Released on January 8, 2016 on what would be his 69th and final birthday by ISO/Columbia Records, * (Blackstar) is the twenty-fifth and final album by David Bowie. Produced with Tony Visconti, the album is a mixture of rock, electronic music, and jazz as it features re-recordings of two songs made a couple of years before for a retrospective album plus five new songs with much of the album’s lyrical content reveling into the concept of mortality, chaos, and the sense of the unknown. Featuring an array of session musicians from the world of jazz as well as contributions from James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem, the album marks as a fitting swan song to one of the greatest artists that had ever lived.
The album’s first single and opening track is its title track as it is this near-ten minute suite as it is this mixture of smooth, pulsating beats that sounds like a mixture of electronic and jazz-based beats with soothing synthesizers and lush guitar melodies that accompanies Bowie’s vocals. With its jazz-based saxophones and unique tempo changes, the song is like this chaotic blend of genres where it has a sci-fi feel but also with these haunting yet evocative lyrics with Bowie singing in different vocal ranges. The first of two songs that were remade for the album comes in the song Sue (Or In a Season of Crime) as the jazz elements of the song are stripped down for a more brutal, melodic-driven rocker with its droning guitars, pulsating beats, and soft saxophones where Bowie sings in a haunting yet raspy vocal that is filled with very dark lyrics that feels like a twisted noir film.
The remake of Tis a Pity She Was a Whore is given more discordant textures of jazz, rock, and electronic music with its jazz-based pianos and saxophones that includes some unique drum fills with its different time signatures and soothing synthesizers in the background. Even as Bowie sings lyrics that are dark that is filled with some unique imagery as it is one of his finest songs. The album’s second and final single in Lazarus does relate to the Biblical figure in some aspects as it is a song about death and coming to terms with it. Playing guitar on the track and singing in a calm yet somber vocal tone with a steady mid-tempo beat, the song also includes some jazz elements with its saxophones that add that sense of an end coming as it is one of Bowie’s great achievements.
Girl Loves Me is a mid-tempo song that has Bowie singing in different slang languages with this steady yet pummeling beat and discordant guitar melodies as the song is one of Bowie’s meanest. Especially in its lyrics as it is one of Bowie’s more confrontational into this mix of post-punk, electronic beats, and smooth jazz arrangements. Dollar Days is a song that is somber in its lyrics filled with ideas of death as it features some unique time signatures and tempo changes with its mixture of rock and jazz as Bowie sings in a very melancholic lyrics. Especially as it relates to knowing that things and experiences will never happen again. The album closer in I Can’t Give Everything Away is a mid-tempo mixture of rock, ambient-based electronics, and jazz that has Bowie on a harmonica as well as some poignant yet imaginative lyrics that serves as a fond farewell. With its soaring trumpet and a wailing guitar solo, the song is definitely one of Bowie’s most touching song as well as a fitting swan song.
* is an outstanding album from David Bowie but more importantly, it’s a grand statement of an artist who says goodbye to everyone. As a piece of art, it is unlike anything nor will it ever be duplicated while it also manages to be an album that has a lot happening but also showcase the work of an artist going out with a bang. Especially as it’s made by a man who has no equal as it serves as a fitting artistic statement in the best way possible. In the end, * is a glorious album from David Bowie.
Studio Releases: David Bowie (1967 album) - David Bowie (1969 album) - The Man Who Sold the World - Hunky Dory - The Rise & Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars - Aladdin Sane - Pin Ups - Diamond Dogs - Young Americans - Station to Station - Low - "Heroes" - Lodger - Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) - Let’s Dance - Tonight - Never Let Me Down - Tin Machine - Tin Machine II - Black Tie White Noise - Outside - Earthling - ‘Hours…’ - Heathen - Reality - The Next Day
Live Releases: David Live - Stage - Ziggy Stardust & the Spiders from Mars - Tin Machine Live: Oy Vey, Baby - Bowie at the Beeb - (Live at Fashion Rocks (w/ Arcade Fire)) - (Live Santa Monica ‘72) - (Glass Spider Live) - (VH1 Storytellers) - (A Reality Tour)
Soundtracks: Christiane F. - Labyrinth - The Buddha of Suburbia
Miscellaneous: Peter and the Wolf - Baal - Sound + Vision - (Early On (1964-1966)) - (All Saints) - Toy - (Nothing Has Changed)
© thevoid99 2016
Released on March 8, 2013 by ISO/Columbia Records, The Next Day is the twenty-fourth studio album by David Bowie marks the British artist’s first album of all-new material in a decade as it explores a variety of ideas as it’s all set in a world of art rock. Produced with Tony Visconti, the album was made in a two-year period in secrecy with several of his collaborators that includes guitarists Earl Slick and Gerry Leonard, bassist Gail Ann Dorsey, and drummers Sterling Campbell and Zachary Alford along with contributions from King Crimson bassist Tony Levin, famed backing vocalist Janice Pendarvis, session guitarist David Torn, and famed brass musician Steve Elson. The album would mark an album that showcases making an unexpected return and making those wanting for more.
The album opener is this mid-up tempo track with driving guitar riffs, walloping yet steady rhythms, wobbly bass lines, and Bowie’s eerie vocals features an element of snarl which relates to the fallacy of faith and its dogmas where it is one of Bowie’s finest singles. Other singles in the electronic-based The Stars (Are Out Tonight) with its upbeat rhythms, charging guitars, and Bowie’s vocals filled with abstract imagery display ideas of space and comfort. The ballad Where Are We Now? that features a somber rhythm, enchanting guitar textures, swooning keyboards, and haunting vocals by Bowie is a song that are quite reflective in terms of its lyrics as it is one of Bowie’s best ballads. The bopping Love is Lost is led by its steady rhythm, warbling guitar textures, and a swooning organ is a song that has Bowie singing about the sense of despair as it one of the darkest songs on the album.
