Cheek said:

The album version...7 minutes of heaven!

Cheek said:

Ok, you're right. And "Blue Jean" ain't too shabby either, but his version of "God Only Knows" should have been strangled at birth.

MikeMatronik said:

I also love "Don't Look Down"!

Shapeshifter said:

Agreed.

Shapeshifter said:

The video for Blue Jean...

MikeMatronik said:

I told you, I can't make it Tonight.

Hunky Dory
Ziggy Stardust
Low

EmancipationLover said:

1.Outside is an awesome album, with many great songs on it. Heathen is also a great album.

David Bowie's strongest album from start to finish in my opinion is, Diamond Dogs or Station To Station. Most of Bowie's albums albums from 1970-80 are brilliant from start to finish.

I wouldn't say The Rise & Fall of Ziggy Stardust& The Spiders From Mars is anywhare near the best David Bowie album. It's a brilliant album, and the classic album that made David Bowie, but it's quite weak compared to albums he released after. Bowie has said that he doesn't feel he hit his full creative potential until Diamond Dogs.

I will even say that Bowie's weakest album of the 1970's ie The Lodger (1979) has a number of great songs on it.

MikeMatronik said:

The album version of "Loving The Alien" sure is 7 minutes of heaven, it's such a beautiful song. I also love Blue Jean on the Tonight album, a very catchy song.

Shapeshifter said:

I first heard Lust For Life a couple of years ago. It's got several songs from Tonight on it. I never knew.

God Only Knows is Heroes' deformed cousin.

NDRU said:

Lust For Life, The Idiot are among Bowie's greatest albums too. He wrote the music for all of them and you can feel his stamp on the first two in particular. Also check out Blah Blah Blah, another Bowie produced Iggy album. Not anywhere as good as the first two (both were jaded by the time they made it), but the magic's still there in tracks like Shades and Isolation. And while I'm on the subject of Mr Pop, I highly recommend you try out Avenue B, Skull Ring, New Values and the three Stooges album. His version of Tonight is miles better than the Bowie/Tina duet. And herein lies the problem with Tonight: the title song was a warped love song to a a girlfriend who ODs. In Bowie's hands it became a record company marketing man's wet dream

Album? No, songs? yes. The fame 12" and the I'm Afraid of American's 12" are among the best 12"inches I've ever heard.

Shapeshifter said:

The bg vocals & guitars are all Bowie.

Transformer sounds like a Bowie album, too. Satellite of Love particularly. Also probably Lou's best album.

Graycap23 said:

Maybe you should start with a "Best Of"?

It's a good place to start, especially if you never really go into him in the first place.

shockadelicaa said:

lord knows that alone is a difficult decision. Only Madonna has more compilations.

But I started with Fame & Fashion after I got Let's Dance way back when.

he has many "must have" albums.


Station To Station
Ziggy
Hunky Dory
Aladdin Sane
Heathen
Low
The Best Of David Bowie 1969-1974 is a good place to start, really. I suppose the 2 follow-ups are decent samplers as well, but I think they're pretty flawed. The first one is perfect, though.

NDRU said:

Definitely NOT Lou's best in my opinion (note the lack of "humble"). Berlin, Ecstasy, Street Hassle, Coney Island Baby, New York, Magic & Loss, New Sensations and The Blue Mask are all masterpieces.

NDRU said:

Yeah, they're very prominent in both The Idiot and Lust for Life. What a wonderful period that was for Bowie - he produced FOUR superb albums in that short space of time.
[Edited 10/17/06 12:20pm]

NDRU said:

They're NOT even related.

Shapeshifter said:

Interesting in relation to the shared songs on Tonight and Lust For Life:

I revently got Velvet Underground's VU, and was surprised to hear the original versions of the Lou Reed songs that I already knew from his solo albums.

NDRU said:

We can split hairs over this, but which do you prefer? The original Heroin or the Rock n Roll Animal black mass interpretation? I used to prefer the latter, but now i prefer the original.

Back when Loaded originally came out, Lou told everyone who'd listen that the original unedited version of the song with its "heavenly wine and roses" refrain was the best and "true" version of the song, but he never played it that way solo. He played the edited version.

Shapeshifter said:

generally I prefer the simpler garage sound of the Velvets to the big 70's rock sound of Berlin & Animal. It's a similar complaint I have with some of Lennon's stuff--Mind Games & Some Time in New York, for example.

But it is kind of splitting hairs, yes, because I love Berlin and the big guitar of How Do You Think It Feels?, the Neil Diamond beat & orchestral instrumentation of Caroline Says.
[Edited 10/17/06 12:45pm]

NDRU said:

Changesbowie is the right choice

dammme said:

Doesn't that have the Fame-f-f-f-fame '90 remix? yech!

Bowie was Prince before Prince, so yes.

NDRU said:

NEIL DIAMOND!!!!! AAARRRRRGGGGHHHHH!!!!!

Nah, that was rock n roll Wagner mate. Bob Ezrin was Jim Steinman with brains. By the way, do you know Ezrin reused the score from Sad Song on Pink Floyd's Comfortably Numb, which he also produced. Listen closely and you'll hear it.
[Edited 10/17/06 13:27pm]

NDRU said:

Well, I like that remix

Shapeshifter said:

like Wagner, like he was a racist? just kidding.

no way, really? ok I can hear the descending lines in my head now. Interesting.

Yes, Caroline Says reminds me of Neil Diamond. That catchy 4 square beat is right out of Desiree or America. Most of me hates him, but I recognize that he was popular for a reason. But Lou was always high art where Neil is lowest common denominator.