Aladdin Sane

I was surprised how much I liked this. Never really listened to Bowie before

This album feels like an echo of Ziggy Stardust, with similar riffs used in new ways. you can hear him transitioning out of that era.

Seriously, where is the David Bowie jukebox musical? Can't you just imagine a series of actors in various wacky costumes flying around a stage to a loosely-constructed plot, accompanied by these raging showtunes? I'm giving this one a 4, between Low and Ziggy Stardust. Only 4 to go!

Shamefully, I had only really listened to the various Bowie songs that have been on the radio. Jean Genie was the only one from this album I knew. I think because of Space Oddity or Lets Dance, I thought I wasn't a Bowie fan, but these two albums over the past week have convinced me I need to listen to more of him and I quite like it

While Aladdin Sane contains a lot of energy and exciting songs, something about this character doesn't fully click for me in the music. That said Bowie still delivers an incredible performance and good album

Not my favorite David Bowie, but still great!

I always weirdly think of this as a “lesser” Classic Bowie album, but bad or anything but not the best. And. Like, maybe that’s true? But also, being a lesser classic Bowie album still makes you an absolutely stellar album and better than 90% of other albums ever made lol

4/5

7/10 Favourite: Aladdin Sane Least Favourite: Drive-In Saturday

bowie is a level on its own, i dont think this album is his best but its still really good

David Bowie at his first peak in his career.

A departure from Ziggy Stardust, however none the less worse for it. Aladdin Sane takes on a different form of "Heading to America" and you can hear the influence throughout his lyrics and styling. Bowie takes you through a journey as someone who is truly seeing the US in all it's gritty glory for the first time. Best: The Jean Genie Worst: The Prettiest Star 4.5 stars

Very difficult to pick 4 or 5 here but had to go with 4 as I feel like he is unfocused at times. If he spent more time banging around on the piano I would've liked it more. This was actually an album I didn't like when I first heard it, but I like it more on every listen, so perhaps it'll grow into a 5 in the future.

The Universe flew apart when we lost Bowie. This album is a classic, however not my favorite. I prefer Diamond Dogs. And Changes One.

Good Bowie album, not a great one.

Gosh I love glam rock

Ett album möjligen mer känt för sitt ikoniska omslag än musiken. Bowies rakaste rockalbum. Glam boogie hela vägen in i kaklet. Hög lägstanivå på alla låtar utom en. Öppningsspåren är alltid bra hos Bowie, inget undantag här med Watch that man. Även om sången är väldigt lågt mixad. Hela A-sidan fortsätter i bra stil. B-sidan något svagare. Riktigt bottennapp i Prettiest star. Hur kom den med på skivan? Avslutningen magnifik med Lady grinning soul.

Det är intressant att Bowie är så pass förknippade med glamrock som han ändå är. Egentligen är det väl bara Ziggy och Aladdin som kan räknas in i kategorin. Gällande senare endast fläckvis. Det är tydligt att Bowie i vanlig ordning redan är på väg vidare. Med det sagt, när han väl gör den, gör ingen glamrock bättre än Bowie. Allra bäst blir det trots allt i titelspåret och avslutande Lady grinning soul. Starkaste fyran hittills. Samtidigt, Bowie har varit ännu bättre.

Watch that man är väl helt ok, men ser blir det bara bättre. Med Mike Garsons piano tar Bowie nästa steg bort från glamrocken., inte minst i titelspåret. En av anledningarna till att Bowie fortfarande är intressant; hans strävan att ta sig vidare. Att inte göra samma platta om och om igen.

I like Bowie a lot but I don't have a very deep knowledge of his catalog. This was one of the gaps... only a few tracks sounded familiar ("Time," "The Jean Genie," maybe "Aladdin Sane").

A classic and a Bowie album I’m not super familiar with…funny that the 2 singles are buried late on the Bside.

Standouts are "Watch That Man", "Panic in Detroit”, "Cracked Actor", "The Jean Genie" and to a lesser extent "Let's Spend the Night Together". Thought this was a much better album than Ziggy Stardust.

Bot Bowies best, however it is still David Bowie.

Big fan.

increíble este álbum, no es mi favorito pero está súper bien, simplemente David Bowie ⚡💗

Highlights: Drive-In Saturday, Panic in Detroit

I hadn’t heard much Bowie outside of the radio until now, and I already knew he had a lot of variety, but now it feels like the man could do anything and do it well. I read that this album was inspired by the chaos and hedonism of touring in the US. You can definitely hear that all over this album. The album nails both the more commercial classic rock and the weird, experimental bits. 4/5

Like any Bowie album, full of wonder and melodic/harmonic intrigue. Just not his best

Watch That Man is fun Aladdin Sane - love the frenetic piano Drive-In Saturday - Love "She's uncertain if she likes him, but she knows she really loves him" - real 50s sound to the verses, the rhythm and backing singing. Panic in Detroit is okay - love the opening lines. Cracked Actor - really good rock Time - love the mention of quaaludes; RIP. I like the cabaret sound to the first half, and love the guitar playing in and sweet sound of the second. The Prettiest Star - love the jaunty feel. Let's Spend the Night Together is fun The Jean Genie is ok Lady Grinning Soul - really cool opening and closing, the rest is alright.

Yup

dio can il piano nella title track penso sia rivoluzionario per il resto molto sporco come disco bravo david time è un pezzo di un esaurito disco molto plasticoso, molto cocainoiso

Probably won't write much about this. Bowie is easily my favourite solo artist and already well aware of this record. One of his best for sure but just a tad short from being masterpiece for me. 4.5/5.0 but will probably round down to 4 stars. Fav tracks: The Jean Genie, Watch That Man, Drive-In Saturday and Time.

Good Bowie fun! Time, Panic in Detroit, Cracked Actor and The Jean Genie were my favorites.

Great Bowie album. Highlights: “Watch That Man”, “The Jean Genie”

An old friend

5 stars when listing to the extended version of the album. What a journey an album can be.

Очень хорошо подобраны инструменты и их звучание. Лучшие клавишные партии которые я слышал у Боуи находятся именно на этом альбоме. И прекрасно подобранный для этого альбома звук гитары

A little bit too conventional for Bowie but still a great album

Fantastic record! Have never been a fan of the title track, but every other song is amazing.

Not as good as Ziggy Stardust but that’s setting a high bar

Très bon

Lady grinning soul, more like Bowie grinding my soul

Beaucoup de bangers, la dernière track est une des meilleures chansons que j'ai entendu de ma vie. Un petit peu moins fan de la vibe 'blues' qui reviens beaucoup mais quand même très très fort.

Very coherent, consistent Bowie style glam. What’s not to love?

I love David Bowie, and while Aladdin Sane has never struck me as one of his absolute finest records, I wanted to revisit it today and see if that opinion changes. It was always going to be a tough task: following up The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars is no easy feat. That said, this is one of Bowie’s more playful albums — almost like Ziggy goes to America and discovers something new. There’s an energy here that’s fresh and adventurous, with standout tracks such as Watch That Man, Panic in Detroit, Cracked Actor, Drive-In Saturday, and of course, The Jean Genie. I also really enjoy his cover of Let’s Spend the Night Together — a bold choice that fits right into the album’s spirit. The piano work throughout is fantastic, adding another layer to the record’s character. Musically, the album feels rich and dynamic, and there are so many songs worth returning to. Favourite track: Cracked Actor — it’s always been one of my favourite Bowie songs, raw and theatrical, with Drive-In Saturday a very close second. Least favourite track: Honestly, there isn’t a bad one here. If I had to choose, I’d say Aladdin Sane itself feels slightly weaker compared to the others. Album artwork: Simply iconic. One of the most recognisable and influential album covers of all time. In short, while Aladdin Sane may not eclipse Ziggy Stardust, it stands tall in Bowie’s catalogue — bold, fun, and packed with great moments.

I found this one to be an enjoyable enough listen.. killer piano, and really rich vocal harmonies from Bowie and his backing singers. While I would argue his breakout 1971 album 'Rise & Fall of Ziggy Stardust' feels much tighter and more crackling with genuine energy than this one, it's still a solid work and a testament to Bowie's songwriting capabilities after being thrust into the spotlight. A fine testament to the power of glam rock (even if the album art grew to be more iconic than perhaps the songs themselves..)