Another single that play into an element of darkness is the driving rocker Valentine’s Day with its mid-tempo yet walloping rhythms, driving guitars, and Bowie’s enchanting vocals as it’s filled with these dark lyrics with violent imagery as it has an element of black comedy. Tracks like the jazz-rock The Dirty Boys with Steve Elson’s warbling baritone saxophones and Earl Slick’s funky guitar flourishes with its bopping rhythm has Bowie sing very nasty and eerie lyrics that display a sense of grit into the sound. The wailing If You Can See Me with its blazing presentation of backing vocals, pulsating drums, charging guitars, and wailing vocals where Bowie does sing to charging lyrics that add to the song’s power. I’d Rather Be High is another mid-tempo track that is led by these wailing guitar riffs, a bopping rhythm, and Bowie’s blazing vocals that play into offbeat lyrics that relate to the experiences of a World War II soldier.
Boss of Me is a track with bopping rhythms, playful brass arrangements, driving guitars, and Bowie’s wailing vocals as he sings some very playful yet dark lyrics as it showcases his knack of offbeat humor in a complex setting of rock and jazz. Dancing Out of Space is an upbeat song with its swooning synthesizer wails, driving rhythms, and playful guitar riffs as it is a song that Bowie being cool and comical as well as provide some very weird yet fun lyrics. How Does the Grass Grow? is another upbeat song that begins with wailing guitar/synthesizer textures as it then becomes this fast-paced song with a steady, bopping rhythm and Bowie singing some very abstract and offbeat lyrics that are playful but also filled with an element of darkness. The charging rocker (You Will) Set the World on Fire is led by this snarling guitar riffs, Sterling Campbell’s walloping fills, thumping bass lines, and Bowie’s powerful vocals as it features intense and thrilling lyrics.
The ballad You Feel Lonely So You Could Die as it’s a mixture of folk and rock with elements of string arrangements with Bowie singing somber lyrics as it is one of his most enchanting ballads. The album closer in Heat is another ballad but a darker one that is led by soft beats, swooning guitar and synthesizer textures and Bowie’s vocals that sing lyrics of despair and chaos as it among one of his darkest songs. From the album’s deluxe edition comes three more tracks such as the instrumental piece Plan with its eerie mid-tempo rhythms and layers of driving and warbling guitar textures while I’ll Take You There is a fast-paced, driving rocker with wailing guitars and hard-hitting beats as Bowie sings in a powerful vocal style to some intense yet eerie lyrics of despair. So She is an upbeat tempo track with some rockabilly-inspired guitar melodies, chiming keyboard melodies, and a steady rhythm that add to Bowie’s calm vocal as he sings some dreamy lyrics that has this air of imagination.
From an expanded deluxe edition with seven more tracks that was released separately as a digital EP known as The Next Day Extra features two remixes and five other tracks including a song from a Japanese release of the album. Atomica is an upbeat track with some funk-based rhythms, driving guitars, and off-kilter synthesizer melodies that include quirky lyrics that revel into the world of stardom. The Informer is a mid-tempo track with its slow yet walloping rhythms, spurt-based guitars, and Bowie’s wailing vocals as it features very strange lyrics that play into the ideas of faith and idealism. Like a Rocket Man is an upbeat track with bopping beats, a mixture of folk-based and rock guitars, and Bowie singing some playful yet funny lyrics as it is filled with surreal imagery. Born in a UFO is a wailing, upbeat track that features offbeat lyrics and some driving guitar riffs as it is one of Bowie’s weirdest but funniest songs.
From the Japanese edition of the album in God Bless the Girl is this song filled with a mix of folk-based guitars and soothing electric guitar textures to a bopping, Latin-inspired rhythm with Bowie singing some somber yet enchanting lyrics. The two remixes include a remix of Love is Lost by James Murphy for DFA Records that features elements of Ashes to Ashes and Steve Reich’s Clapping Hands in its mix that opens with sounds of rhythmic handclaps that slows down with its house-based synthesizer warbles as it accompanies Bowie’s vocals. The remix of I’d Rather Be High for a commercial has Bowie singing largely to a harpsichord accompaniment with elements of the original track’s instrumentals as it’s one of the richer remixes that Bowie has been involved in.
The Next Day is a phenomenal album from David Bowie that showcases an artist not only being more adventurous and daring but also display a sense of familiarity and make something old feel new again. Even as it’s a record filled with songs ranging from rock, electronic, pop, and art-rock while also having a sense of looking back which Bowie rarely does yet making it feel vital and enthralling. In the end, The Next Day is a spectacular album from David Bowie.
