Sadly true! It was easier to own none than to own one! The completist in me may "force me" to buy the others eventually, but I hope I can resist! "Alien" is definitely the most bang for my particular buck. I'm genuinely ecstatic to have a good version of the "Serious Moonlight" show after all these years!
Then, you do not need the first 3 Box Sets, as assume you bought the RCA CDs before the price explosion. I did get RCA WG for Ziggy Stardust, Aladdin Sane & Scary Monsters(one WG and one JPN) for about $38-$55 per CD. The Five Years Box set got good reviews on CD for 'Pin Ups', 'TMWSTW' and one other Title(Hunky Dory?), so do not see a need to pay over $50 for those Titles-YMMV for other People though.
I bought the RCAs "in real time", most when they were still new on the shelves. Last one I got was a used copy of "MWSTW" in 1989 - paid like $8 for it...
I think with each set they have addded more unique stuff as they’ve gone along. Almost like they know they need more “box bait”. There’s little on the first box that most collectors wouldn’t have. The biggest coup was getting an official original Holy Holy for the first time since 1971 but that hardly is enough to spend big bucks on.
Yeah, it makes sense that they'd throw out more enticing material for the 1983-88 box since they know the diehard fans don't much like that era. That said, I'm not sure what they could've thrown into the 1st three boxes to make them more interesting for the fans who've already purchased so many prior releases!
Audiophile mastering, all non-album tracks, accurate single edits/mixes and DVD or SD Blu-ray content covering officially released live shows and promos.
Yeah, the video content would help sales. Not sure the rest would sell me. Lots of studio outtakes ala the "Imagine" deluxe would be a good selling point, though...
It might be that Bowie has instructed not to release any outtakes or work in progress. He was a perfectionist and he even finished some of the outtakes that Ryko used as bonus tracks.
You're probably right - IIRC, he didn't even want bonus tracks on the Rykos but they forced him to do it. Anyway, I wasn't saying what I would expect - just saying what would make a big box purchase worth it for me!
I recently picked up the David Bowie 1983-1988 Box and haven't seen many posts regarding the sound quality except that Let's Dance is too loud, but I can confirm that it is very loud, It might not technically be brickwalled, but it's a little too close for comfort - this CD does numb my ears and is not a pleasant listening experience because of the jacked up volume. I haven't listened to all of the CDs yet, but the Recall disc 1, sounds like the tone is slightly off...songs like "This Is Not America" and "Absolute Beginners" sound much better on the 2014 Nothing Has Changed 3CD set. Also, Never Let Me Down (1987 version), seems to lack enough high end (treble) and this CD sounds kind of flat without more treble being added. I was expecting this CD to sound better than it does. Also, both the Recall disc and Let's Dance, doesn't really respond that well to added bass and midrange...when I turned both up a notch or two, the songs really don't get that much more bassy or full, as they normally would? Does anyone else have any specific issues with the audio quality of this Box?
From the music content point of view, that's a pretty smart approach; for some, especially if they only have CDs, the packaging (LP covers/replicas) is good and the books are a pleasant read and may tip the balance.
Listening to Glass Spider Live I'm amazed at how tight the band is given all the theatrics going on around them...also Frampton KILLS on Loving The Alien and Let's Dance. But two things I wonder about... 1. Was Frampton joining his band one of the reasons he thought of joining one himself in Tin Machine a year later? 2. What the heck was he thinking with the pop version of All The Madmen? I mean, its ridiculous! I remember hearing a radio show with a friend and we actually fell to the floor with laughter over it.
Did you sing in a high-pitched voice, "Ha ha ha, tee hee hee, I'm the laughing Curveboy and you can't catch me"?
Framptom was an old schoolmate of Bowie's from back at Bromley Tech. He was the son of Bowie's art teacher Owen Frampton. They stayed in touch over the years. Framptom has said Bowie wanted him on the tour to put him back on the map as the brilliant guitar player he was after he was perceived at the time as a fading ex-star who wasn't able to repeat his success from Frampton Comes Alive. I don't think it had anything to do with Bowie founding Tin Machine afterwards. I think Tin Machine's sole purpose was to put an end to Bowie's superstar years and to reconnect with his muse, which I think worked out fine.