The album on which Bowie took what made Ziggy Stardust great and made it rock. When it works, like on "Watch that Man," it produces some of the most infectious rock songs he ever wrote. When it doesn't, like on the Stones cover, it sounds like someone who has no business writing rock songs. But it works more often than it doesn't. The horns and piano add a ton to these songs; the horns really flesh out the opening song and the jazzy piano solo on the title track is my favorite moment on the album. It still has the grand concepts of prior albums on songs like "Drive-In Saturday" and "Time." The last three songs dip in quality a bit, but overall this is still an important part of Bowie's glam rock period. Apparently critics didn't like Bowie taking influence from American rock, but he was always a chameleon and this is just another style he took and made his own.

A few songs that I really like, but also a fair bit of filler. The good ones are just about enough to make it scrape ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Qué discazo. Estoy entre las cuatro y las cinco estrellas. Esta vez me inclino por las cuatro por el pésimo cover de Let's Spend the Night Together y porque voy a reservar las cinco estrellas para Ziggy (si está este disco, va a estar el otro). Pero es un disco espectacular. Yo creo - nótese el verbo, no tengo evidencias - que Bowie se apresuró para sacar este disco porque tenía 3 o 4 TEMAZOS que quería publicar rapidamente. Porque me parece que este disco es desparejo. Tiene a una de las mejores canciones de Bowie de esta época - por no decir de todas sus épocas: Time. Una canción apropiadamente inmortal. Bowie en su lugar más histriónico. También son alucinantes la canción homónima Aladdin Sane (¡ese piano!) y el infravalorado cierre, Lady Grinning Soul. Estas tres canciones son increíbles y creo que se puede decir que superan todo o casi todo lo que Bowie hizo en Ziggy, Diamond Dogs, Hunky Dory, etc. Casi todo el resto del disco lo veo como un disco de rock and roll glam, bastante más sucio que Ziggy, bastante más interesante que Pin Ups: esto lo disco sin querer desmerecer el disco, pero un poco lo desmerece, ja: Watch That Man, The Jean Genie, Panic in Detroit, Cracked Actor son solo rock and roll. Muy buen rock and roll, pero son solo eso. De éstas, mi favorita es Cracked Actor. Definen un poco el estilo del disco (cuando pienso en Aladdin Sane primero pienso en el rock and roll; después me acuerdo que tiene Time y mi estimación sube más). El disco además tiene dos muy buenas canciones más "suaves" que tranquilamente podrían estar en Ziggy Stardust: la balada Drive-In Saturday y la poppy The Prettiest Star, que creo que debería ser más conocida. En fin, un muy buen disco, manchado solo por el cover de los Rolling Stones. Un ocho fuerte o un nueve débil.

Well Bowie is in a class of his own, and is probably the greatest solo act that ever was. That being said, I fully expect to see many of his albums on this list, and to spoil a little, many of his are well above Aladdin Sane in my own personal ranking. Ziggy, Hunky Dory, Heroes, and my favorite Low, and even Let's dance (sue me) are to me either better album, or have bigger hits. This one might be the apex of visual Bowie, and it's still interesting music, complicated. 10 songs is real good length, but some feel not as consequential as the others. The best part of the album is clearly the end, and the middle as a lot of filler (by Bowie standards) on it. Sonically it is interesting, straddling between a little experimentation, big pop-rock energy, and a diversity of sound that is exciting. However I don't know that this a great album, there are too many song that sound like something he has made already, or event repeated himself. As an album, it's not perfect or even coherent thematically, but there are great songs. There is none better on there than Lady Grinning Soul, which is a very unusual range of sounds, quite emotional and different, and I liked that one a lot. It would be 3,5.

I hear there’s a lot of Bowie on this list, and I think it’s safe to say I’ve never really listened to albums of his work. I found this kind of wild and out there. Some bangers but also some weirdness like it’s finding its feet

Solid I liked it

All time bangers on this but it is a bit meandering on the back half. Probably the most iconic cover art though!

Bowie er kóngurinn en þessi plata ekki ein af hans bestu, mjög experimental og frekar whack sólóar í mörgum lögum.... hljómar eins og eitthvað jam session. Var einhvernvegin alltaf að bíða eftir að China Girl kæmi en það er víst önnur plata.

Second Bowie album in as many weeks. Great album. Varied, constantly interesting and typically Bowie. I had this on vinyl years ago and initially thought it didn’t hit the heights of some of his other output, but hearing it again today, it is strong. Lots of highlights. Thoroughly enjoyable.

This being one of the few Bowie albums I haven’t gotten to as of yet, I came in with really high hopes. Being a direct follow up to Ziggy Stardust, Aladdin Sane is Bowie’s first studio album where he’s releasing it after he’s finally made it big. Through his new persona, we get to see what he thinks of the rockstar life, and how it’s affected him so far. The opening song Watch That Man is such a foot tapper, and the Piano solo in the title track is so absolutely chaotic, it’s an embodiment of the anagram Bowie chose for this character, “A Lad Insane”. Time and Lady Grinning Soul steal the show for me, both songs that feel like parallels Rock n Roll suicide and Soul Love respectively: How do I not become obscure, reinvent myself with Time, and what is love and loving someone contrasting Aladdin’s urge to give in to primal desires in Lady Grinning Soul. While I can give individual songs their own praise, as a whole this album feels like a sum of its parts rather than a complete story, which is something I didn’t expect out of a Bowie release in the 70’s after both Life on Mars and Ziggy. It’s more of a concept album in my eyes, with loose themes of being a rock and roll star tying the whole thing together. The album doesn’t feel as tight as some of Bowie’s other albums, and while I currently don’t think it reaches the highs that his earlier works had, it’s still a great listen throughout its runtime, and is possibly the Black Sheep out of this era in his career.

Das war positiv überraschend, irgendwie typisch David Bowie, dann aber doch irgendwie pompöser. Hat mich gepackt.

Aladdin Sane feels like the wild, restless younger sibling of Ziggy Stardust. It keeps the glam rock swagger but twists it into stranger, sharper shapes. The title track is the perfect example, with Mike Garson’s chaotic piano solo tearing through the song like it wandered in from a jazz club on another planet. “Panic in Detroit” and “Cracked Actor” add grit and sleaze, while “The Jean Genie” is one of Bowie’s most straightforward and catchy rockers. What makes the album stand out is its unpredictability. One moment it is strutting along with glittery riffs, the next it is spiraling into something surreal and dissonant. Bowie sounds completely confident in pushing his sound forward, even when it veers close to messy. Aladdin Sane may not have the same narrative focus as Ziggy, but it makes up for it with raw energy, experimentation, and a sense that Bowie was already bored of playing it safe.

I was interested to read that he wrote most of this album on tour in the US. I don't know if I'm reading too much into the sound of the album, but I felt that vibe. It feels like an album stuck in the middle of nowhere. Overall, it's not the Spiders From Mars, but that doesn't make it bad

I have never really listened to David Bowie, but I’m glad I have now! The complexity and diversity of this album is pretty crazy

Neat piano and bass

I think there is just (just) enough creativity and variety in here to get a 4 and even though each number in the rating system covers a broad range, this deserves more than the last album (soz Cyndi). I did find Cracked Actor and Time jarring on both the first and second listen, for whatever reason didn’t think they sat right in this album. But there’s a good beginning and end, and ultimately a number of songs I could see myself returning to.

