Is Ziggy Stardust really that good?

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by LadyGrinningSoul, Oct 5, 2015.

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  1. Alan2

    Alan2 Forum Resident

    Location:
    UK
    Yes. I bought it when it came out and played it a lot. I later sold it and it was a good 30 years before I listened to Bowie again -- I never really became a fan. I don't care much for Ziggy now, but I still regard it as a strong, imaginative, and well recorded piece of work.

    These days, I prefer the quirky, songwriter-ish Hunky Dory, or TMWSTW. But Ziggy was and is landmark.
     
  2. Andy Smith

    Andy Smith .....Like a good pinch of snuff......

    Many moons ago a mate & I were in Comet (a shop which sold electrical goods, from kettles and stereos to washing machines and hoovers). While his dad disappeared to browse through dad stuff, we naturally gravitated to the corner of the cavernous building where the great music was coming from. It being a dark Tuesday evening in mid-winter, there was hardly anyone in. Try as we may, we couldn't find an assistant to tell what was playing. We were stood on tiptoes, leaning over the counter to try to spy a clue - or even an album cover. My chum, being slightly taller, watched as the record, clearly on RCA, span around and around.... He got the occasional word: 'spiders', 'and' and 'the'. The rest seemed nonsensical. Whatever it was we wanted it!
     
  3. johnnyyen

    johnnyyen Senior Member

    Location:
    Scotland
    No, I don't think it is, not in comparison to Station To Station, Low, and Heroes.
     
  4. Dino

    Dino Forum Resident

    Location:
    Kansas City - USA
    I read a review of Ziggy Stardust in Fusion Magazine back in 1972. Whatever they wrote in that review got me really enthused to get the LP. It was love at first listen.

    I made a quality C-90 cassette with Roxy Music - For Your Pleasure on one side and Ziggy Stardust on the other. That tape was played about 100 times while I was riding around with my highschool friends - doing things we couldn't do at home. Ziggy Stardust was the soundtrack to some really good times.

    I quickly bought his (then) back catalog. Great albums, but they were records that I liked to play when I was alone. I have no idea why.

    I still like to listen to Ziggy Stardust. I can enjoy is as an album that takes me back in time or as an album that is just great music today.
     
  5. MaximilianRG

    MaximilianRG Forum Resident

    It's one of the few albums that can put me through all the emotions of a great movie... and make me feel like I need to have a smoke afterwards. Yes, it is EXTREMELY good.
     
  6. MaximilianRG

    MaximilianRG Forum Resident

    Sarcasm?
     
  7. zipzorp

    zipzorp Senior Member

    Location:
    hollywood
    Bowie's best, and in my all time top 10. Influential musically and culturally.
     
  8. LadyGrinningSoul

    LadyGrinningSoul Forum Resident Thread Starter

    :cussing:
     
    quakerparrot67 likes this.
  9. I can't answer the question, but I can say it's my least favorite of the Ken Scott produced LPs
     
  10. It's one of the least played of my Bowie albums. For me Aladdin Sane is Bowie's first truly great work- the songwriting is just a cut above and has a maturity lacking here. There are some great moments on side 1 but it relies too much on what for me is a rather adolescent premise. It all gets a little histrionic on side 2- too much heat, not enough light. I much prefer Hunky Dory from his early phase. Having said that I like it more than I did 30 years ago, when it was an inspiration for that dead end called 'goth rock'.
     
    JohnnyQuest likes this.
  11. LadyGrinningSoul

    LadyGrinningSoul Forum Resident Thread Starter

    What about Bowie and the Spiders themselves? Were they that good live and in the studio, or are they just like any other rock band/artist?
     
  12. onlyconnect

    onlyconnect The prose and the passion

    Location:
    Winchester, UK
    I have no idea what you mean :)

    They were just like any other rock band that was Bowie and the Spiders.

    Tim
     
  13. LadyGrinningSoul

    LadyGrinningSoul Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Bowie and the Spiders have been called some of the best performers of popular music, but what do you think?
     
  14. Jim B.

    Jim B. Senior Member

    Location:
    UK
    I love Five Years. Lyrically it sets everything up that follows, and it's a beautiful song, full of great imagery. One of my favourite Bowie tracks of all time.

    It Ain't Easy is pretty pointless and could go - I don't know why he covered it. It doesn't fit with the theme.
     
    alexpop likes this.
  15. Gammondorf

    Gammondorf Forum Resident

    Location:
    Boston, MA, USA
    My favorite Bowie. I love Mick Ronson. Ziggy is one of my top 10 LPs of all time. Rated properly.
     
    john hopkins and Mij Retrac like this.
  16. Mij Retrac

    Mij Retrac Forum Resident

    Boy I can't imagine rating a Bowie album higher than Ziggy. I like almost all of his other albums (pre mid 80s) but to me Ziggy is in a class all by itself.
     
    Curveboy likes this.
  17. rjp

    rjp Senior Member

    Location:
    Ohio
    absolutely.
     
  18. ampmods

    ampmods Forum Resident

    Location:
    Boston, MA, USA
    I think it's interesting that so many like Aladdin Sane better. I always thought that album was kind of a pale imitation of Ziggy although there are some really great tracks on it. Personally though even some of the great songs have kind of weird/muddy production to me like "Cracked Actor" and "Watch That Man." But I love "Lady Grinning Soul" and "Let's Spend the Night Together" especially.
     
    dkmonroe and Mij Retrac like this.
  19. Andy Smith

    Andy Smith .....Like a good pinch of snuff......

    'Ziggy' was the taster. 'Sane' was the full pint.

    Could Bowie have done 'Ziggy' with other Spiders? I very much doubt it. Maybe other bassists and drummers around at that time would have given solid input with the project, as I'm sure Trev & Woody did, but Ronson was something special. I'm fairly sure Ronno took Bowie's work places where even Bowie hadn't imagined. A true one-off was Mick.
     
    GodShifter likes this.
  20. drbryant

    drbryant Senior Member

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    Ziggy Stardust is a great album. I like Aladdin Sane, Station to Station and especially Low better, but I don't think the general public would recognize a single track from Low. Ziggy has the great title, the famous cover and a handful of tracks that are simply iconic.
     
  21. KipB

    KipB Forum Resident

    Location:
    Bethel, CT, USA
    If you don't think it's good, the rest of us won't mind.
     
  22. onlyconnect

    onlyconnect The prose and the passion

    Location:
    Winchester, UK
    Take a look at Ziggy Stardust the Motion Picture, will give you an idea of the pros and cons.

    Tim
     
  23. dkmonroe

    dkmonroe A completely self-taught idiot

    Location:
    Atlanta
    I agree, Aladdin Sane was in fact the first Bowie album I ever bought, and it has great songs and a lot of sentimental value, but I would never rate it above Ziggy.
     
  24. Hot Ptah

    Hot Ptah Forum Resident In Memoriam

    Location:
    Kansas City, MO
    I love it. To me, there is a feeling to it that is unique, which I find very appealing. Also, there is an attention to small, subtle detail in the music, which I find endlessly rewarding to listen to. To me, it is by far the best Bowie album.
     
    Dino likes this.
  25. Purple Jim

    Purple Jim Senior Member

    Location:
    Bretagne
    Absurd thread. Why have doubts?
     
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