DISQUS

Malchus · 3 months ago

Fantastic work, Anthony. It is mind boggling that Bowie essentially released an album a year throughout the 70's. Bowie is an artist that I've always loved from the periphery, but this guide has me excited to start digging in and really explore his music. Thank you!

And I agree with you 100% that "Heroes" is one of the most beautiful songs written.

Again, great job. I can't wait for part two.

arensb · 3 months ago

If "David Bowie" is his novelty album, why isn't "The Laughing Gnome" on it, huh?

mike · 3 months ago

Thanks for posting

jonnythefriendlylawyer · 3 months ago

You know, I don't think I've ever read a comprehensive overview as well-written and accurate as this one. You nailed EXACTLY the significance, merits and flaws of each album. The songs are also very well selected -- that must have been hard to do. And thanks for ending with Scary Monsters; it truly was the end of Bowie's classic run. Certain artists have such a great body of early work that they can be forgiven for their later crimes against music (although Pete Townshend and Elvis Costello are really pushing it, let me tell you). Bowie's later records aren't awful (okay, some are) but this post shows that he just couldn't miss for a solid 10 years. Thank you so much for a truly excellent summary. Like any Bowie fan I have all these songs on vinyl, cd and mp3, but it's great to see them presented this way. Really well done -- thanks.

Hanan · 3 months ago

epic post. David Bowie is a hero of mine.

jim · 3 months ago

not genius but definitely not one to stand still. anything from the seventies but they were my teenage years and i was pretty stoned at the time. haven't listened to anything of his since(well you know, The Clash took care of pretentious art rock)

jamesballenger · 3 months ago

I grew up listening to most of these albums, but I honestly never realized he was so prolific during the 70's. I guess I put Scary Monsters closer to '81, and I've never heard "David Bowie" before. Great Article and I can't wait for parts 2 and 3!

Matt · 3 months ago

It's not the side effects of the cocaine, so I'm thinking that it must be love. GREAT work!

DwDunphy · 3 months ago

I arrived late to the Bowie party. Clearly I knew of him and his music, but it wasn't until the mid-90s when all my favorite bands of the time were singing his praises and I thought, wait, maybe there's more to this.

It might explain why I like some of his albums that others only tolerate, and others aren't even that generous. There are some really good songs in Outside, it's just not an even ratio. And as far as Bowie's pop tendencies are concerned, Heathen really does hold up well, but I'll leave that up to you with Popdose Guide Part Two.

Thanks again for the really good work, man!

Chris X · 3 months ago

this retrospective is mindboggingly awesome. Definitely looking forward to the next installments!

bama · 3 months ago

incredible post. reminds me of the olden days of the jefito blog

Norrie Maclean · 3 months ago

Great Guide! You could also add in his peripheral work throughout the decade as writer, producer and performer on other artists work and you have some amazing output!

jbacardi · 3 months ago

Great job, so far!

In all fairness, the recent remix/reissue of David Live, spearheaded by Tony Visconti, is a whole 'nother album from its original release. I hated the vinyl back in '74, but the new one is really surprisingly good.

BIG props for singling out "Beauty and the Beast". But don't make the mistake of minimizing Mick Ronson's arranging and input on those 70's albums...

Matt · 3 months ago

I'm quite impressed. If I were asked to pick just two songs from each of these albums, to form an overview/ highlight reel, I'd probably fail... but you did a great job!

I've sat a few people down with the Sound+Vision box set, over the years, in order to set them straight regarding Bowie's greatness. This (your) collection, though there is some overlap with S+V, will be a perfect companion, for that same purpose.

Kudos and Hai! Karate...

Old_Davy · 3 months ago

Great write up. I am just a casual fan so this will be helpful in getting me more familiar with Bowie's classic period (I do have Ziggy, Aladdin and Station, with Station being my favorite, esp. TVC15).

Hideous coverart though. Why is Linda McCartney on the cover of Diamond Dogs?? :)

Curt Shannon · 3 months ago

Great stuff! Thanks for posting

Elaine · 3 months ago

Strung out in heavens high
Hitting an all-time low

Bowie is da main.

Nice work!

kshane · 3 months ago

Great effort Anthony!

Pete · 3 months ago

I've been wanting to dig further into Bowie's catalog, and this is an excellent catalyst. Great post!

erikhansen · 3 months ago

Brilliant!! Your dad has probably told you what a Bowie fanatic I was growing up. This was a very well written, perceptive look at his work. Thank you for reigniting the pleasure of so many songs that had faded to the archives of my memory. My collection pretty much ends at Scary Monsters so I'm looking forward to your next installments to see if I might find some overlooked gems!

Peter · 3 months ago

Thanks for reminding me of why I'm a David Bowie fan.

By the way, did you sneak in a little Captain Planet reference in your review of Station To Station, or was your choice of words ("By their powers combined") purely coincidental?

(Here's the Captain Planet theme – with visuals, inexplicably, from Xena – for clarification.)

Are you hinting that David Bowie, at the time of Station To Station, had the power to save the planet?

David Bowie = Captain Planet.

Earth!
Fire!
Wind!
Water!
Heart!
GO, Planet!

"By your powers combined, I am [Captain Planet] David Bowie!"

[Captain Planet] David Bowie, He's our hero
Gonna take pollution down to zero
He's our powers magnified
And he's fighting on the planet's side
[Captain Planet] David Bowie, He's our hero
Gonna take pollution down to zero
Gonna help him put asunder
Bad guys who like to loot and plunder

"You'll pay for this, [Captain Planet] David Bowie!"

We're the Planeteers
You can be one, too
Cuz saving our planet is the thing to do
Looting and polluting is not the way
Hear what [Captain Planet] David Bowie has to say

"The power is yours!"

(I'm slightly miffed that Disqus won't allow strikethrough in its code. Grrr.)

sonofsilence · 3 months ago

I think let's dance was really the end of the classic period. It was the last change in new direction before he started sounding bored.

stephanie · 3 months ago

wonderfulpost, thanks.