Studio Releases: David Bowie (1967 album) - David Bowie (1969 album) - The Man Who Sold the World - Hunky Dory - The Rise & Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars - Aladdin Sane - Pin Ups - Diamond Dogs - Young Americans - Station to Station - Low - "Heroes" - Lodger - Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) - Let’s Dance - Tonight - Never Let Me Down - Tin Machine - Tin Machine II - Black Tie White Noise - Outside - Earthling - ‘Hours…’ - Heathen - Reality - *
Live Releases: David Live - Stage - Ziggy Stardust & the Spiders of Mars - Tin Machine Live: Oy Vey, Baby - Bowie at the Beeb - (Live at Fashion Rocks (w/ Arcade Fire)) - (Live Santa Monica ‘72) - (Glass Spider Live) - (VH1 Storytellers) - (A Reality Tour)
Soundtracks: Christiane F. - Labyrinth - The Buddha of Suburbia
Miscellaneous: Peter and the Wolf - Baal - Sound + Vision - (Early On (1964-1966)) - (All Saints) - Toy - (Nothing Has Changed)
© thevoid99 2016
Recorded through various sessions from 2000 to 2001 and was leaked on the Internet in 2011, Toy is an album by David Bowie that is essentially an album in which Bowie would remake many songs he did from 1964 to 1968 including material from his eponymous debut. As well as some new songs in which a couple of them would end up being material for Heathen, the album is largely performed by Bowie and the band he had been playing at the time such as guitarists Earl Slick and Gerry Leonard, bassist Gail Ann Dorsey, drummer Sterling Campbell, pianist/keyboardist Mike Garson, violinist Lisa Germano, backing vocalists Emm Gryner and Holly Palmer, and guitarist/bassist Mark Plati who would take part in producing the sessions with Bowie.
The two songs that would later appear in a more realized form in Heathen in Afraid and an early version of Slip Away that was called Uncle Floyd as the former is presented in a rough version without the string elements that would appear in the final version while the latter opens in a comical manner with Bowie in a childlike voice talking about the humorous exploits of Uncle Floyd as it then turns into a ballad with Bowie singing in a detached vocal to Garson’s piano and its accompanying stylophone that Bowie is playing with slow rhythms and guitar textures. The other two songs that were written during the sessions in Toy (Your Turn to Drive) as this mixture of funk-based guitars, bopping rhythms, flourishing piano melodies, and calm vocals by Bowie as he sings some playful lyrics as it owes a lot to childhood innocence as it was a song made originally for the 1998 Rugrats movie.
The other in Hole in The Ground is a mid-tempo rocker that is led by driving guitars, walloping drum fills, and a somber synthesizer as Bowie sings these eerie yet abstract lyrics. From the deluxe edition of Heathen in 2007 includes the B-side Baby Loves That Way with its simple, mid-tempo presentation that owes a lot to old-school rock n’ roll with its riffs and innocent lyrics, the folk-based ballad Conversation Piece that includes string arrangements and a slower rhythm, and a steady mid-tempo take on the very rock n’ roll You’ve Got a Habit of Leaving. Yet, the highlight from that deluxe edition is a haunting ballad in a song originally recorded for The Rise & Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders of Mars in Shadow Man as it’s one of the album’s highlights in its morose lyrics and somber setting with Garson’s pianos and synthesizer textures.
Among the material from Bowie’s early years in 1964 to the material he made in 1968 include a bopping take on the 1966 single I Dig Everything as it is a rock n’ roll song with Bowie singing in a raspy vocal to some driving guitar textures and a steady rhythm. From the songs made in 1968 include a folk-rock take on Let Me Sleep Beside You with Bowie singing calmly to its playful lyrics with an acoustic guitar while being accompanied by driving guitars and soothing keyboards to a bopping rhythm and In the Heat of the Morning is given a slower tempo to suit Bowie’s more baritone vocal style as its riff is led by a synthesizer trumpet as well as soothing violin as it is one of Bowie’s finest remakes of his old songs.
From his 1967 eponymous debut is a remake of Silly Boy Blue as it is quite faithful to its original in its folk setting yet features some heavy bass grooves, Lisa Germano’s soothing violin, and Garson’s calm piano while a B-side in The London Boys is given a more somber, rock-based remake with its guitars, trumpet-sounding synthesizers, and melancholic lyrics. A remake of Bowie’s very first single in the Leslie Conn-penned Liza Jane which Bowie recorded in 1964 as Davie Jones and the King-Bees as it’s given a slower, blues-based remake with some harmonica and bluesy guitar textures where Bowie sings in a distorted fashion as it features some playful lyrics.
Toy is a sensational album from David Bowie. While it’s an album that hardcore fans of Bowie must have as it’s available in torrents and other places in the Internet though a few of those songs would eventually appear in the 2014 deluxe edition of the Nothing Has Changed retrospective compilation. In the end, Toy is a remarkable album from David Bowie.
Studio Releases: David Bowie (1967 album) - David Bowie (1969 album) - The Man Who Sold the World - Hunky Dory - The Rise & Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars - Aladdin Sane - Pin Ups - Diamond Dogs - Young Americans - Station to Station - Low - "Heroes" - Lodger - Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) - Let’s Dance - Tonight - Never Let Me Down - Tin Machine - Tin Machine II - Black Tie White Noise - Outside - Earthling - ‘Hours…’ - Heathen - Reality - The Next Day - *
Live Releases: David Live - Stage - Ziggy Stardust & the Spiders from Mars - Tin Machine Live: Oy Vey, Baby - Bowie at the Beeb - (Live at Fashion Rocks (w/ Arcade Fire)) - (Live Santa Monica ‘72) - (Glass Spider Live) - (VH1 Storytellers) - (A Reality Tour)
Soundtracks: Christiane F. - Labyrinth - The Buddha of Suburbia
Miscellaneous: Peter and the Wolf - Baal - Sound + Vision - (Early On (1964-1966)) - (All Saints) - (Nothing Has Changed)
© thevoid99 2016
Released on September 16, 2003 by ISO/Columbia Records, Reality is the twenty-third studio album by David Bowie that has him going into elements of rock and art rock while not yearning for innovations but rather have fun and play music while commenting on the strange aspects of reality. Produced with Tony Visconti, the album would feature the personnel such as longtime collaborators in guitarist Earl Slick, pianist Mike Garson, guitarist/bassist Mark Plati, bassist Gail Ann Dorsey, and drummer Sterling Campbell along with guitarist Gerry Leonard and keyboardist Catherine Russell who would be part of Bowie’s final live backing band as it would reflect an artist feeling vital and happy.
