Live: Capital Centre, Landover

David Bowie performed at the Capital Centre in Landover, Maryland, on 27 April 1978, during the Isolar II Tour.

It was the 21st date of the tour, which began on 29 March in San Diego.

Bowie’s guitarists were Carlos Alomar and Adrian Belew. Simon House was on electric violin, Sean Mayes played piano, and Roger Powell was on keyboards and synthesizers. George Murray played bass guitar and Dennis Davis was on drums.

Washington – a beautiful city, European in flavour like many on the east coast. We strolled in from the airport down broad tree-lined avenues, past the slim white stone pencil of the Washington Monument, 500 feet high. The cars swept up to the Watergate Hotel, much smarter than our usual haunts, part of the famous Watergate complex where Nixon’s problems began. We cracked a few jokes about bugging. I bought a copy of All The President’s Men at a book-stall, partly as a souvenir.

By now I was rather blasé about the places we stayed but I wasn’t prepared for the palatial suite which awaited me at the Watergate – an open-plan apartment with vast bed, complete dining suite and a couple of large sofas. Long curtains swung gently in the breeze and French windows opened onto a large balcony overlooking the Potomac River and a sweep of the countryside. It was good to have left behind the flat starkness of the Mid-Western cities.

I got down to the lobby early and found the limos waiting. I nearly went and got in but suddenly a grim party in dark suits marched through the lobby and into the cars, in their midst the familiar eye-patch of Moshe Dayan, Israel’s military leader until 1974. I hate to think of those armed guards finding me reclining in their limousine! It was a long drive to the gig and there were road signs up saying ‘DAVID BOWIE’.

Bowie had previously visited the Capital Centre on 11 November 1974 during the Diamond Dogs Tour, and on 13 and 14 March 1976 during the Isolar Tour.

He returned to the venue on 27 and 28 August 1983 for the Serious Moonlight Tour, and 28 and 29 September 1987 for the Glass Spider Tour.

The setlist

• ‘Warszawa’
• “Heroes”
• ‘What In The World’
• ‘Be My Wife’
• ‘The Jean Genie’
• ‘Blackout’
• ‘Sense Of Doubt’
• ‘Speed Of Life’
• ‘Breaking Glass’
• ‘Beauty And The Beast’
• ‘Fame’
• ‘Five Years’
• ‘Soul Love’
• ‘Star’
• ‘Hang On To Yourself’
• ‘Ziggy Stardust’
• ‘Suffragette City’
• ‘Rock ‘N’ Roll Suicide’
• ‘Art Decade’
• ‘Alabama Song’
• ‘Station To Station’
• ‘Stay’
• ‘TVC 15’
• ‘Rebel Rebel’