Man, if you want a poster child for a good song ruined by 80s production, Bowie's version of "Neighborhood Threat" would win. There's a hard-rocking, raw performance dying to come out, but it's buried beneath the cheese!
Saw this while looking for something else and had to share it, as i got one recently for more than this: DAVID BOWIE - Liveandwell.com Live And Well (2CD) | eBay Am sure I paid 40-50 for it so a good deal for someone.
Well, it took two months, but apparently I still have time.... I assembled what I think is my final "fake Recall4" for LTA... 01 Modern Love (Live B-side).flac (Found on Parlophone "Sound and Vision", 2003 remaster. Still abusively loud, but a live performance makes the song listenable. And it was a genuine B-side, damnit!) 02 China Girl (Riff & Vox Club Mix).flac (I liked this before learning it was on "Club Bowie". I didn't want my fake free recall free of all remixes.) 03 Cat People (Moroder- Ryko).flac (Belongs with any "Let's Dance" box. Because. And the Ryko is the best I've got. It's certainly better than what's on "Re:Call3". Which works for me.) 04 Loving the Alien (Single Remix-NHC).flac (NHC version seems to get as close to perfect as this one gets, sonically.) 05 Blue Jean (24-192 Vinyl LP Rip).wav (Wanted to mix up the sonics and include a hi-res vinyl rip somewhere. Also, too, the "Best of Bowie" DVD", which I've also ripped to include in my fake box, doesn't really have the straight-up version of this album-track/single. It's got the "video" version, and an odd "handclap" version.). 06 (Tina Live) Tonight.wav 07 (Tina Live) Let's Dance.wav (DUH! Ripped from the 80s CD.) 08 This Is Not America (Soundtrack CD).flac (Breather in the setlist. Found the real original EMI Manhattan soundtrack for a couple of bucks a few weeks ago.) 09 Dancing in the Street (Ryko).flac (I still like this. So sue me. The ending/fade on this single edit was very unfamiliar to me. But back in the 80s, I bought the 12", so maybe I really have never heard it. And, I've been listening to the video since I put my turntable away. Freshened things up. Like it more. 10 TVC 15 (Live Aid).flac 11 Rebel Rebel (Live Aid).flac 12 Modern Love (Live Aid).flac 13 Heroes (Live Aid).flac (Another big DUH! Entire Live Aid audio download -- all available acts - was $10 from 7digital. Yeah, on first listen, you can hear why people call this performance 2nd-tier Bowie, but you can also hear him working his ass off to make this work. Pays off. Energetic. Live. Great suit and haircut. No complaints.) 14 When the Wind Blows (Platinum Collection).flac (I'm just gonna assume the 2002 remaster from PC beats whatever is on "Re:Call4") 15 Day-In Day-Out (Ryko Edit).flac (A pull from NLMD without DIDO is like a day without sunshine. Also, the DVD version has that dialogue which maybe I won't always be in the mood for.) 16 Time Will Crawl (iSelect MM Remix).flac (Just discovered tonight that the digital album track I bought from 7digital has two seconds of silence at the end. One of a couple things I have to fix before I burn all this.) 17 Never Let Me Down (Dub).flac (Vinyl rip from a Canadian 12" Had to choose between this and the Dance Mix. Dance Mix brings out some really great sounds and makes this great song even better, but it also has leaden beats and is a bit of a drag at 7+ minutes. The Dub brings in some of the best elements from the Dance Mix, is shorter, and doesn't quite hit you over the head with monotonous beats. I think it'll fit better for more listens.) 18 Girls (Japanese LP Vinyl Rip).flac (Takes a minute+ off the more familiar version 5:00+ version. Obvious edit is obvious, but it still works.
Nice list, but you left off one of my Top 3 All Time Bowie Songs(and my Top Song from the LTA Box Time Period): Absolute Beginners
1) 8-minute version is on the "Best of Bowie" DVD rip. 2) The lossless digital EP from 7digital sounds pretty damn good. Then there's Glass Spider Berlin 1987, so I've got Absolute Beginners coming out of my wherever.
