I don’t think I fully understand David Bowie’s career, but I always like what I see. There is something spellbinding about his performance here in a short, slinky get-up and thigh-high boots, despite (or maybe because of) the shoddy video quality. Before he opened his mouth, I wondered if it might even be an over-the-top impersonator:

“Ziggy Stardust” will forever make me think of one long weekend when I was in junior high or high school. My favorite local radio station was playing its entire catalogue, from A to Z, and kept running a canned teaser to advertise that fact: “From [I don't remember the A song, alas] to Ziggy Stardust … we’re playing it all.” I think the song’s distinctive guitar lick was even part of the promo.

It was the first time I’d heard of an A-to-Z weekend, and the first time I’d encountered the title of the Bowie classic, so I spent the whole 48 hours entranced, waiting for this mysterious song to reveal itself. Along the way, I enjoyed a whole lot of (alphabetical) hits, and I was young and sweet enough that I think I actually believed they were playing every song in their library. Awesome concept!

It’s hard to convey the power that DJs held back in the day, with people hanging on their every word, wondering which song would be next in the A-to-Z epic or in the weekly Top 40. When we were in Seattle last week, we heard an old Casey Kasem broadcast from the ’70s. First of all: Casey Kasem! Second of all, it gave me a little dose of shivery countdown nostalgia.

Apparently Casey is still at it (with help now from Ryan Seacrest, of course, and an earlier stint by Shadoe Stevens [Shadoe Stevens!]). And I still occasionally hear radio stations trumpeting an A-to-Z weekend. But in an age of iPods and personalized playlists, it seems like the thrill is gone.

Then again, it could just be that I’m not seventeen anymore.

I’m not??