Bowie: When did his essential / classic period start for you?

Space Oddity is probably my fave Bowie album, but I'm raving mad and somewhat slightly dazed.

 

Damn right!

I voted "MWSTW". 1969 had potential but doesn't gel.

"MWSTW" effin' rawks!

 

I voted Hunky Dory because I think it's his first fully-realised record and the one where the David Bowie we think of today originates. I also like Space Oddity, but at that point he was still flailing around a bit trying to find his own sound and style.

 

Look, it begins and end with “The Laughing Gnome” and that’s all there is to it!!

But seriously...

While I would agree that Hunky Dory is his first fully realized record, I really enjoy watching the journey begin with David Bowie (1969) into TMWSTW. He was no less focused in making those records, it’s just that he had yet to find a hat that fit.

 

Right from the beginning

 

Can’t Help Thinking About Me.

 

I'm sure I'm a bigger fan than you. How much do you weight?

 

“hit-plus-filler” herbal snoozefest? No way. This album needs more love/So many fine songs and a huge step up from the '67 s/t affair. In fact I think it's better than The Man Who $old the World too. imho



TRACKS:


Space Oddity: Masterpiece and Bowie’s first stone cold classic. We all know this song. 10/10

Unwashed and Somewhat Slightly Dazed: Rocking multi-dimensional strum-along in a Dylan vibe, includes some ripping Benny Marshall harmonica. Ditty ‘Don’t Sit Down’ (3.5) follows. 8.0

Letter to Hermione: Direct love song about ex-gf Hermione Farthingale, beautiful piece, Bowie’s voice delicate and fragile. 8.0

Cygnet Committee: Bowie’s 70s manifesto and birth of Ziggy? 9.5

Janine: Bouncy pop has never sounded so good. 7.5

An Occasional Dream: His later work becomes surreal and obscure so I am grateful that we are permitted to share his personal feelings towards a fellow human being in such an unadulterated manner in this lovely number. 7.5

Wild Eyed Boy From Freecloud: Sonically and lyrically ambitious – a fine track. Even better on the Ziggy Motion Picture Medley. 8.5

God Knows I’m Good: Not the strongest moment on the album, probably the weakest but still quite nice. 6.0

Memory of a Free Festival: Perfect album closer underrated in the Bowie cannon, and interesting document of the time. 8.5


ALBUM RATING: 7.5


VERDICT: The 1972 reissue album cover is better granted. The beginning of the 'classic' phase for me. Within the individual songs there is not a truly weak moment, and such a kaleidoscopic album is impressive as a whole. Would be even stronger had some strong additional tracks recorded around the same time been included: Let Me Sleep Beside You (7.5), Conversation Piece (8.0) or The Prettiest Star (6.5). A psychedelic folk rock collection from an artist still finding his true voice.

 

I think his 'classic' period lasted from his 2nd album all the way to Station To Station. Trust me, I love his albums after and before that to bits but here's how I see it: His consumption of drugs grew and grew until it peaked at Station To Station. He then pressed reboot on his career and went to do something completely different (Yes, Bowie did that numerous times beforehand, but I think his removal of drugs is a big enough reason to warrant a distinction of eras even if creating a new image wasn't a new idea).

I do think that I have to debate the use here of 'classic' here, though. The way I see it, it takes more than preference of album to create a distinction of eras in an artist's career. Concerning Bowie, I think that Feathers works well enough as one of the first points where we can say he changed enough so that we're able to divide his career as pre-Feathers and post-Feathers as even though he kept some of the same songs in his repertoire during that time he made his first large change of image, from whatever he can be defined as beforehand to hippy, folky Bowie.

See these:
September '68: bowie 1968 - Google Search
October '69: bowie october 1969 - Google Search

 

11 stone and rising...

 

I grudgingly said TMWSTW... I love Hunky Dory and think it has more variety, but Width Of A Circle hits you like a ton of bricks... It's less Bowie trying on a style than Bowie showing his mastery of a style and then saying, "what's next?!"

 

Hunky Dory for me. That album has zero filler on it. TMWSTW is certainly a better album than DB (1969) which in turn is a massive leap from DB (1967) so he was progressively getting better with each album but TMWSTW contains
fewer classic moments than Hunky Dory.

I really wish he’d made a second album for Deram as the tracks he finished in 1968 had the makings of a fascinating album.