Glam rock with some nice variety. I absolutely LOVE the insane piano and sax solo in Aladdin Sane <3

3.5 - Good

a lad insane not my favourite bowie album but it has some amazing songs and i still enjoy listening to it if i put it on. the title track is sooo cool. my fave from the album is Lady Grinning Soul. 4.5/5

I have so many little conclusions I took away from this album (most of which you can get from other 70’s Bowie albums) but no big overarching summation - I’m sure there’s plenty of those already written. I think Bowie knew what he had with that piano refrain on the title track, I swear I’ve heard a million alterations of the same few notes and they all stick in my head for long periods of time. Right after on “Drive In Saturday” Bowie pulls off another emotive performance that might be one of my favorites from this record. I specifically say ONE of my favorites, because “Time” may be my real winner here; the theatric, circusy first half waltzes along. Then, suddenly, David Bowie employs a doowop-inspired-walking down of the melody, and cries out: “breaking up is hard, but keeping dark is hateful, I had so many dreams I had so many breakthroughs, But you my love were kind, But love has left you dreamless, The door to dreams was closed, Your park was real dreamless, Perhaps you’re smiling now, Smiling through this darkness, But all I have to give was the guilt for dreaming.” Can you imagine being an impressionable teen at the time and hearing that?? Maybe I’m projecting, but David is at his absolute best here, using his uncanny ability to be a voice both TO and FOR his young, impressionable, bright-eyed and/or heartbroken listeners. Generational talent. Afterwards, “The Prettiest Star” shows even more of Bowie leaning on a sound that surely inspired him in some 50’s doowop rock - complete with a play out of a chorus of guys singing a ‘ba ba badada ba’ melody. Lastly, I wanna note that Bowie basically spiritually invents the idea of sampling/remixing/nightcore in his pseudo cover of “Let’s Spend The Night Together”. I’m not even gonna go into the character/concept/iconography on this project, I’m not qualified to do so. Not to mention the most radio-popular song near the end, “The Jean Genie”! Such a fascinating album. Some songs on here that are just 3/5 material by Bowie standards, then there’s songs like “Time” that I’d give 6/5 stars to if I could. So a solid 4/5 from me

Never listened to Bowie and really enjoyed this album

Pretty cool rock album, I didn't like the more rock songs but the others sounded like nostalgic restaurant music.

Better than Rise and Fall! Watch that Man and Panic in Detroit are stand outs.

not my favourite bowie album but great to revisit, especially cracked actor and lady grinning soul are some of my favourites of his.

So like a sleazy rolling stones with Avant Garde piano. Sure. David Bowie never sits still. I'm not as familiar with these tracks beyond genie and the cover. It's good, the piano gives it all an unexpected edge. Makes it all feels less predictable which is a great move.

I like David Bowie. I love this album.

Really good album!

Great!

Ziggy Stardust comes to America and joins the hard glam rock showtune cabaret, equal parts garish theatricality and catchy refrains, yet purposefully transparent enough to show the coked-out depressive discordancy underlying it all.

Fun to listen to the whole album. I can hear influences

Hi, someone out there has said “man, I really wish I could listen to my favorite album for the first time again” about this album…and I’m that first time listener. I’m as surprised as you are. I’ve always been a fan of Bowie as a person, he’s cool and revolutionary. While this isn’t what I quite expected on first listen, giving it a 4 so I can make it a point to come back to it. I’ve already enjoyed it more upon instant repeat listen. There’s something about music in the 70s that sounds so theatrical, like it’s all a rock opera, a soundtrack to a grungy, alt-live stage show. Maybe I’m jaded by contemporary pop music, which feels like it all fits in a clear radio hit formula. These songs are unique, more complex, and kind of weird? I dig it, but I’m also surprised by it and need longer to digest.

I liked this one a lot more on a second listen. I struggled a bit with the mix, I wanted to be able to hear the vocals more clearly, but the more I listened the less that bothered me. Some parts I really didn’t like on the first listen I started to enjoy on the second, or at least not hate and there were a lot of songs I liked the first time that I loved the second time. Fav song: The Jean Genie - also liked Drive in Saturday and Panic in Detroit Least fav: Aladdin Sane

Поки кращий з альбомів Боуі, що я тут послухав. Є хіти, хороші гітари, цікаві виконання вокальні є. Взагалі цей настрій артистичного глему на альбомі подобається.

I got 2 Bowies in a row. I'm not a big fan, but this album is good. Lots of people like his older albums better, but to me this is the first one that sounds professional. His voice blends in better, which is great, because I don't like his voice very much and it's slightly off a lot of the time. Favorite song: the Jean Genie

I'd never listened to this one. The songs seem pretty mainstream but surprisingly I only knew one of them (not including the stones cover).

you know how things are supposed to find you at a certain time? that’s kind of how this album feels to me. i first listened to “let’s spend the night together” in high school, and i found it through an 8tracks playlist for a fanfiction. i won’t tell you the fanfic pairing (destiel) but coincidentally, i also discovered my favorite band of all time (los campesinos!) on that very same playlist. it kind of made me cry about it in the car just now while listening. crying to “let’s spend the night together” directly after a pilates class on my birthday is pretty on brand i fear. this album altogether kind of the weird theater kid blueprint though. as a former weird theater kid i’m qualified to make this call. he just had to mash the fuck outta those keys every chance he got. and for that, i salute him. standouts: time, watch that man, drive-in saturday the best of the album being the hit is an anomaly these days, but “let’s spend the night together” you’ve really done it girl.

Pretty ok, some gits some misses, but has so.e REALLY interesting melodies.

Enjoyable glam rock, if not a bit strange here and there (piano solo in the title track especially so)

Solid Bowie album, probably not my favorite or best

Did not relisten - Very good, consistent album.

A dazzling glimpse into a mind unafraid of theatrical excess and razor-sharp songwriting. The mix of glam swagger, surreal lyricism, and Mike Garson’s wild piano runs - it all feels like a fever dream.

I've already listened to his album (2). Better than I remembered. Probably one of Bowie's bests, but not *the* best. Cracked Actor is phenomenal.

Are there too many Bowie albums on this list, yes. Do I think this one should be on here, also yes

Overall, it was good. There were a couple songs that weren't too pleasing to the ear, but the rest of the songs made up for them. Bowie tends to not miss.

Definitely requires another listen but has nice vibes that I'd listen to on a walk

4.5, maybe 5 with additional listens.

4.5

I always found it to be the least interesting of the modern/middle-era Bowie albums. Still better than his first 2-3 though before he shook off the folksy thing. (Laughing Gnome, anyone?) Truth is I might have only listened to the whole thing 2 times then forgot about it. Listening to it twice in the previous 24 hours has made me rethink that! It's got a lot of fairly intricate musicianship going on, especially the pianos and synths. The regular band (Spiders!) are here and they added a jazzy/groovy keyboardist that really changed things up here. None of it really jumps out and hooks me in, but listening intently to almost all it, there are great bits to be heard. There really was no need to cover Let's spend the night together. I will definitely come back to listen to this again. I think it's a grower.

Bowie is always tapped as being the most out of his mind during his heyday but I feel like the bad were as equally out there. Aladdin Sane is an odd odd song. Drive In Saturday is what I’m talking about in regards to what I want to hear. This is another classic Bowie album and I can’t put my finger on why that is. It’s just that this album doesn’t exceed my expectations of what I wanted it to be and it doesn’t disappoint. Drive In Saturday Cracked Actor Time The Prettiest Star Jean Genie All good songs that propel This album. Choice cut: The Prettiest Star

Bangers all the way down.

Not the best of Bowie but really nice!

David Bowie is pretty cool

3.75

Love Bowie but def a notch below the albums he did before.

time is one of bowie's best tracks

Kind of a mess. Positive and negative. Just a lot of different ideas together, a lot of rock n roll, most of it works but it lacks a special something that the other Bowie classics have.

This was my most enjoyable experience with Bowie thus far, having only heard Station to station, Diamond dogs and Blackstar before. The sound has that wild rock and roll feeling nicely fitting with Bowie's vocal sound. A vocal sound that really needs that driven and frantic music behind it. Themes are good. Only the occasional weirdness sprinkles in. All in all a solid Bowie album.

Bowie, to his super fans, is the most important British artist. To many people he’s a rock star and legend. To me, he’s an enigma. Is he brilliant or bullshit? Stardust or bull dust? Genius artist or con artist? He leaves a large legacy and his best work is among the very best of the rock era. Not everything landed, which his later self happily admitted (and to me leans me towards thinking he’s at the brilliant end of the spectrum). This isn’t quite as good as the sublime Ziggy. Although it must be said the Bowie boosters don’t rate Ziggy that highly. I get it. But that band. Those songs. Here it’s the band but the songs are not quite as strong. Gene genie is great but doesn’t have the audacity of the later diamond dogs or earlier suffragette city. Bowie should be on the list a couple of times. But I don’t know this is one of the albums. It’s worth hearing though. 4 stars.

Had high expectations, but somewhat underwhelmed initially. However playing it on repeat a few times & i started to really warm up to it. There's something in the way his voice interplays with the other instruments that compels you to listen to the lyrics, and the timing is immaculate.

