runs deep: Bowie produced Iggy's two greatest solo albums, "The Idiot" and "Lust for Life" (both 1977), during their Berlin exile. As The Stooges' frontman, Iggy invented the confrontational performance style that glam rock borrowed and polished. Raw where Bowie was refined.

Marc Bolan invented glam rock before Bowie perfected it. T. Rex's "Electric Warrior" (1971) and "The Slider" (1972) fuse blues rock with camp theatricality and killer riffs. Bolan's acoustic-electric style and androgynous image set the template that Bowie would take stratospheric.

Bryan Ferry and Brian Eno's art-rock project was the closest in spirit to Bowie's Ziggy-era ambition. "Roxy Music" (1972) and "For Your Pleasure" (1973) are brilliantly avant-garde. Ferry's crooner persona and Eno's textural experiments make for a uniquely sophisticated cocktail.

Bowie produced Lou Reed's landmark "Transformer" (1972), creating the template for glam rock's New York cousin. Reed's deadpan delivery and unflinching subject matter influenced Bowie's own theatrical outsider perspective. "Walk on the Wild Side" remains one of the most radical pop songs ever made.

Brett Anderson openly worshipped Bowie and it shows — in the theatrical baritone, the glam guitar work of Bernard Butler, the outsider sexuality, and the cinematic ambition of albums like "Dog Man Star" (1994). Suede are the most direct Bowie descendants in British indie rock.

Bowie wrote and produced "All the Young Dudes" (1972) for Mott the Hoople when they were about to split up. The song became one of glam rock's anthems. Ian Hunter's gruff charm made them glam rock's everyman band — less alien, more street-level than Bowie himself.

Ron and Russell Mael's Sparks have been making brilliantly weird pop music since 1972 — glam, synth-pop, orchestral pop, disco — constantly reinventing themselves much like Bowie. "Kimono My House" (1974) is a masterpiece of high-camp art pop.

Gary Numan took Bowie's Berlin-era electronic experiments and made them into something colder and more alien. "The Pleasure Principle" (1979) and "Telekon" (1980) are essential post-punk electronic records. His emotionless vocal style echoes the android persona of Bowie's later work.

Kate Bush shares Bowie's theatrical ambition, his literary references, and his refusal to stay in one artistic place. "Hounds of Love" (1985) is as audacious and multi-dimensional as any Bowie record. Her voice — all those leaps and swoops — is as distinctive as Bowie's.

Eno co-created Bowie's three greatest albums — "Low", "Heroes" and "Lodger" (1977–79) — and without him those records wouldn't exist. His ambient and avant-garde solo work ("Another Green World", "Discreet Music") is the art music that sits behind Bowie's most experimental moments.

Brian Molko's androgynous persona and confessional lyrics about sex, drugs, and alienation place Placebo firmly in Bowie's theatrical outsider tradition. "Without You I'm Nothing" (1998) is their finest hour — melodically rich, emotionally raw, and unapologetically glamorous.

Scott Walker's career trajectory mirrors Bowie's — from mainstream pop star to genuinely challenging avant-garde artist. His solo albums from "Scott 4" (1969) to "Tilt" (1995) and "The Drift" (2006) make for one of music's most extraordinary artistic journeys. Essential for serious Bowie fans.