ALBUMS: ‘Let’s Dance’ (1983), ‘Fame and Fashion’ Greatest Hits (1984), ‘The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars’ (1972)
MVC Rating: Stardust: 5.0./$$$$; Let’s Dance: 3.5; $$$; Greatest Hits: 4.0/$$$
It’s pretty simple. Get the Ziggy Stardust album. It’s so good. It’s one of the top 10 rock albums of all time IMHO.
Now Bowie was a shapeshifter at the highest level. An artist in the real sense of the word. He was a trans-genre space oddity. He sold millions, changed musical styles like coats, and even had a worldwide Christmas hit duet with Bing Crosby.
If you want to broaden your Bowie collection like me, I would do what I did. Such simple advice. Get ‘’Let’s Dance’ the album and the greatest hits disc Iisted above. And of course as I said, get Ziggy first.
(A live album, David Live is also pretty good or maybe interesting as Bowie rearranged some of familiar songs.)
Now the ‘Let’s Dance’ recommendation might raise eyebrows. “It’s Bowie going disco,” goes the critique.
Well, he sort of pioneered quality disco, didn’t he? Fame and Young Americans are the rare disco type songs that have shelf life, almost classics.
Bowie was one of the few white artists ever invited to the TV dance show Soul Train, singing Golden Years. Or should I say lip-syncing, not one of his finest performances.
But get this: The lead guitarist on the Let’s Dance album? Stevie Ray Vaughn, one of the best guitarists of all time. He’s scratching it up with his guitar chops over the heavy bass-line in this one. Still very fun to listen to.
Bowie always had good musicians. Guitarist Mick Ronson was on Ziggy.
From my three albums I can come up with a killer 10-12 song mix, and I’ll do it in order of my favorite songs.
- Starman
- Five years
- Heroes
- Modern Love
- Young Americans
- .Ashes to Ashes
- Let’s Dance
- Suffragette City
- Moonage Daydream
- Changes
- BONUS: Space Oddity, Fame
Not a bad lineup from three albums. Start with Ziggy.
Counting down my 678 vinyl records before I die of brain disease.