The titular track is not my favourite Bowie song, but the rest of the album is pretty solid

1. Watch That Man - 8 Intro is solid, drums sound great, guitar sounds good, piano at the end is a brilliant addition. All around a great 70s sort of pop-rock like song and an absolutely brilliant way to open the album. 2. Aladdin Sane - 6 Very hard to stay with this song as instrumentally it's absolutely all over the place. Piano playing in the opening is amazing but then it takes this sort of eerie turn half way through. Sax makes an appearance before quickly ducking away and coming back later. The piano playing is great, but it's just all over the shop. 3. Drive-In Saturday - 8 Just a classic sounding Bowie track. Lyrically it's very very strong. The sax doesn't come in and out like the last track and helps undertones very well on the louder parts of the track. Overall, an enjoyable track. 4. Panic In Detroit - 6 It's okay. Drums are good and instrumentally it's enjoyable. Lyrically it's a little too repetitive and you kinda grow tired of the track 3 minutes into it. There's definitely much much better in Bowie's collection of tunes. 5. Cracked Actor - 9 Really good track. Guitars on it sound very very good and lyrics flow so well and are so catchy that you can't help but find yourself signing to them at some point. Absolutely awesome track. 6. Time - 9 Amazing track. Guitar solo on it is immense and sounds incredible. Lyrically it's brilliant too. It just goes on a little too long and repetitively in the final minute and a half. Aside from that, it's the best track on the album so far. 7. The Prettiest Star - 9 Really enjoyable track. Lyrically it's incredibly well structured with another awesome sounding guitar solo/bridge. Sax adds so much to the flair of the song as well and is the perfect instrument to guide the ending fade out. 8. Let's Spend The Night Together - 9 The bridge on the track is awful but the rest of the track is so incredible. Piano is the real highlight of the track here. The first two verses are also absolutely masterful. It's just a phenomenal track. 9. The Jean Genie - 10 Great track. Lyrically the choruses are brilliant while the verses build so well. It has a phenomenal ending to it as well. Guitar sounds so tame but brilliant in helping the pace of the song move along. Drums cannot be forgotten either. 10. Lady Grinning Soul - 10 Superb song to end the album on. The piano here is unbelievably good and the introduction of the guitar at the end of the song just ahead of the outro is absolutely perfect. Bowie's vocals do so well here in how they go from quick to slow, drag out notes for emphasis, and go all over a range of octaves. Absolutely an incredible ending. Best track on the album by far. Average Rating: 8.4 Adjusted to a 5-Point Scale: 4.2 Rounded Down: 4 Stars

Warmed up to it

Bowie is another one where I know all the hit singles, but haven't listened to many of the full albums - except those that came out while I was at the record store in the 90s. Nice to hear this one after only knowing a couple of the tracks on it. Could maybe have done without the Rolling Stones cover. It wasn't bad, just kind of took me out of the "Bowie" mood. "The Prettiest Star" didn't do much for me either. Other than those, though, great throughout.

Another classic Bowie album, this one in the prime of the Glam Rock Era. The second half of this album is my favorite with, Cracked Actor, Time, and The Jean Genie!

One of the better Bowie rock/pop albums. Not as “cool” as the Berlin trilogy stuff, but solid songs and a cool vibe throughout

Good solid Bowie stuff. Lacking a few more hits but some sleepers on there.

Short, good. I don’t think I’ve ever listened to this one, aside from Jean Genie

Really like David Bowie. I can see why this stands out as a classic. Great 70s vibes all around.

“Watch that man” - Who was he talking to? A 14 year old girl?

I like Bowie. He just takes a lot of different ideas so the albums don’t feel stale. I really liked The Prettiest Star.

Bowie does it with every album. This one doesn't have any of the "hits" with which I'm familiar, but the title track and Cracked Actor are favorites here. I like the group singing and piano on Time. Seems like a Beatles-esq album, mostly, with a little Elton John/Billy Joel. I hear a definite influence on Daniel Johns from Silverchair. Let's Spend the Night Together was banging! Love it. I'll give this a 4.

My first listen to this well-regarded work by Bowie. "Watch That Man" kicks off Aladdin Sane with an easy piano rocker, a la Elton John. The titular track is beautifully fractured by the piano, playing slightly out of time, sometimes chaotic, sometimes jazzy. It does not prepare you for the safe landing into the doo-wop of Drive-in Saturday. The cock-rock of Cracked Actor and Let's Spend The Night Together isn't typically my cup of tea, but it evolves into an over-the-top Hedwig And The Angry Inch that is all showmanship and fabulous. Time is average until the change in the second half makes it epic; this one will grow on me--ahem--in time, I'm sure. Back to doo-wop for "The Prettiest Star," but it's so invitingly warm, pink, feathered, and fluffy. The Velvet Underground influence rears its head throughout the album, but never as obviously as on the distorted bluesy strut of The Jean Genie. Lady Grinning Soul is elegantly glamourous; I envision tuxedoed, tailed men serving me champagne in leaded crystal while I watch ladies perfoming a synchronized swimming routine to the song. Gatsby-esque. Overall, I think the piano work on the album takes center stage (instrumentally), knowing when to lead, when to support, when to make showy runs, when to play it safe. The brassiness of the cock-rock is over represented on the album, but there are some great compositions here. I appreciate an album that really strecthes it legs and takes us on journey, exploring various styles, production, and instrumentation. Another inspiring and inspired work by David Bowie.

Another good album by a great artist. The man is obviously on more drugs that I knew existed for a good chunk of his life and maybe that is the way to success in the music business

I prefer this album over any other ones just because of the vibes it gives, even though I didn't recognise any of the songs

You can tell that this was written at a tumultuous time in Bowie's life, this definitely isn't his best work. Pro-Bowie bias showing: I'd still rather listen to this album than ANYTHING by The Beatles, and they're just... kinda meh, not even bad.

Rating: 7.5/10

Four

This is "the" David Bowie that I know the most, and more or less like the most. His catalog is deep so it is hard to say which era or album I like the most, but I groove to this as like "classic" David Bowie in a way. I very much have favorite songs that are not on this album, but it would be nearly impossible to make a greatest hits album with him because too many obscure and less known songs are favorites of mine, and everyone else who has heard a bit more of his catalog. So... This album is one that I would not be afraid to point to and say "This" is David Bowie, and if you find it even mildly interesting, you will likely find the rest of him good too!

I haven't really listened to Bowie before but this album is good.

Pains my heart that the first Bowie album I'm getting is Aladdin Sane, because, as much musically it sounds fine, it never landed, even after years. Feels like Bowie is singing about some plane of existence I never cared about - is it US life of celebrities? Maybe. The cover obviously is a fan favourite, but I don't think it's a good introduction to Bowie. And the title has been so much discussed too! My favourites: Cracked Actor/Time/The Prettiest Star. It's a 4, a strong one, but I never liked this album too much.

Great album

Fun.

Agradecido de escuchar una versión que no conocía de Bowie.

Not up to the best standards that Bowie himself set - but still pretty great.

Ziggy goes to America.

It exists in the shadow of Ziggy Stardust, which is fair when it's the follow-up to one of the best rock albums ever. The fucked up jazz piano really elevates this one beyond mere immitation.

My second Bowie album in a few days. I think this is a stronger album than Young Americans, but it's an interesting counterpart as it's the first Bowie album that's heavily influenced by and references American culture. This is very nearly a 5 for me and had I got this with a bit more distance from another record of his, it might have scored differently but I'm going with a high 4.

Drive in Saturday Cracked actor Time The prettiest star

engaging instrumentals, brilliant soundscape and always something new. Favorite track: the jean genie other picks: panic in detroit, time, lady grinning soul

Great concept and introspection. Brilliant musicianship and lyrical contents. Happy to have enjoyed this one late in life yet again. Not my favorite Bowie but a great example of his contributions and career trajectory.

8/10. Bowie at his peak…or is it a long plateau. Hard to go wrong.

A great Bowie album, with some classic anthems, glam stomping etc. I found the occasional bits of skronky piano quite interesting, although the chorus to the title track is still a bit weird. It's a minimum of 4 - bowie's way with words and melody will always stand out - but I could have done with another 5* song to up the average.

David Bowie teve uma carreira extensa, com várias fases, e gosto de quase tudo que ouvi do que ele fez. Essa época glam rock talvez seja a minha preferida e o "Aladdin Sane" é tão bom quanto o "Ziggy Stardust", só não tem o mesmo hype. Arranjos muito bons, piano, sopros, percussão, com aquela pegada roqueira que combina bem com a voz dele. Destaque para "Time" e sua interpretação inspirada.

