📍 Europe / USA 🌍
🏛️ Private Planning Phase

🎸 Event: Chronology: End of Collaboration-Focused Period
🎤 Artist: David Bowie
🗒️ Notes: Following his work with Queen, Giorgio Moroder, and the BBC’s Baal, Bowie formally concludes his period of diverse collaborations to focus on a unified solo artistic direction.

📍 Switzerland / New York 🇺🇸
🏛️ Private Writing Sessions

🎸 Event: Creative: Early Songwriting & Conceptual Development
🎤 Artist: David Bowie
🗒️ Notes: Bowie begins drafting new musical ideas with a focus on rhythmic structures. He seeks a sound that is more direct and commercially accessible than the experimental ‘Berlin Trilogy‘ or ‘Scary Monsters’.

📍 New York City, USA 🇺🇸
🏛️ Management & Industry Meetings

🎸 Event: Planning: Strategic Shift Toward Mainstream Success
🎤 Artist: David Bowie
🗒️ Notes: Discussions intensify regarding the production of a new studio album. Bowie begins defining his requirements for a producer who can deliver a modern, dance-oriented aesthetic.

📍 New York City, USA 🇺🇸
🏛️ EMI America Records

🎸 Event: Business: New Recording Agreement Negotiations
🎤 Artist: David Bowie
🗒️ Notes: Bowie enters the final stages of negotiating a departure from RCA Records. The move to EMI America is a calculated step toward maximizing his global commercial potential for the mid-1980s.

📍 New York City, USA 🇺🇸
🏛️ Continental Club / Industry Meetings

🎸 Event: Creative: Producer Discussions & Nile Rodgers Evaluation
🎤 Artist: David Bowie
🗒️ Notes: Bowie meets with Nile Rodgers of CHIC. Their shared interest in R&B and jazz, combined with Rodgers’ production expertise, leads to the decision to collaborate on the upcoming album.

📍 New York City, USA 🇺🇸
🏛️ Continental Club / Industry Meetings

🎸 Event: Creative: Strategic Alliance with Nile Rodgers
🎤 Artist: David Bowie & Nile Rodgers
🗒️ Notes: Following a series of informal meetings, Bowie formally recruits Nile Rodgers to produce his next album. The objective is to create a “commercial, post-modern” sound that bridges jazz, soul, and pop.

📍 New York City, USA 🇺🇸
🏛️ Private Planning

🎸 Event: Direction: Definition of the New Musical Aesthetic
🎤 Artist: David Bowie
🗒️ Notes: Bowie explicitly rejects the experimental textures of his previous work. He commits to a direct, rhythm-based approach, aimed at massive global accessibility and dancefloor appeal.

📍 Montreux, Switzerland 🇨🇭
🏛️ Mountain Studios

🎸 Event: Demoing: Early Let’s Dance Material
🎤 Artist: David Bowie & Nile Rodgers
🗒️ Notes: Bowie and Rodgers record raw demos of new tracks, including an early acoustic-driven version of ‘Let’s Dance‘. These sessions establish the arrangements before moving to a full studio environment.

📍 New York City, USA 🇺🇸
🏛️ Pre-Production Planning

🎸 Event: Casting: Selection of Session Musicians
🎤 Artist: David Bowie
🗒️ Notes: Bowie and Rodgers finalize the band lineup, famously deciding to use Texas blues guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan after seeing him perform at the Montreux Jazz Festival.

📍 New York City, USA 🇺🇸
🏛️ The Power Station

🎸 Event: Recording: Start of Let’s Dance Album Sessions
🎤 Artist: David Bowie
🗒️ Notes: Official recording begins for the new album. The sessions are remarkably efficient, characterized by Rodgers’ precise production and Bowie’s confident vocal takes.

📍 New York City, USA 🇺🇸
🏛️ The Power Station

🎸 Event: Recording: Conclusion of Let’s Dance Sessions
🎤 Artist: David Bowie
🗒️ Notes: In just 19 days, the entire album is tracked and mixed. Bowie closes the year with a completed masterpiece, ready to launch his most successful commercial era.