Saga 2
 
When someone copies you or rather mocks you, it only proves one point: that he admires you. No matter what the purpose of his act is, in the end of the day he's your fan. Otherwise, why would one (or a few) need to think of you night and day and plan the next move regarding your case?

Throughout my life, it was truly amazing to realize the number of admirers I've actually had and the number of different ways (OK, there weren't that many ways. You see, them people weren't that clever) they were trying to copy or mock me. Be it for the manner of speaking or the way I walked, not only didn't their behavior discourage me from proceeding with my deeds and thoughts... on the contrary, it only taught me that, in the eyes of the mockers I was a star.
Needless to say, my parents were far from being at ease with that view but my confidence only grew. When you decide not to give a toss, you shouldn't consider the neighbors and what they may say or think. After all, suppose they outnumber you... without a signed edict from the authorities, they can hardly do anything but talk.

And for the second course: not strictly a copycat but someone to actually consider.

Alastair Riddell was a young hopeful from New Zealand, and back in early 1974 his modest wish was to sing on one of TVs prime-time shows... and that wasn't an easy task to fulfill, bearing in mind the conservative nature of the country and the fact that it only had one, black & white TV channel.

...and so it happened, that after listening to import copy of David Bowie's "Ziggy Stardust" and spending a few days and nights staring at the album's back sleeve, Mr. Riddell's penny dropped, and he thought, 'Geeeeeeeeee... that David Bowie looks and sounds just like me', or something in that direction.
Retrospectively speaking, it would take Bowie few years before touring the area. Riddell, meanwhile, was determined to "fill in", if only for the time being. Without hesitation he assembled a new band and wrote new songs, and went straight to NZ's branch of EMI records with the package.
The record company obeyed to the new British fashion, and the band, now christened Space Waltz, promptly performed on the country's only channel, on prime-time.
Reaction from the watchers varied: The parents (and the grand parents as well, I assume) were shocked and their letters of complaints soon reached the offices of NZ's national TV. The kids (oh, how typical) were hooked, and where sensation arise there's money... and the record went to the top of the charts down under.

The record itself is superb. The sci-fi material is, indeed, original, and at the same time it's presented in the Spiders from Mars style. Suffice to say, if you are a fan of the man who fell to earth, and your wish goes like "if only Bowie had done another album in the Ziggy / Diamond Dogs / Aladdin Sane mould", I reckon you'll love Alastair Riddell's Space Waltz.





Sincerely yours,
Matt Gee 

to read  saga 1