This is Ziggy redux but with a new, darker persona as he heads to America where he is subsumed by sleaze in the underbelly of the city. Weirder and therefore a million times better than Ziggy Stardust this is Bowie deep diving into his ambiguous relationship with fame and with the idea of America.

Much groovier, jazzier, bluesier than I expected, but some tracks fell flat

Cool listen, piano riffing was a bit much in some places

Pretty good album. Was on the way to Hawaii when listening. I think I listened to it like 5 times.

Liked it more as it went on. I can definitely see some influence on Rocky Horror

He's out here putting both the glam and the rock in Glam Rock, somebody stop him from carrying so much... It's no Rise and Fall but it's a good 40 minutes of inspired music

More 70s Glam. Brilliant

Great album, and a natural follow-up to Ziggy Stardust. A mixture of glam rock and jazz-tinged piano. Bowie could do no wrong for much of the seventies.

A beautiful album from start to finish. This is a perfect weird boi album. I enjoyed this journey

Refreshing 8/10

Хороший альбом, но другие лучше

love bowie, love his artistry, a great album and it was such an easy listen, didn't feel like 45 mins at all, passed by really quickly. also lady grinning soul<33333

It's a dissonant piano freak out on the title track from being perfect; but is it as good as Ziggy or Hunky Dory? I'm not sure.

Haven't listened to this one on years so I forgot how much crazy stuff is on it, like the piano part on the title track (reminds me of King Crimson in a way), congas on Panic in Detroit. I think that's because of it opening with Watch That Man, which is pretty familiar Bowie glam rock. Not a bad song but maybe slightly misleading Cracked Actor has a cool, simple sleazy riff that serves as the basis for the whole song si that's probably my favourite Now that I think about it, his might be my favourite of Bowie's glam era (although i quite like Diamond Dogs too) Highlights: Cracked Actor, Aladdin Sane, Panic in Detroit

I enjoyed this, listened on a Monday morning on the way to work. Most songs I didn’t know, but would definitely listen again. I like Bowie.

Good album, I think a decent amount of the mixing's not the best but that's my only gripe really •Watch That Man is a very typical Bowie pop/rock song, cool but not as great as something like Rebel Rebel or Suffragette City •The title track has that Bowie art shit I love, definitely a bit reminiscent of Hunky Dory at times •Drive-In Saturday has a clear 1950s doo-wop influence, then the chorus goes to something I'd expect from any Bowie song, all very catchy •I fw Panic in Detroit heavy, I can't really put my finger on exactly why •Time fits right in with the title track, plenty of discordant harmony •The Prettiest Star sounds like a continuation of Drive-In Saturday, while straying just a little bit more from the doo-wop sound and having it's own personality •Let's Spend the Night Together is another pretty decent pop rock song, not particularly spectacular •The Jean Genie is ok, I didn't really care for it. I'm inclined to say it's the weakest song on the album, but it's still alright enough •Lady Grinning Soul has a very spooky sound to it, and somehow sounds very overall outro-sounding

2nd album in a row to catch me in the wrong mood. I'd enjoy this more if I was energetic but glam really isn't my thing. a few of the tracks were actually really good tho. I will have to give this a listen again sometime in the future

Cool take on glam rock. Not Ziggy but very good. 4.1/5 Favorites: Watch that Man, Cracked Actor

This is only the second time I've listened to this one and liked it much more than the first time around. Still like what he does before and after this a bit more but all Bowie is pretty good. Only one Bowie album left on the list, and of course it's Ziggy Stardust. Rating: 4.3

I love when someone smashed on a keyboard ~tastefully~

This may be the last David Bowie album that I get on this project. I am too lazy to look it up. If so, my takeaway is that I like David Bowie's music and I haven't been turned on to it until now. The piano on Aladdin Sane (the song) is insanely good. I'm wondering if cocaine has anything to do with the effort being put into it. In fact, the piano on this entire album, especially on Lady Grinning Soul, is really great to listen to. I haven't heard Bowie do a song like Lady Grinning Soul before, as it has a flamenco feel to it. I am not, and never have been, a fan of his version of Let's Spend the Night Together. I prefer his attempts to mimic the Stones, like on Watch that Man. Really liked this one.

Enjoyable listen

82/100. Another solid and stylish art rock release. It maintains a consistent quality throughout, with a constantly engaging and experimental sound that keeps things fresh. Bowie blends glam, rock, and avant-garde influences effortlessly, resulting in an album that feels both theatrical and musically sharp.

A lot like Ziggy Stardust. Solid throughout, but particularly liked the first and last tracks. Really nice cabaret sort of piano.

Weirdly did not recognize the songs on this despite being very familiar with the album cover! Is that common? Anyway, great era of Bowie here - funky, rocking, screechy. I dug it.

This is far better than the last Bowie album on this list. It rocks in parts, is odd and a bit dark.

Honestly, not my fav Bowie album; but, still pretty good. I love Bowie, so I might be biased, but it was a good album. Not great, not going in my top 10, but good. There weren’t any bad songs, nor absolute bangers. Jean Genie was prolly my fav tho. This is a 3.5 for me, so I round up cause Bowie is an icon

Well hot dog i dug this

Another great Bowie album though I find that the album has less consistency than other releases.

Honestly one of his best and Bowie is one of my favorite artists

Great album, not as quite as grandiose as its successor. I love "Panic In Detroit," "Drive In Saturday," and "The Prettiest Star."

I really wish they would of mixed his vocals a bit louder. Some of the songs he sounds more like a back up singer for the band. It works on a few though as he comes across more haunting while the band experiments with sound. It's a good album, I prefer the Ziggy Stardust album but this one is the start of him experimenting more. Each song feel different from the next and he's channeling a do wop band in one. Good album. It's one that I want to spend more time with, I swear there are other bands that influenced each track. Besides the Rolling Stones cover that is.

- Drive In Saturday is great

Awesome

Great!

Bowie goes jamband

Awesome cover but not my favorite Bowie.

This hits are great, the rest of the album is kind of a paler version of Ziggy Stardust.

Piano is exceptional. Some great songs and not many I recognised before.

Random thoughts: * I'm pretty sure the album artwork is way more famous than the music. * Somehow, I've never listened to this album before now. I owe an apology to someone. * "Panic in Detroit" really grabbed me on the first listen. * "Spend the Night Together" is an awesome cover. Has anyone compiled all of Bowie's covers? He should have done a whole album of covers because that would have been fun. * Glam Bowie era was some good fun and a great listen.

I won't hide it, I'm a rabid Bowie fan, but it's taken me a long time to get this one to leap off the shelf and onto my turntable. In younger days, I didn't like the piano; later, I reconciled with it (after more exposure to free jazz). Still, this album just doesn't have the juice to outrank Ziggy Stardust or Hunky Dory. Alas, it foretells the dizzy misdirections in Diamond Dogs. Bowie's arc is going in the wrong direction here, and maybe that is what doesn't sit completely right with me about this album. On the other hand, this has "Cracked Actor" and "The Prettiest Star" and those are among my favorite Bowie songs. Extra props for the iconic cover and makeup.

I was a bit scared of the 'Glam rock' tag because I'm not a fan of 'Glam metal' and I though that they might very similar. But what a pleasant surprise this was. This album sounds incredible and it is full of layers and creativity in every single track. I don't think it is perfect, but don't think I have anything bad to say. And this was only my first impression. Fantastic.

I don’t know if I like it but it’s undeniably interesting and creative

Love it.

Bowies isn't my favourite and it is the 3rd album on the list. It's Bowie. The better of his albums.

A step and a half down from Ziggy Stardust, both in song writing and performance, but still...I gotta give it 4 stars, which may tell you more about how highly I rate ZS. I think we have to admit that at this point of his life and his fame, David was pretty fucked up. Don't do drugs, kids. The album is a portrait of a disordered mind, but his musicianship drags some of the material to a higher plane. My favorites are Jean Genie and Panic in Detroit. Drive-In Saturday is good too. The cover art is iconic and worth half a star alone. So, 3.5 stars for the content, .5 stars for the album art? Yeah, whatever.

Pretty brilliant album in its own right, but an especially brilliant album considering what it came right after. *This* is the real sound of Ziggy Stardust both as a character and real person; not rock 'n roll guitars but schizophrenic pianos.

This isn't Bowie's worst work at all. Love Jean Genie and Time. Beautiful glamrock album.

