How would you rate "Tonight" (1984) by David Bowie?

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Haristar, Jul 27, 2017.

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  1. 93curr

    93curr Senior Member

    One great track ('Loving The Alien') and eight pieces of disposable nonsense (everything else.) And it has a really ugly cover.

    My least favorite Bowie album. Too damn many cover songs, methinks!
     
  2. Larry Mc

    Larry Mc Forum Dude

    Avoid at all costs
     
  3. antonkk

    antonkk Senior Member

    Location:
    moscow
    Great Bowie record. Side 1 is pure perfection and God Only Knows cover borders on divine in my book. Overall I much prefer it to overrated IMHO Let's Dance.
     
    Max Florian likes this.
  4. Black Thumb

    Black Thumb Yah Mo B There

    Location:
    Reno, NV
    If I had to make a 40-minute Bowie best of, Loving the Alien would always get 7 of those minutes.

    The rest of Tonight: decent bits and blah bits.
     
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  5. Vaughan

    Vaughan Forum Resident

    Location:
    Essex, UK
    Always good to hear the opinion of others - BSWT is miles better than Tonight, I couldn't even begin to compare. :D
     
    DBMethos likes this.
  6. oldturkey

    oldturkey Forum Resident

    Location:
    Gone away.
    I agree...I think...
    [​IMG]
     
  7. Bowieboy

    Bowieboy Forum Resident

    Location:
    Louisville
    I would put it in "Quite Forgettable" but Loving The Alien alone brings the album to "So-So".
     
  8. Diamond Dog

    Diamond Dog Cautionary Example

    Both answers are correct. Throw Let's Dance onto the heap for an unholy trinity.

    D.D.
     
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  9. davers

    davers Forum Resident

    I think it's a great pop record, balanced out by the more artsy "Loving The Alien". Cool cover art too.

    I may be in a super minority, but I really dig his duet with Tina Turner on the title track.
     
  10. Bowieboy

    Bowieboy Forum Resident

    Location:
    Louisville
    Well I can see where he considers NLMD worse because he actually put effort into that one. This one was an admitted "EMI wants a new album for the holiday season" rush job that you can literally hear him sleepwalking.
     
  11. Erick Haight

    Erick Haight We all float down here

    Location:
    Petoskey, Michigan
    I won this on (cutout) LP from a local radio station, so I will always have a soft spot for Tonight. I love that he sings the absolute **** out of these songs, pulling out every trick in the book to get the weaker material across the finish line. I play "Neighborhood Threat" and "Tumble And Twirl" more than I suppose I should because of his vocal acrobatics and affectations. And "God Only Knows" goes down better when I picture Bowie singing it to a Scarface-sized mountain of cocaine. And when you factor in the three added songs in the Virgin 1995 CD issue -- "This Is Not America," "As The World Falls Down," and "Absolute Beginners" -- the batting average for Tonight (v2.0) looks a lot better. Having said that, Black Tie White Noise is easily the superior album.
     
  12. Haristar

    Haristar Apollo C. Vermouth Thread Starter

    Location:
    Hampshire, UK
    I wonder why they chose those three bonus tracks? Quite an odd selection.
     
  13. California Couple

    California Couple dislike us on facebook

    Location:
    Newport Beach
    We need a Black Tie White Noise is better than you think thread.
     
  14. karmaman

    karmaman Forum Resident

    to get people to buy it. three soundtrack songs that have nothing in common with the album they're tacked on to. see also Under Pressure tacked onto the Let's Dance reissue in the same series.
     
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  15. karmaman

    karmaman Forum Resident

  16. Haristar

    Haristar Apollo C. Vermouth Thread Starter

    Location:
    Hampshire, UK
    But why include As the World Falls Down but exclude Underground and the other Labyrinth tracks?

    Why include Absolute Beginners but exclude That's Motivation and Volare?
     
  17. karmaman

    karmaman Forum Resident

    because that would kill sales of the soundtrack? it is an odd choice as it was intended for single release but wasn't, unlike Underground and Magic Dance.
    see above but at least Absolute Beginners was a single.
     
    Haristar likes this.
  18. Mother

    Mother Forum Resident

    Location:
    Melbourne
    I love it. Always have, always will. Obviously a less than stellar album for Bowie but was in good voice and cool videos particularly the Julian Temple Jazzin'.... Sentimental reasons for loving it I'll grant you, Never Let Me Down too.

    Perhaps the only hideous moment is the Beach Boys cover, and the title track is an awesome song on Lust for Life, Neighborhood threat too, but not here.

    Don't Look Down is a nice reggae feel, but again the original off Iggy's classic New Values is superb and fares better.

    A good choice of covers in general, just not executed perfectly on every occasion.

    Dancing With The Big Boys is fun, so is Tumble and Twirl. The 80s producers were left in charge unfortunately, plus Bowie was past caring at this point.

    I will say I prefer these 80s albums to some of the 90s and beyond outings, when Bowie still had an air of swagger, colourful outfits and huge singing going on.

    The album cover is a Gilbert and George homage and I really like it.
     
  19. Diamond Dog

    Diamond Dog Cautionary Example

    Should've been on Station To Station then, perhaps...

    D.D.
     
    e.s. likes this.
  20. The fact only reason I came wn it n CD are for the bthose nis tracks. Dislike the album the. Except for two songs...dislike it now.
     
    oldturkey likes this.
  21. Diamond Dog

    Diamond Dog Cautionary Example

    [​IMG]

    D.D.
     
  22. Diamond Dog

    Diamond Dog Cautionary Example

    Has anyone seen my decoder ring ? ;)

    D.D.
     
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  23. karmaman

    karmaman Forum Resident

    the expanded edition is horribly mastered which doesn't help. the original must be in plentiful, cheap supply and the bonus tracks are easily found elsewhere.
     
    Dino and oldturkey like this.
  24. Dr. Mudd

    Dr. Mudd Audient

    Forgettable.
     
  25. Yes, I have them in other forms elsewhere. I paid a buck for it sealed used. The last time I broke it out was seven or eight years ago.
     
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