The opening track and leading single New Killer Star is this bopping, riff-based track with some wailing guitar notes, a wobbly rhythm, and Bowie singing abstract lyrics that play into a world being changed by new arrivals as it is one of his most playful singles. A cover of Jonathan Richman’s Pablo Picasso is an upbeat rock song with wailing guitars, driving rhythms, and some warbling electronics that has Bowie singing some strange lyrics that definitely owes a lot to surrealism as it includes some classical-based guitar flourishes. The album’s third single in Never Get Old is a funk-based mid-tempo track led by its melodic guitar and Gail Ann Dorsey’s driving bass line as it features Bowie singing in a wailing vocal for its chorus as it play into the idea of aging in a playful manner as it is one of Bowie’s finest singles.
The ballad The Loneliest Guy is a melancholic track led largely by Mike Garson’s piano, soft guitar textures, and Bowie’s eerie vocals as it is among one of the more simplest songs in an album that is filled with complex material. Notably in the upbeat, funk-based Looking for Water with its array of bopping rhythms, driving guitars, soothing synthesizers, and Bowie’s vocals as it features some very weird yet playful lyrics. She’ll Drive the Big Car is a mixture of electronic-based beats and textures with elements of blues and folk with Bowie playing the harmonica and a 12-string acoustic as it includes Bowie singing in different pitches while singing these offbeat lyrics that add to the album’s odd idea of reality. Days is this vibrant, folk-based mid-tempo piece that is later followed by its steady rhythms and warbling electronics as it features dream-like lyrics that have this imaginative sense of imagery.
Fall Dog Bombs the Moon is a steady, mid-tempo ballad with elements of folk and rock with some guitar flourishes from Earl Slick and Gerry Leonard as it has Bowie singing calmly to these dark lyrics that play into ideas of a world gone wrong. A cover of George Harrison’s Try Some Buy Some is a slow but steady piece that has Bowie sing Harrison’s lyrics while being accompanied by soothing synthesizers, Garson’s somber piano, and Sterling Campbell’s low-key drum fills. The album’s title track is this fast, upbeat rocker that features some crashing beats, driving guitar wails, a bopping bass line, and Bowie singing to these very dark yet strange lyrics that play into the fallacy of reality as he also adds some dark comedy to the lyrics. The album closer Bring Me the Disco King is this mid-tempo jazz piece that feature Garson playing jazz-like pianos with Matt Chamberlain’s smooth yet walloping drum fills and Visconti’s smooth bass while Bowie sings somber lyrics that are very reflective as it’s probably one of Bowie’s best deep cuts.
From the 2003 limited edition bonus disc version of the album are a couple of B-sides, a cover, a remake of a classic song, and a mash-up of two songs while another cover appears in a 2007 deluxe edition as part of a box set of albums from Outside to this album. The two covers in the deluxe edition includes a rock-based cover of the Kinks’ Waterloo Sunset that include some folk elements in its 12-string acoustic guitars as well as some synthesizers in the background while a cover of Sigue Sigue Spunk’s Love Missile F1-11 is one of the most manic as it pays tribute to its warbling synthesizers with some added guitar textures and driving bass lines into the song. The two non-LP B-sides in Fly and Queen of All the Tarts (Overture) as the former is this upbeat and bopping track with Bowie singing fast to some playful lyrics as it include some funky guitar spurts from longtime collaborator Carlos Alomar while the latter is a driving rock song with pummeling beats, melodic guitars, and an array of multi-tracked vocals where Bowie sings strange and surrealist-based lyrics.
A remake of the classic Rebel Rebel starts off with Bowie singing alone to a scratchy guitar and a cowbell as the instruments come full-throttle for the song’s chorus as it is one of Bowie’s finest takes on one of his defining classics. The mash-up of Rebel Rebel and Never Get Old in Rebel Never Get Old is featured in a radio mix and a remix where the radio mix is a very upbeat and playful take on the two songs that how both songs can become one. remix features elements of guitar elements of “Heroes” as well as some more pulsating beats and soft synthesizer wails as another version of the remix is essentially a shortened, edited version.
Reality is a phenomenal album from David Bowie that features an artist not only displaying a sense of enthusiasm but also feel as lively as ever. It’s an album that also features Bowie singing about the warped elements of reality in its darker and comical moments where it’s a lighter album but also a fun one. In the end, Reality is a sensational album from David Bowie.