8/10

I was a huge David Bowie fan growing up, and Lady Grinning Soul is my favorite Bowie song and in my opinion one of the best songs ever written. This album is really something so special, I don't think I've ever heard something that was this mix of glam rock, boomer hard rock and avant garde jazz solos. It's flamboyant, chauvinist, introspective and pretentious at the same time. Diamond Dogs after this kind of plays up the first two a little more and refines it to a science but there is this beautiful vulnerability to Aladdin Sane, like, the self-titled song, my god! Ugh I want to give this a five so bad but I think some of the songs like Watch That Man are pretty unremarkable Bowie piano rock songs and are kind of stinkers, reminds me of Elton John or other shit like that I don't really care about, he's at his best when he's playing as sultry minx and there's a lot of that here and it's veiled in dusting powder and velvet and saxophones. Like it's not just gold leotard over hairy chest flamboyant it's like Sophia Loren in a slip dress flamboyant and I respect that.

The album was great musically, but it just didn’t speak to me.

i think this is one of the weaker bowie albums during the peak era and it's still four stars

4 stars

I haven't listened to this Bowie album as much as the others. Lets give it a spin... I'm also not sure why that is? Not a bad place to start 1001 albums.

Echt sehr gut

As a huge Bowie fan, this is an album I’ve often overlooked. While it’s not one of my favourites of his, I enjoyed it much more than I remembered. I forgot how good the title track is especially. Suck Baby Suck!

Side 1 is stronger than side 2, but a good album nonetheless

Decisamente nelle mie corde. Lo sto preferendo a Lou Reed, più consistente nello stile. Se dovessi trovarlo, anche in vinile, non direi certo di no.

I love the dissonance in the piano. The album is a great mix of avant-garde elements and blues rock. No single track is boring, all the songs are easy to listen to. The album art doesn't evoke the sounds of the album, and that dissonance between the art and the sounds works well with dissonance between the various elements of songs.

<3 watch that man- 6 aladdin sane- 6 drive in saturday- 8 or 9 panic in detroit- 6 cracked actor- "crack baby crack show me youre real, smack baby smack is that all you feel? suck baby suck, give me your head" what. 7 time- 9. it makes me think of the everywhere everything all at once trailer the prettiest star- 6 or 7 lets spend the night together- 5 or 6 jean genie- 8 lady grinning soul- 7

Love me some Bowie. 3.9/10 Fav song: Jean Genie

I really like this album. Didn't even listen today because I know most of the songs. Probably the closest we've come to me giving out a 5, but I'm holding out for artists I like better than David Bowie. I do really like Prettiest Star on this album though.

I’ve listened to this album multiple times before, but I’ve never been able to connect with it quite like Ziggy Stardust. It feels a bit less cohesive. But it’s Bowie, so still awesome I guess. Highlights: Let’s Spend the Night Together, The Jean Genie

9/10

Good

Ziggy Stardust era Bowie is my favorite David Bowie. Aladdin Sane is the record I am least familiar with from this era-- I have listened to a hell of a lot of Rise and Fall as well as Diamond Dogs. The more that I listen to this one, the more I like it, though. Standouts are "Drive-In Saturday", "Panic in Detroit", "Let's Spend the Night Together", and "The Jean Genie".

Aladdin Sane is a strong follow-up to Ziggy. It's compact, consistent and it's Bowie so it never gets boring, there are always interesting songs. Personally, I prefer some other albums to this (Ziggy, Low, Heroes, Hunky Dory and perhaps some others) but this is also high in the stellar and long catalogue of Bowie. The album cover is iconic, one of the best of the 70s. Favourite songs: the title track, The Jean Genie, Lady Grinning Soul.

I definitely understand the Bowie hype more after two albums in a week. Even without any of his major hits, this album flows really well from beginning to end and feels like you’ve completed a journey. I appreciated the varying musical styles and the little bit of weirdness that Bowie adds in. Glad I finally listened to the album that introduced the world to one of the most iconic images of David Bowie.

Ziggy goes to America. I love this album, I think it's my 4th favourite Bowie. A great chaotic follow-up to Spiders. The piano work is incredible. 4⭐️

Not my fave Bowie but it’s still Bowie. And it would have been impossible to follow up Ziggy Stardust so this is pretty good

Really liked the glam rock side of this record, fuzzy guitar licks mixed with a boogie sound comparable to T-Rex, and then the record can be less energetic with the more experimental jazzy songs. Overall pretty good listen.

Good Bowie! Any rock album with saxophone or horns is right up my alley. I found a bunch of deep cuts on this that I liked a lot.

With its predecessor the essential duo of glam rock albums. Here Bowie finds stardom, lives the American dream in all its glory and grime, its highs and unsettling discord aspects mirrored in the music. Not personally the heights of the ziggy album - 4 Star

Not my favourite Bowie but that’s like saying it’s not my favourite flavour of chocolate. It’s still chocolate.

Not his best, but still good

A beautifully dense and encompassing record that expands Bowie's Glam sound from Ziggy. The songs on here feel more matured and well-rounded than his previous album. The title track and Lady Grinning Soul for example exemplifies Bowie's songwriting personality moreso than anything before. I always seem to return more to the album tracks on this album than anything. Best Tracks: - Drive-In Saturday - Time - The Prettiest Star - Lady Grinning Soul Worst Tracks: - Let's Spend The Night Together Rating: 8.5/10

I mean, you can't really go wrong with Bowie, can you? I don't think you can. Aladdin Sane is great. I would say it's one of the weaker of the 5 Bowie albums I've listened to, possibly even the weakest, but when the only other ones I've listened to are Ziggy Stardust, Heroes, Station to Station, and Blackstar, can you really put that against me? That doesn't matter though. What matters is that Aladdin Sane is really good. This album definitely feels closest to an album like Ziggy Stardust as far as the ones I've listened to go. That's probably because this is the first album he made after that one. Go figure. In fact, Bowie once described this album as "Ziggy goes to America." Where did the America part come from? Well, many of the albums songs were written while Bowie was in America and were, as such, inspired by the country. That's neat. The songs, by the way, are really good. Some of them are more fun like the opener "Watch That Man" and "The Jean Genie." Others are more emotional like "Time" and the album's closer "Lady Grinning Soul," which I would also call the album's best song. It's not quite as good as other best songs on Bowie albums like "Heroes" or "Starman" but it's still a phenomenal song. The style is strong all throughout. Bowie's singing and songwriting are just as great as ever. This is just another classic album from one of the greatest musicians of all time. Also the cover is legendary. High 4/5.

I had never listened to this album start to finish. I found it an enjoyable listen.

Bowie albums have generally scored very highly for me, so I went into this with great expectations despite only recognising Jean Genie from the track list. And I did enjoy it a lot, but perhaps not as much as I expected. Maybe it is the simplicity that inherently comes with a lot of glam rock. On other album, the tracks seem beautifully constructed, whereas it seemed a little more basic here. This is still very good, but I’ll admit I was left a little disappointed when compared to his other works, both from before and after this album.

Not my favourite of his, but still some really good songs…and probably one of the most iconic covers of all time, this must count for something

Alright. Standard 70s fare

WOOOOOOOW this is a good run of albums. but it dont goes too hard for me so 4/5. there is a reason for why he went to Berlin, isn't it?

Whilst I’m still hesitant about the album cover, Aladdin Sane is the first Bowie album that has actually, properly clicked for me. I could appreciate Blackstar and Low, but I would never even consider putting them on over a lot of other albums. Maybe with this newfound appreciation I can go back and listen to the songs that surround Sound and Vision with more open ears. For Aladdin Sane itself, it’s glam rock personified, and with Bowie’s most recognisable cover, Bowie himself personified. He can flit between the groovy Panic in Detroit and The Jean Genie to more complex songs like the second-best song released in 1973 entitled ‘Time’, which is still stunning, my personal standout.

Alors que la mode est aux groupes au début des 70s, l'artiste est sur les rails et il ne s'arrêtera jamais pendant plusieurs décennies. Cette année là, il se réinvente une nouvelle fois. Un concert de Bowie en 73 avec Aladine Sane, ça devait être exceptionnel. Je kiffe toute sa musique et toutes ses périodes.

