David Bowie CONVERSATION PIECE

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Bowie Fett, Sep 4, 2019.

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  1. johnnyyen

    johnnyyen Senior Member

    Location:
    Scotland
    I’m a bit baffled as to why the single version of Memory Of A Free Festival has been omitted from this set. A five cd set, and they couldn’t find any room for it?
     
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  2. AndyP19

    AndyP19 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Hythe, Kent, UK
    As mentioned above somewhere this is a 1970 recording and not in the scope of this set. I guess it will be included in the Man Who Sold The World box next year.
     
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  3. Curveboy

    Curveboy Forum Resident

    Location:
    New York City
    So I opted for the single disc remix version as I'm not so into this period--as formative as it may be--so a bunch of demos didn't really appeal to me, and I have enough copies of the original album.

    That said, the remix is probably the best this album will ever be. After the first two tracks (which are remixed spectacularly) I quickly lose interest as 1960's folk is not my genre and that is what this ultimately is; a folk album with one hit single.

    It is nice to have a nice clean mix of Conversation Piece, but I have to admit I far prefer the Toy version.
     
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  4. Aaa3

    Aaa3 Active Member

    Location:
    Sheffield
    Got this box, what a gorgeous set!!! The book is fab and some cool demos ( April's tooth of gold, reverend Raymond Brown and in particular Animal Farm- listen carefully there's a cool tune in there) , Think this set will double as a good CONVERSATION PIECE
     
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  5. Cat People

    Cat People Forum Resident

    Location:
    West Midlands
    Yes, it's a phenomenal track in terms of mood and atmosphere, when rerecorded. There's a chap who provides very high quality copies of Toy on cd from Bulgaria actually. Inbox me if you are desperate for a nice copy and I will try to find who it is again. Been a while since I looked. I do think the new SO version is really nice to hear too. I however had a problem with them taking off the Don't sit down track, the listing is different to the 2009 2cd version and I don't really know if David wanted it on the album or if it was just Tony V ! ;)
     
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  6. gomen ne

    gomen ne -

    Location:
    London
    I think they're going to struggle to replicate the content of this box with TMWSTW, but we don't know what they may find lurking in a shoebox in a corner somewhere.
    1970 non-album recordings were other versions of London Bye Ta-Ta, The Prettiest Star, Threepenny Pierrot, Columbine, The Mirror, MOAFF 1 & 2, Holy Holy.

    Demos of Shadow Man, Tired Of My Life, and perhaps of Holy Holy, How Lucky You Are and Right On Mother exist.
    Lightning Frightening and The Arnold Corns were 1971.

    Removing Conversation Piece was not an artistic decision, but due to the physical limitations of vinyl. So I don't mind it being added. If there were cds in 1969 I think it would have been on the album.
     
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  7. Cat People

    Cat People Forum Resident

    Location:
    West Midlands
    Where does the track 'Everything is you' and 'Social Girl' fit into the chronology? I have them on a Japanese version of Toy where he holds the mandolin on the cover...
     
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  8. mishima's dog

    mishima's dog Forum Resident

    Location:
    Glasgow, Scotland
    Buzz the Fuzz might make an appearance in some form as well.
     
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  9. jimjim

    jimjim Forum Resident

    Rupert The Riley, Looking For A Friend, The Supermen (alternate version) and Bombers.

    I reckon they're gonna do a 1970-1971 set that keeps the lines blurred between the TMWSTW and HD (especially given the former was released in one year and in other territories, another year). They could add the recently discovered Glastonbury show in there or add the oft-booted Aylesbury Friars gig.
     
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  10. Aaa3

    Aaa3 Active Member

    Location:
    Sheffield
    I would like to see more 60s Bowie, but there must be other unknown recordings from others,such as rumoured titles from tonight and lodger? They would be great to here.
     
  11. TeddyB

    TeddyB Senior Member

    Location:
    Hollywoodland
    For content they have the two 1970 BBC live sessions, which were released in part on Live at the BBC. They are gems, though the earlier one (with “Buzz the Fuzz”) may serve more to confuse a storyline for the period than illuminate it. There is also a demo of The Supermen. They will likely include the strange single edit of All the Madmen.
     
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  12. footprintsinthesand

    footprintsinthesand Reasons to be cheerful part 1

    Location:
    Dutch mountains
    I can imagine tracks that weren't good enough for the Tonight album ended up on top of his list of songs never ever to be released.
     
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  13. richard a

    richard a Forum Resident

    Location:
    borley, essex, uk
    To be honest it makes more sense to merge Hunky Dory and Ziggy. Both albums were recorded virtually back to back in the summer/autumn of 1971. TMWSTW sits alone, recorded in spring 1970, then DB kind of sat out the rest of the year, stockpiled songs, made plans and only really emerged again in the spring of 1971 with demos and sessions that led into the formation of the Spiders and the recording of HD.
    So to bunch together early 1970 work with summer 1971 work seems odd to me.
     