Studio Releases: David Bowie (1967 album) - David Bowie (1969 album) - The Man Who Sold the World - Hunky Dory - The Rise & Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars - Aladdin Sane - Pin Ups - Diamond Dogs - Young Americans - Station to Station - Low - "Heroes" - Lodger - Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) - Let’s Dance - Tonight - Never Let Me Down - Tin Machine - Tin Machine II - Black Tie White Noise - Outside - Earthling - ‘Hours…’ - Heathen - The Next Day - *
Live Releases: David Live - Stage - Ziggy Stardust & the Spiders from Mars - Tin Machine Live: Oy Vey, Baby - Bowie at the Beeb - (Live at Fashion Rocks (w/ Arcade Fire)) - (Live Santa Monica ‘72) - (Glass Spider Live) - (VH1 Storytellers) - (A Reality Tour)
Soundtracks: Christiane F. - Labyrinth - The Buddha of Suburbia
Miscellaneous: Peter and the Wolf - Baal - Sound + Vision - (Early On (1964-1966)) - (All Saints) - Toy - (Nothing Has Changed)
© thevoid99 2016
Released on June 11, 2002 by ISO/Columbia Records, Heathen is the twenty-second studio album by David Bowie that marks a reunion between himself and longtime producer Tony Visconti since 1982’s Baal EP as it is an album that has Bowie returning to the world of art rock. Produced by Bowie and Visconti, the album would feature contributions from collaborators Carlos Alomar, Mark Plati, and Sterling Campbell as well as guest contributions from violinist Lisa Germano, Pete Townshend of the Who, and Dave Grohl from Nirvana/the Foo Fighters. The album has Bowie playing elder statesman while proving he still had a lot more to say when many of his contemporaries coast on their past glories.
The album opener Sunday is this eerie, mid-tempo track that include a few flourishes in the electronic textures and guitars by Carlos Alomar as Bowie sings in a haunting vocal filled with gloomy lyrics of a world that is later followed by mid-tempo and walloping drums by Matt Chamberlin. The sense of gloom also occurs in its closer Heathen (The Rays) as it features very stark lyrics of 9/11 imagery with as it is led by these ambient-based lyrics and rhythmic tom-tom beats that add to the eerie tone of the song. Tracks like A Better Future and the ballad Slip Away do play into that sense of conflict between gloom and hope though the former is this up-tempo track of sorts with its melodic keyboards and bopping beats while the latter is one of Bowie’s haunting songs with its mixture of ambient-like keyboards and Bowie’s eerie vocals where he also brings in the toy-keyboard in the stylophone.
Songs like Afraid and Slow Burn are rocked-based songs as the former is an upbeat track with driving guitars, pummeling beats, and Bowie’s wailing vocals as it features these powerful lyrics. The latter is a mid-tempo song that features wailing guitar solos by Pete Townshend with Bowie singing some very haunting yet gripping lyrics as it is one of Bowie’s best cuts. I Would Be Your Slave is a somber mid-tempo piece with bopping rhythms and Bowie singing in a calm yet intoxicating vocal to an ambient synthesizer background as it is this unique declaration of love. Everyone Says ‘Hi’ is another mid-tempo song that is sort of a ballad as it includes bits of Absolute Beginners while it has these dream-like lyrics and a unique synthesizer riff that drives the song.
5:15 The Angels Have Gone is this song with a unique presentation where it’s a ballad but it has these slow, walloping beats and melodic guitar textures as it has Bowie singing these somber yet despair-laden lyrics as the song’s tempo does pick-up a bit for its chorus. The album also features three covers as it includes a rock-based cover of the Pixies’ Cactus as it starts off with Bowie singing Black Francis’ abstract lyrics on a 12-string acoustic as it then becomes this full-on rock track. Neil Young’s I’ve Been Waiting for You features driving guitar riffs by Dave Grohl as it is this mid-tempo cut on the album as it is a rocker with Bowie singing Young’s gripping vocals. The final cover on the album in I Took a Trip on a Gemini Spacecraft by the Legendary Stardust Cowboy as it is this upbeat, electronic-based track with surreal lyrics, pulsating electronic beats, and a soothing synthesizer.
The 2007 Japanese 2-disc edition of the album features not just bonus tracks from a deluxe edition of the album as well as from its initial Japanese release in 2002 but also a slew of B-sides, rarities, and remixes. Among them are two remixes of songs from the album as a remix of Sunday by Moby as it‘s largely an ambient-based remix with is smooth synthesizers as well as a more throbbing rhythm to accompany Bowie‘s vocals that also includes a violin solo. Air’s remix of A Better Future includes some warbling vocal distortions, flourishing pianos, and a soothing ambient background as it’s one of the finest remixes from the French electronic duo. From the 2002 limited edition bonus disc album aside from the remixes include 1979 remake of Panic in Detroit that appeared in the 1992 Rykodisc reissue of Scary Monsters and a 2001 remake of the song Conversation Piece as it is a track that has Bowie adding some strings and a slower rhythm to the song as he sings in a lower vocal range.
The six other tracks in the album aren’t just B-sides to singles but four of them are actually remakes of older songs Bowie wrote back in the 1960s and early 1970s. The other two in Wood Jackson and Safe as the former is this mid-tempo track with folk-based guitar, swooning electrics, a bopping rhythm, and Bowie‘s dreamy vocals to these somber lyrics. The latter is this wailing, mid-tempo rocker with soaring string arrangements, a steady rhythm, and Bowie’s mesmerizing vocals as he sings very eerie lyrics that play into this sense of despair and fear. The remakes of Baby Loves That Way, When the Boys Come Marching Home, You’ve Got a Habit of Leaving, and a major rarity in a song called Shadow Man are songs, along with Conversation Piece, would be part of an unreleased album called Toy that was later leaked on the Internet in 2011.
When the Boys Come Marching Home is a somber ballad that has Bowie sing in a haunting tone to melancholic lyrics with a thumping beat and a groove-based texture with string arrangements while Baby Loves That Way is a playful rock track that is given a mid-tempo piece that is old-school rock n’ roll with its riffs and very innocent lyrics about love. You’ve Got a Habit of Leaving is this bopping, mid-tempo track as it includes some driving guitars, Mike Garson’s melodic piano, and Bowie’s cool vocals as it play into the world of rock n’ roll while featuring some walloping drumming from Sterling Campbell and wailing guitars from Earl Slick. The ballad Shadow Man is this somber song filled with melancholic lyrics sung by Bowie as he’s accompanied by Garson’s piano, soothing synthesizers, dreamy string arrangements, and wailing guitars as it is probably one of the Bowie’s finest gems that need to be discovered.