Bowie - together with Lennon, Mack Cartney and Neil Young - is at the top of the 1001 albums list with 9 albums to his name without even counting the 2 Iggy Pop that he produced taht are also in this list, so we must get used to encounter some of his records. As a fan of his early period but this album isn't really my favourite. I still do love Mick Ronson's fat overdrived guitars that would pave the way to the coming age of punk rock. It's another album with reference to the stardom (of " A lad Insane"), with it's etheral vocal that almost disappear behind the piano solo. Jean Genie, the hit about Iggy Pop and (Jean Genet) is poping out. Well I mainly like and remember those two titles.

I remember this album from late in high school. Liked the two “hits”, Panic in Detroit and Jean Genie, but didn’t stick with the rest of the album. Listening to it today, I wish I had. A nice selection of tunes, and a different, fun read on Let’s Spend the Night Together.

Glam rock brilliance. That’s what this album is. Love Bowie and love this album. A few songs on the B-Side preventing it from getting 5 stars but it’s still amazing. Ziggy is better tho

what are you? some kind of lad insane?

Heard it before. A classic, it includes one of my favourite Bowie songs (Cracked Actor). 4/5

Recently watch Bowie's performance on the Midnight Special and I feel like it really gave context to how revolutionary early Bowie was.

I gave it a 4, but it's really 3.5 for me. It's good, but I don't think it's Bowie's best stuff.

This isn’t even in Bowie’s top 5 albums I would think, and still a solid album start to finish. Warts and all, you can tell in some of the songs that mistakes were made by the musicians, but they just ran with them. Love the drum sound of this era Bowie too

those piano moments … ough 3.5/5

Bowie injects some experimental elements into his Ziggy persona, with some killer pianos. The music may be great, but it is the cover art that has left the bigger impact. A truly iconic picture, countlessly referenced and parodied. Key tracks: Aladdin Sane Panic in Detroit Time Lady Grinning Soul

Extremely experimental with notes of jazz and glam rock. I do not Think it is as good as Ziggy Stardust but it is very good.

<3 bowie favourite song: lady grinning soul

Not filled with his most popular songs but strong from start to finish and still sounds vital.

While still a strong lp, I have always found this less satisfying than the Ziggy lp. It's not as cohesive, less flow, less thought out. More a collection of songs. I do NOT enjoy Lets Spend the Night Together at all. It's the only skipper on the kp, and quite honestly, its the first skipper since the Space Oddity lp.

It’s very hard for me to rate Bowie because he was the first artist I became obsessed with as a teen in the mid 80s - especially early Bowie. Like the others this album contains songs I always loved and others less so, but I like the transitional Ziggy sound with touches of baroque and cabaret.

Im Song Aladdin Sane gaht mer s Klavier chli zu crazy. Generell findi de Afang vom Album uf e negativi Art überfordernd, es sind mer zvill Grüüsch wo me nöd chan zueordne oder atonal sind. Und das, wo nöd schräg isch, isch eifach chli langwiilig. Time isch sehr geil und ab denn findi s Album nimmt recht en Turn zu spannender, unterhaltsamer, losenswerter Musig. Vor allem Lady Grinning Soul isch sehr cool! Spannendi Harmonie und zudem macheds in Schlagzüg, Bass, Klavier und Gitarre geniali Pause wo d Singstimm hervorhebed und e tolli Dynamik is ganze Stuck bringed.

Muy buen disco, de los mejores de Bowie. Es quizás el más rock and roll de todos. Me re gustó.

I've had a few albums from groups I love recently, like Amnesiac by Radiohead and Led Zeppelin III, which I like, but not quite as much as other albums of theirs. Like those albums, this has some great songs, but also some strange choices which don't quite work for me. Nevertheless, I feel inclined to be generous because of who the artist is. Oh well, that might not be fair, but I think there is value in listening to everything you can by an artist, even the not-quite-heights. This is far from the most obscure or poorly conceived Bowie album though, it's still a great listen even if it's a step down from Ziggy Stardust.

Thoroughly enjoyed it! Hadn't heard 90% of these Bowie songs before, and I'm a little disappointed in myself - especially consider how big a Bowie fan my dad is (cried when he died). Loved it!

Great as expected, not that many big hits in this one but every song was still amazing

i hadn't heard any "glammour rock" before so this was a beautiful surprise. the only other bowie i've had is station to station which i did like but was kinda underwhemled by. This, made sense. The vocals are beautiful, i love a good piano and this is a great one --- the way lady grinning soul starts , its experimental its different its psychedelic and progressive

LP

This is a great album, I listened to it 3 or 4 times already. Some parts like the piano on the titular song are so memorable and make this album stay in my mind.

Haven’t spent much time listening to Bowie, this is the second album on the list for me. Liking most of what I hear. Surprising, eclectic, theatrical, and the pianos in this are unhinged.

This is much closer to the Bowie I remember listening to when I was a kid (unlike the Low album, which was an otherworldly clusterfuck of insanity). Whilst some of the songs (like Jean Genie) I enjoyed with a nostalgic fondness, I did actually enjoy a lot of the album as a whole.. this is probably the limit of absolute bollocks and nonsense I can endure on an album, and still find myself enjoying it. The heavy guitar riffs, the funky piano and the fact that is possibly the earliest legitimate record of a "Nice to meet you" (A lad insane), earns this 4 stars from me.

Name a more iconic British face paint, I'll not wait. Good job he wasn't smiling for this snap though, those piss yellow pegs would have taken some of the majesty away. Aladdin Sane is brilliant. Weird bit of piano that the vocal and guitar oddly slot around. Drive In Saturday sounds like it's pastiching American high school, especially with the 'doo wahs', much like how Zappa would do with songs like Go Cry On Somebody Else's Shoulder. “Falls wanking to the floor” is a fabulous line. I love the cabaret of Time. Jean Genie is my favourite. I love the dirty descending intro, the nonsense lyrics, rattlesnake sounds and the strut-ability of that song. Of course that main riff has been done a thousand times over, this is surely one of the best incarnations of it. The album fuses Glam, Punk, Rock and Roll, Soul and all that Arty bollocks Warhol, Lou Reed and them lot were doing. But I think Bowie pulls off marrying all of this together to great effect. Barely a bad track on the album.

Great.

Oh this is such a good album! I love David Bowie! And this is one of his most seminal albums!! While there are more popular albums by him this is one of his low key great ones!

so good. stand outs for me this time around were panic in detroit and time. I really needed bowie to tell me yesterday “you… are not a victim. you….. just scream with boredom”

I wanted to like this album so bad, but then I heard Aladdin Sane and realized it sounded like a deaf child performing the piano for some sort of make-a-wish deal where everyone pretends their doing so well, sweetie. Bowie’s supposed to be a sex icon, but is he hot or is he just white and skinny? I’ve always wanted to like Bowie, but the sickly twink is just fine in my book. By the end of the album, I did come around to it enough. It was a rough start, and it’s hard to forgive him after the namesake for the album was so hard to stomach, but I did I guess. Panic in Detroit, Drive-In Saturday, The Prettiest Star, and The Jean Genie were some of my favorites. A wonderful listening experience even after the rough start, but I like it rough so I can’t complain.

Dosta dobar album, volim ovo njegovo razdoblje. Baš fino legne na ove kišne dane. Može još ovakvih!! 4/5, 8/10.

Fun but not his best. Performance and production is excellent though.

Honestly it had never been my “go to” Bowie album, and I don’t know why. This is great.

Really good Bowie album.

Can't give it any less than 4 stars when Lady Grinning Soul is on here, while the other songs are fine but nothing special to me.

Ziggy goes to America. This feels like the follow-up to The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust, but darker and more chaotic. Bowie had just blown up, went on tour across the U.S., and suddenly saw fame up close, the good side and the rotten side. That tension lives inside the album. It’s like Hunky Dory’s songwriting, but now he’s wearing the Ziggy skin and looking at the world while traveling. The record jumps through different ideas and moods, but somehow it still feels focused. The songs talk about time laughing at you, fear of war, the ugly side of fame, the weirdness of celebrity life and in the middle, there’s even this random love song that somehow works anyway. The whole album is solid. There really aren’t any true low points. And then the ending: “Lady Grinning Soul” One of bowie's greatest songs. It’s strange, dramatic, almost theatrical but it hits hard and closes the album perfectly. A beautiful, haunting way to end things.

I enjoyed this. One of those iconic Bowie albums I’d never listened to. A few really great songs and then a some just ok ones. I want to say it’s in that 3.5-4 star range. Honestly I could listen to it again and it would probably go up.

This feels like the hipster Bowie pick... but like all Bowie it's still super fun.