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  14. Flaming Torch

    Flaming Torch Forum Resident

    Yes agreed. TMWSTW is a bit of a stand alone period. Then later Bowie signs with RCA and there is definitely cross over in terms of style with HD and Ziggy. Queen Bitch would fit perfectly on Ziggy.
     
    Last edited: Nov 27, 2019
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  15. phillyal1

    phillyal1 Forum Resident

    Location:
    philadelphia, pa.
    I read once that Decca was sitting on many other unreleased Bowie tracks from that era. Fact or fiction?
     
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  16. nick jones

    nick jones Forum Resident

    fact, unreleased tracks, false starts, different takes
     
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  17. imsjry

    imsjry Forum Resident

    Location:
    Fond Du Lac, WI
    Finally got to hear this. The remix is wonderful! For the better, it sounds like this thing was produced and recorded yesterday without harming any of the original intent. Great job! This may be my favorite Bowie release since, well...."Blackstar" :-(
     
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  18. phillyal1

    phillyal1 Forum Resident

    Location:
    philadelphia, pa.
    So basically the only way we will here those is if the rights revert to or are purchased by bowie, like Van Morrison did with the Complete Them collection that came out a few years ago.
     
  19. owsley

    owsley Senior Member

    Location:
    Boston
    Ditto. The set is awesome and the book is gorgeous and very high quality. I feel bad for those who shelled out $200+ for the four Parlophone 7" vinyl box sets, thinking they were picking up a 'vinyl only' future collectable, only to find all of the material is included on the CD box set at a fraction of the price ( paid $63 for mine plus shipping).
    This is an AWESOME reissue. Mastering is exceptional. I don't hear much noise reduction or filtering on the home demos. It's great to finally hear the Bowie/Hutch duo demos in top notch sound. There is a lot of duplication with previous BBC and Space Oddity deluxe edition reissues but there are enough new things on board to justify getting this set.
    As for the 2019 SO remix: I love it (except for Memory Of A Free Festival). Visconti has tried to 'modernize' the sound. Huge amounts of digital reverb and echo are added everywhere. It's almost like a 2019 digital version of the stereo Beatles Second Album (which I also happen to love BTW). The new mix makes the album sound like a 'shoegazer' or 4AD label band. It's a totally different but satisfying listening experience. At times it felt like I was listening to Twink's 'Think Pink' album because it sounded so spacey especially 'Letter To Hermione' where Visconti's spacey remix is beyond cool. The only remix I dont like is Memory of a FF because Visconti tampers with the ending. It doesn't have the band fade while Bowie is still playing which is probably my favorite part of the lp where you hear the dying embers of the band in the background while the song ends as it begins with just Bowie and chord organ. Also love the 2019 remix of the title track. Visconti really does some radical remixing here especially when he adds delay and echo to certain parts like the word 'liftoff' during the countdown. I think the remix makes the track much more Crimso-like. I never really liked this song but love this remix. All in all, this is one of the best Bowie reissues ever IMO
     
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  20. Summer of Malcontent

    Summer of Malcontent Forum Resident

    For 1970, we'd have The Man Who Sold the World and whatever alternates they can find for that, plus the 'Memory of a Free Festival' and 'Holy Holy' singles, and The Hype's BBC Session (if that's available). Is there any decent quality live stuff from 1970?

    1971 gives us Hunky Dory and Arnold Corns, I guess.
     
  21. mishima's dog

    mishima's dog Forum Resident

    Location:
    Glasgow, Scotland
    Interesting! Where did you came across this?
     
  22. HE1NZ

    HE1NZ Forum Resident

    Location:
    Russia
    I think Conversation Piece (song) remix is missing some instrumentation and the worst part is that original stereo mix is absent from this release. What a weird decision.
     
  23. MGW

    MGW Less travelling, more listening

    Location:
    Scotland, UK
    It was on Super Deluxe Editions, quoting David Bowie .com, and us quoted at least once earlier in this thread
     
  24. Colocally

    Colocally One Of The New Wave Boys

    Location:
    Surrey BC.
    There wasn't an original stereo mix, it was only released in mono up until 10 years ago.
     
  25. VinchVolt123

    VinchVolt123 I took a look at those hands.

    Location:
    California
    If I recall correctly, Hugh Padgham specified in his essay for the Loving the Alien box that while the unused seven recordings from the Tonight sessions exist, they're just purely instrumental demos that were never fleshed out into full songs (and likely never will be). The way he discussed them made me wish that Bowie completed them, especially given Padgham's claim that they would've been better than most of the material that ultimately ended up on Tonight.
     
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