Heathen is a phenomenal album from David Bowie. The album isn’t just a fascinating return to neo-classic Bowie but also has him creating music that feels fresh and vital thanks in part to his collaborators as well as co-producer Tony Visconti who is able to provide some new things to the music. In the end, Heathen is an incredible album from David Bowie.
Studio Releases: David Bowie (1967 album) - David Bowie (1969 album) - The Man Who Sold the World - Hunky Dory - The Rise & Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars - Aladdin Sane - Pin Ups - Diamond Dogs - Young Americans - Station to Station - Low - "Heroes" - Lodger - Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) - Let’s Dance - Tonight - Never Let Me Down - Tin Machine - Tin Machine II - Black Tie White Noise - Outside - Earthling - ‘Hours…’ - Reality - The Next Day - *
Live Releases: David Live - Stage - Ziggy Stardust & the Spiders of Mars - Tin Machine Live: Oy Vey, Baby - Bowie at the Beeb - (Live at Fashion Rocks (w/ Arcade Fire)) - (Live Santa Monica ‘72) - (Glass Spider Live) - (VH1 Storytellers) - (A Reality Tour)
Soundtracks: Christiane F. - Labyrinth - The Buddha of Suburbia
Miscellaneous: Peter and the Wolf - Baal - Sound + Vision - (Early On (1964-1966)) - (All Saints) - Toy - (Nothing Has Changed)
© thevoid99 2016
Released on September 26, 2000 by Virgin Records, Bowie at the Beeb: The Best of the BBC Radio Sessions 68-72 is a two-disc compilation of live material David Bowie made for BBC Radio from 1968 to 1972. The collection explore Bowie’s evolution as an artist in his early years to the breakthrough he would achieve as Ziggy Stardust at it features an array of material including rarities and deep cuts. Featuring a third disc of Bowie’s performance at the Portland BBC Radio Theatre on June 27, 2000, the collection is probably one of the finest portraits of an artist coming into his own and then become a national treasure to his home country.
The first disc features sessions from 1968 to 1971 in different radio sessions for the BBC as the first four songs from John Peel in Top Gear for a May 5, 1968 broadcast features performances of In the Heat of the Morning, London Bye Ta-Ta, Karma Man, and Silly Boy Blue as Bowie is backed by an orchestra and a rock band that is led largely by Tony Orchestra as the performances of the songs are very rich as are the performances of Let Me Sleep Beside You and Janine for the Dave Lee Travis Show on an October 26, 1969 broadcast that features interviews by Brian Matthews and a strong backing band in Junior’s Eye that features early Bowie collaborators in rhythm guitarist Tim Renwick, bassist John Lodge, and drummer John Cambridge.
The next six songs on the second disc from a second session with the legendary John Peel for a February 8, 1970 broadcast that would mark the very first time Bowie would perform with guitarist Mick Ronson as they’re aided by Tony Visconti on bass and drummer John Cambridge in an early version of the band called Hype. Performances of God Know I’m Good and a cover of Jacques Brel’s Amsterdam are performed by Bowie solely while he’s joined by the rest of the band for performances of The Width of a Circle, Unwashed and Somewhat Slightly Dazed, Cygnet Committee, and Memory of a Free Festival where Ronson’s guitar solo on The Width of a Circle displays what would do as Bowie’s interview with Peel would reveal that he had just met Ronson a few days ago. From an April 6, 1970 session for Andy Ferris is a performance of Wild Eyed Boy from Freecloud that features Bowie aided by Ronson, Visconti, and Cambridge as it includes some fiery guitar riffs by Ronson in the song.
The next five songs from a third session with John Peel for a June 20, 1971 broadcast marks one of the early performances of Bowie with the band that would consist with the Spiders from Mars in Ronson, bassist Trevor Bolder, and drummer Mick “Woody” Woodmansey as they’re also aided by Mark Carr-Pritchard on guitar and a trio of backing vocalists in Bowie’s friends Geoff MacCormack, George Underwood, and Dana Gillespie. Two of the songs in Bombers and a rarity into this mid-tempo track called Looking for a Friend are mentioned as songs Bowie wrote for the Arnold Corns project while there’s a couple of covers performed in Chuck Berry’s Almost Grown and Ron Davies’ It Ain’t Easy as the latter feature Bowie, MacCormack, and Underwood trading verses with Gillespie joining in for the song’s chorus. The performance of Kooks is performed solely by Bowie as it was mentioned by Peel in his interview by Bowie as it was then a new song that Bowie wrote about his newborn son Duncan.
The album’s second disc begins with a performance by Bowie and Ronson from an October 4, 1971 broadcast for Bob Harris on the songs The Supermen and Eight Line Poem as the former is largely acoustic while the latter has Ronson play melodic lines on an electric guitar and Bowie playing a piano. From a second session for Bob Harris on a February 2, 1972 session is a preview of sorts of what Bowie and the Spiders of Mars band would do for the Ziggy Stardust album in songs such as Ziggy Stardust, Five Years, Hang On to Yourself, Queen Bitch from Hunky Dory, and a cover of the Velvet Underground’s I’m Waiting for the Man as showcases a rock n’ roll band going all out. The sense of rock continues in a fourth session with John Peel for a May 23, 1972 broadcast features two different performances of Ziggy Stardust and Hang On to Yourself as well as Moonage Daydream, Suffragette City, and a cover of the Velvet Underground’s White Light/White Heat as it includes piano accompaniments by Nicky Graham.