So traditional box-breaking day should be upon us some time in February for individual pieces of "Loving the Alien", but Glastonbury came out a month after the box, which was one pattern-breaker; and the Virtual App for the "David Bowie Is..." Exhibition is due January 08, 2019. So... I'm still waiting on news that may never come about hi-res versions. (As are, perhaps, people who could not be bothered with the box for the live albums, and are awaiting CDs which, as far as anyone can tell, should be coming out.) I'd really like to listen to NLMD 2018 again, but I'd rather wait until something a little bit better than 16-bit comes along. And I really wanted to stream the live "Glass Spider", but again, I'll wait and see what happens. In the meantime, I finally completed my "fake immersion box" for NLMD. Weighing in at 9.5 GB, I present... Men who love 1987 too much. A tale told in 20 chapters... 01 Never Let Me Down (EMI 1987) 02 Never Let Me Down (Tour rehearsal mix) 03 Never Let Me Down (Virgin 1995 EU) 04 Never Let Me Down (EMI 1999 remaster SHM CD) 05 NLMD CD Bonus Tracks 06 NLMD Vinyl rips 07 Day in Day Out (7-inch vinyl rip) 08 Day in Day Out (12-inch dance promo) 09 Day in Day Out (Groucho Mix Vinyl Rip) 10 Time Will Crawl Dance Crew Mix Digital EP 11 Time Will Crawl Digital EP 12 TWC-Girls (JP 7-inch vinyl rip) 13 Time Will Crawl Extended Dance Mix Vinyl Rip 14 Girls x 5 15 Never Let Me Down Canadian 12-inch rip 16 NLMD Promo edits 17 Time Will Crawl 2008 (MM Remix) And three 6/6/87 Berlin shows: 01 BowieStation SDB (Jan Erik) 02 Liberated Bootleg 03 FM-AUD matrix 1) I was not trying to be a completist or anything, but I couldn't decide between the three live shows. I pretty easily dismissed many crap-sounding 1987 shows. I was happy that Berlin happened to both be professionally captured, hot, and have a setlist that varies a bit from the previously available 2 North American shows. 2) If life hands you vinyl rips, add a directory to your collection. 3) the "Tour rehearsal mix" just takes advantage of the fact that a complete NLMD (save "Too Dizzy") existed on a tour rehearsal bootleg, and it's the closest I'm going to come to having an alternate NLMD, in a box, with Bowie's active participation. 4) I was not trying to be a completist about the EPs/mixes, either, but they turned out in 2018 to be enjoyable, some very much so, and with the exception of pursuing "Girls" back in 1987, I never really chased after them at the time. 5) I spent too much time worrying about where to put the Time Will Crawl (MM Remix). When I do these things, I try to stay faithful to the labels they came out on. So I don't really mix Parlophone and EMI content if it can be helped. So while TWC(MM) is odd-man-out, being a product of the ISO era, and not just reissued in it... it's really not a part of "the box". (Neither were the Radio Edits of "Zeroes" and BOYD, technically, but they were put out by Parlophone to promo it, so there they go....into the lonely set that still doesn't have anything from the box but the NLMD(2018) @44.1/16. They really need to get it together.) 6) I did "fake immersion boxes" for LD and Tonight also. One can predict that they are a little shorter, and probably won't need Blu-Ray media.... I did, however, notice that what I thought was a defect in the vinyl rip of "Let's Dance", turned out to be a defect.. in me? I thought a dust bunny on the part of the person ripping the vinyl was preventing me from hearing the "Sh" in "Shake It" when the background singers were singing it. (I could hear DB's "Sh" just fine, but they were just "Ake It! Ake It!") I went to the DSD, and the improvement was slight, but very very slight. I still struggled to hear the "Sh" in "Shake it" when sung by the background singers. It will be interesting to hear the hi-res (eventually), to see if it's something in the mix, or my head, or, you know, entirely intentional.
