David Bowie opened the 2001 Concert for New York City alone on stage with an Omnichord he’d gone to a music store to buy specifically for the occasion, performing Simon & Garfunkel’s “America” as the night’s first song, and the choice was an act of quiet, profound grace. Where other performers used the televised charity event to make statements, Bowie chose a song that is patriotic without being blind, deeply human without being sentimental, and his understated delivery, sitting on the floor with a little keyboard, turned every line into something almost unbearably moving.