From a five-day broadcast in June of 1972 from the Johnnie Walker Lunchtime Show are performances of Starman, Space Oddity, Changes, and Oh! You Pretty Things maintain that sense of rock n’ roll with Bowie, the Spiders, and Graham as well as provide that sense of musicianship within the band. The last three tracks on the second disc come from a June 16, 1972 broadcast for Bob Harris in the songs Andy Warhol, Lady Stardust, and Rock N’ Roll Suicide as it showcases this period of an artist and a band coming around with these great songs just before their legendary appearance at Top of the Pops some weeks later.
The two-disc also features liner-notes by two of the producers in Bernie Andrews and Jeff Griffin who took part in compiling the tracks for the album as well as go into great detail over not into what was recorded but also what didn’t make it into the final album as it relates to the condition of the tapes or weren’t available at the time until they would appear in reissues of Bowie’s early albums. From the album’s limited three-disc edition features a live performance from the Portland BBC Radio Theatre on June 27, 2000 for BBC radio and television. With a live that included two of Bowie’s great collaborators in keyboardist/pianist Mike Garson and lead guitarist Earl Slick as well as rhythm guitarist Mark Plati, bassist Gail Ann Dorsey, drummer Sterling Campbell, backing vocalist/percussionist Holly Palmer, and backing vocalist/keyboardist Emm Gryner for a selection of material ranging from recent album as well as some classics from the 70s and 80s.
Opening with a cover of Wild is the Wind that is filled with amazing piano flourishes and a guitar solo from Slick as well as the audience singing along with him on parts of the songs. Performances of recent songs such as Seven and Survive from ‘hours…’ as well as I’m Afraid of Americans and Little Wonders from Earthling and Hallo Spaceboy from Outside don’t just add some punch into what Bowie was doing recently but the songs definitely manage to be just as engaging live. From the 80s, Let’s Dance and Ashes to Ashes are highlights while it’s the songs such as a funk-based version of This is Not America and a rousing version of Absolute Beginners provide a glimpse into the major moments of Bowie’s work in a polarizing decade that was the 80s. Other work from the 1970s that Bowie did would showcase is diversity in a folk-rock version of Always Crashing in the Same Car while The Man Who Sold the World, Cracked Actor, a ripping version of Fame, and a blazing version of Stay add so much punch in the record as the performances and musicianship are out of control as it showcases the great camaraderie between Bowie and his band.
Bowie at the Beeb is an outstanding album from David Bowie. Filled with an abundance of material Bowie made for the BBC from 1968 to 1972 as well as a grand return in 2000 showcases not just a fascinating evolution of the artist. It’s also showcases a plethora of songs that not only carry more weight live but also showcases Bowie’s strength as a live performer while the limited-edition third disc provides him giving older songs some new life. In the end, Bowie at the Beeb is a spectacular album from David Bowie.
Studio Releases: David Bowie (1967 album) - David Bowie (1969 album) - The Man Who Sold the World - Hunky Dory - The Rise & Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars - Aladdin Sane - Pin Ups - Diamond Dogs - Young Americans - Station to Station - Low - "Heroes" - Lodger - Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) - Let’s Dance - Tonight - Never Let Me Down - Tin Machine - Tin Machine II - Black Tie White Noise - Outside - Earthling - ‘Hours…’ - Heathen - Reality - The Next Day - *
Live Releases: David Live - Stage - Ziggy Stardust & the Spiders from Mars - Tin Machine Live: Oy Vey, Baby - (Live at Fashion Rocks (w/ Arcade Fire)) - (Live Santa Monica ‘72) - (Glass Spider Live) - (VH1 Storytellers) - (A Reality Tour)
Soundtracks: Christiane F. - Labyrinth - The Buddha of Suburbia
Miscellaneous: Peter and the Wolf - Baal - Sound + Vision - (Early On (1964-1966)) - (All Saints) - Toy - (Nothing Has Changed)
© thevoid99 2016
Released on September 21, 1999 by Virgin Records, ‘hours…’ is the twenty-first album by David Bowie that marks a major shift in his musical direction from the world of electronic music and a return to straight-forward rock with elements of folk. Produced with Reeves Gabrels, the albums marks Bowie’s final collaboration with Gabrels following a decade of albums that included two albums they did as part of Tin Machine. Featuring contributions from collaborators in Mark Plati and drummer Sterling Campbell, the album would also feature contributions from a young lyricist in Alex Grant who won a contest from Bowie’s website for one of the songs on the album.
The album’s leading single Thursday’s Child along with the two other singles in the album in Seven and Survive are all ballads as Thursday’s Child is a more mid-tempo ballad with soothing synthesizers, Sterling Campbell’s steady drums, and Bowie’s somber vocals that are reflective about loss and memory that features backing vocals by Holly Palmer as it is one of his finest singles. Survive is a more folk-based ballad as it includes some bopping drums and Bowie’s calm vocals as it features lyrics that are dream-like as it includes a fantastic guitar solo from Gabrels. Seven is another folk-based ballad in a slower temple that also has lyrics that are reflective as it has references to Bowie’s family as it includes a sliding solo from Gabrels and an ambient keyboard in the background.