Onko tämä se paras Bowie? Ehkä, ei, en tiedä. Todella hyvä joka tapauksessa! 4/5

Really good. Funky, energetic, groovy. Really got into the album, didn't get bored at all. Highlights: Watch That Man Cracked Actor

The balls to release this after Ziggy Stardust, but a great end result. Stay for the Rolling Stones cover.

Hurt slightly by coming after arguably Bowie’s best album, it’s still a classic. Lady Grinning Soul Always sneaks up on me as a great track.

Pretty good.

Een waanzinnige kunstenaar, maar niet een artiest die mij vaak op muzikaal vlak weet in te pakken. En wat een weird album is dit, maar vaker in de goede zin van het woord dan de slechte. Deze, ''Hunky Dory'' en ''Ziggy Stardust'' tekenen voor mij de wacky en existential glam rock trilogie van hem, en bovendien zijn beste periode in z'n rijke loopbaan. Vanaf hier werd het voor mij een stuk wisselvalliger, met natuurlijk als grote doorn in het oog de mislukte opvolger ''Pin Ups''. Dit album is in vele opzichten de spirituele nakomeling van Ziggy Stardust, maar tekent ook zijn steeds verdere isolatie van de 'normale wereld'. De intense, bijna manische, theatraliteit moet wel een voorbode zijn van zijn nogal innige relatie met drugs en de paranoia als bijproduct. Soms is het mij iets té musical, en sluit ik me aan bij gevatte review 'Elton John if he was edgy'. Maar in verscheidene fases kick ik echt op de dissonantie en de bijna duivelse opera. 'Aladdin Sane' en 'Time' behoren tot zijn beste nummers, en zijn zwaar underrated. De pianist Mike Garson is the star of the show op dit album. Andere songs grijpen wat meer terug op zijn glam en rock roots, en zorgen voor een prettige balans in een anders veel te intens, bezeten orkest. 'Drive-In Saturday' en het iconische 'The Jean Genie' doen hun werk. Soms een paranoïde Elton John, soms een glammy Rolling Stones, het werkt op één of andere manier wel. Maar wat zeker is, is dat 1 luisterbeurt wel eventjes genoeg is. 8/10 Highlights: Aladdin Sane Time The Prettiest Star The Jean Genie

So much better than the Beatles

Rewelacja, chwytliwe kawałki i sporo eksperymentowania, jazgot, huk, harmider.

interesting bowie album not the best but good

Great album. Not sure I'll return to it but I enjoyed my time.

Very good album, will need more listens. A unique mix of glam and rock that is hard to classify, but fits into David Bowie's one of a kind ability to always keep you guessing, as you never know what's next.

Good album to know David Bowie

Glam Bowie. Not the best Bowie, but Bowie nonetheless.

It's Bowie, it's the iconic cover, it's weird and fun.

Another of many Bowie's albums on the list, Aladdin Sane, is in my opinion a good representation of his career. Very solid record, basically no bad song, but overall a bit underwhelming. One would excpect even more genius from Bowie, which tells us all about his fame and career. It's not my favourite, but still a very goid album.

Poetic story telling. America through this lens is adorable.

8/10 Not Bowies best but still a great record Favourite Song=Lets Spend The Night Together Least Favourite Song=Aladdin Sane

Bowies glam rock phase is my favorite. I'm not as much a fan of the experimental title song, but the combination of this album and Ziggy Stardust is a one-two punch on ho-hum rock that has never been forgotten. 4.5/5

Gött glammigt sound. Andra låten med dess utomtonartliga pianosolo är för artsy-fartsy för mig men annars är det lagom flippigt känns det som. Behöver en lyssning till

3.5/5

Odlican album! Neke pesme nisu kliknule ali sve u svemu a good listen, 4/5

Piano playing on this album is absolutely top notch.

I may not like Bowie's glam phase as much as most (my love for the Berlin years is without limit though), but this is a classic in every sense of the word, maybe not as many anthems as Ziggy, but makes up for it in breadth and inventiveness.

4 stars

Bowie at his glam peak.

David Bowie has this unique ethereal sound in his music that makes it stand out, and I feel like that's most present on this record compared to his others. While it doesn't sit as high as Ziggy Stardust for me, this is still a very good album. Favorites were Watch That Man and Time

I love just about everything David Bowie touches, and this is no exception. Probably his most iconic look. Doesn’t quite reach the heights of a Hunky Dory or Ziggy Stardust. Cracked Actor is easily my favorite song here. I love the heavy distortion used. Favorite songs are Watch That Man, Cracked Actor, Time, and The Jean Genie.

David rarely disappoints. We actually shared a manager with him for a brief time. He was a bloke on a mission. His vision was to sexualise asexuality. Hard work with a band like Houmous and Chutney. We had to sort of be gay but also nothing at the same time. It worked for a short while before the sexual tension between me and Len got too much. We called it a day and moved onto a new manager before we both made a mistake we would regret. We didn’t want to damage our chemistry on stage. 4.4

He looked a lot like Che Guevara, drove a diesel van Kept his gun in quiet seclusion, such a humble man The only survivor of the National People's Gang Panic in Detroit, I asked for an autograph He wanted to stay home, I wish someone would phone Panic in Detroit Yeah, this is a pretty good album. 4/5

Nice album with experimental note, and good guitar sound (riff and solos) also the piano is very present

1. Watch That Man - Aikansa musiikkia. Ihan menevää muttei mitään erityistä. 2. Aladdin Sane - Paljon mielenkiintoisempi kappale kuin ensimmäinen. Mielenkiintoista pimputusta. Ihan fiilaan tän erikoisuutta. Hauska leikittely. 3. Drive-In Saturday - Tykkäsin tästäkin. Kivan kuuloinen kaikin puolin ja sanat sopii hyvin tähän kaikkeuteen. Quuen viboja mutta saattaa vaan johtua aikakudesta. 4. Panic in Detroit - Täki oli ihan hauska tarina tai niin mut kiva kuunneltava. 5. Cracked Actor - Tyksin ihan tästäkin. Menevää mielenkiintosia sanoja. Yeah 6. Time - Ehkä toistaseks lemppari. Tykkään tän tarinasta ja sanomasta. Myös toki siitä miltä tää kokonaisuus kuulostaa. Erottui edukseen. 7. The Prettiest Star - Täkin oli ihan kiva. Simppeli ja vaihteeks kiva nytimekäs. Skittat on jees. 8. Let's Spend the Night Together - Tykkäsin tästäkin. Jotenki herttanen lol Kivaa kokeellisuutta. 9. The Jean Genie - Tä kuulosta siltä rock 'n rollilta jos mietin jotain stereotypista. Ihan fiilaan. Kiva ja lempeä. 10. Lady Grinning Soul - Tää on joka mun lemppari tai toisiks lemppari. Piano on rakkautta, kitarat toimii vokaalit ja sanat. Täydellinen lopetus albumille. 4

The great thing about David Bowie albums is that everyone has a different period/album that is their favorite. My wife's favorite era/album is "Let's Dance". I think mine is a tossup between "Heroes" and "The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars". But regardless, no one is wrong in their choice (except, of course, those that say their favorite is "Never Let Me Down"...). My biggest thing for this album is that the order of the songs is is not great: "Time" should be the closer. It was the closer for a number of his shows in 72-74. There are a few songs that are weaker, like "Lady Grinning Soul". It doesn't help that it's the last song on the album. And the cover of "Let's Spend The Night Together"... what was that about? It just seems a little rushed to me. "Panic In Detroit"... I had heard a different take of this first, but this is better, really. "Drive In Saturday": I get the whole doo-wop thing, but it sounds a bit cheesy. The chorus is the best part of the song. "Cracked Actor" is a bit of a stomper, but "Jean Genie" is better, really. So as a whole, there are a lot of good to great songs, but the few weaker songs drag it down from classic to really, really good.

Classic. Obvs enjoyed.

Weird mix of a Bowie album and a Stones album.

rest in peace mister bowie

Watch That Man 3.7 Aladdin Sane (1913-1938-197?) 3.7 Drive-In Saturday 3.6 Panic in Detroit 4.1 Cracked Actor 4 Time 3.8 The Prettiest Star 3.5 Let's Spend the Night Together 3.7 The Jean Genie 4 Lady Grinning Soul 4 Score: 3.81

Some amazing moments!

A very good David Bowie album.

7/10 mostly solid Bowie. 11-7-2024