The track Something in the Air is one of Bowie’s darkest songs with its presentation of smooth but warbling electronics, a tapping beat, and Bowie’s raspy vocal as it features evocative and dreamy lyrics that includes Gabrels’ wailing guitar solos. If I’m Dreaming My Life is a track that starts off slow but would up its tempo for something mid-tempo with its bopping rhythm, melodic keyboards, and Gabrels’ driving guitar textures with Bowie singing in a soothing vocal to lyrics of ambiguity and wonderment. The track What’s Really Happening that features lyrics by contest winner Alex Grant is this mid-tempo rocker led by Gabrels’ wailing guitar slides, Bowie’s eerie vocals, bopping rhythm with Mike Levesque’s drum fills, and some dark lyrics. The album’s second single in the fast-paced rocker The Pretty Things are Going to Hell is a full-on blast of rock with its hard-hitting drums, blazing guitars, and Bowie’s snarling vocals as it play into some very dark and chilling lyrics.
New Angels of Promise is a mid-tempo that recalls some of Bowie’s work in the late 70s in terms of his vocal performance as well as some of the musical presentation in its swirling synthesizers, slow but steady drums by Campbell, wailing guitars, and some haunting vocals as it is killer album cut. Brilliant Adventure is this Asian-inspired instrumental that features a lot of Japanese-inspired instruments in its string and percussions with some ambient-textures that once again recalls Bowie’s work in the late 70s. The album closer The Dreamers is a mid-tempo cut with some time signatures in its rhythm as it starts off slow and then into a more steady, bopping rhythm with some funk-based guitars from Gabrels as well as some warbling vocals that bears elements of very eerie lyrics.
The 2005 deluxe edition of the album features a second disc filled with remixes, B-sides, alternate takes, and bonus tracks from different editions of the album. Three of these remixes appear in the 1999 video game Omikron: The Nomad Soul as it includes a slower version of Thursday’s Child, a soul-based version of New Angels of Promise with some additional keyboards, and a longer version of The Dreamers that features an added intro with its beats and keyboards. The rock remix of Thursday’s Child includes some droning bass in the background as well as additional guitar flourishes in the background as well as some additional textures into Bowie’s vocals. A remix of Something in the Air for the 2000 film American Psycho features some additional piano flourishes from Mike Garson as it’s a more eerie version of the song. Marius de Vries’ remix of Survive features some piano flourishes by Garson as well as some more warbling mixes on the guitars and drums.
The song Seven appears in a demo version as well as three different remixes where the demo version is amazing as it’s just a twelve-string guitar, a drum machine, and Gabrels’ sliding guitar proving that the demos can be just as good as the original. Marius de Vries’ remix of the song is a more upbeat tone with some bopping rhythms, swirling keyboards, and added guitar flourishes as it is includes some multi-track vocal mixes to give the song something richer. Beck contributes two remixes of the song as the first one features elements of slow and pulsating beats, soothing synthesizer flourishes, and soul based keyboards while the second one is a wilder version with warbling synthesizers, crashing pianos, bopping live drums, hand claps, and noisier guitars.
There’s three versions of The Pretty Things Are Going to Hell in a single edit of the song as well as two other versions from the 1999 film Stigmata as it’s first version features additional synthesizer flourishes and a different vocal mix while the second version replaces the original drums with more pulsating electronic beats and synthesizers for an industrial-rave version. From the Japanese edition of the album is a bonus track in We All Go Through is this mid-tempo track with elements of electric-folk guitars, soothing synthesizers, and different vocal pitches from Bowie that play into somber lyrics that would feature a melodic-swooning guitar solo from Gabrels.
The three B-sides for the singles in Thursday’s Child and The Pretty Things Are Going to Hell in 1917, We Shall Go to Town, and No One Calls. 1917 is this bopping, mid-tempo instrumental with funk-based rhythms, swirling synthesizers, driving guitar riffs, and Bowie’s distorted vocals while We Shall Go to Town is this eerie track filled with slow but warbling rhythms and brooding vocals from Bowie that is accompanied by eerie synthesizers as well as these dark lyrics. No One Calls is this slow yet bopping electronic piece that include these string-like synthesizers and some low-key industrial beats where Bowie sings in a dreamy vocal style that displays a sense of detachment in the song’s lyrics.
‘hours…’ is a remarkable album from David Bowie that showcases his fondness for electronic music while returning to more organic instrumentation into his music. While it isn’t as consistent in comparison to the other albums he did in the 1990s, it is still a strong album that showcases a continuing evolution into the music Bowie was making in the 20th Century. In the end, ‘hours…’ is a marvelous album from David Bowie.
Studio Releases: David Bowie (1967 album) - David Bowie (1969 album) - The Man Who Sold the World - Hunky Dory - The Rise & Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars - Aladdin Sane - Pin Ups - Diamond Dogs - Young Americans - Station to Station - Low - "Heroes" - Lodger - Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) - Let’s Dance - Tonight - Never Let Me Down - Tin Machine - Tin Machine II - Black Tie White Noise - Outside - Earthling - Heathen - Reality - The Next Day - *
Live Releases: David Live - Stage - Ziggy Stardust & the Spiders from Mars - Tin Machine Live: Oy Vey, Baby - Bowie at the Beeb - (Live at Fashion Rocks (w/ Arcade Fire)) - (Live Santa Monica ‘72) - (Glass Spider Live) - (VH1 Storytellers) - (A Reality Tour)
Soundtracks: Christiane F. - Labyrinth - The Buddha of Suburbia
Miscellaneous: Peter and the Wolf - Baal - Sound + Vision - (Early On (1964-1966)) - (All Saints) - Toy - (Nothing Has Changed)
© thevoid99 2016
