Hunky Dory

With this album, Bowie really achieved one of the highest accolades he had ever or would ever receive in his life as an artist: having a cover of one of his songs appear in the soundtrack of Shrek 2.

One of my favorite Bowie albums to date. Something about it is especially touching compared to later albumbs. It's tender and understated but also powerful. Bowie's undeniable talent comes through with a strength and softness like a velvet hammer. SO good.

I don't know why everyone hates "Kooks." "Kooks" rules. Without "Kooks," there is no Belle & Sebastian.

Ziggy Stardust before he became Ziggy Stardust. Inventive, creative, and a joy to listen to. Best track: Life On Mars?

I'll admit it, I have never listened to Bowie. I know him more as a pop culture figure and couldn't name a song if you asked. Was pleased to know many songs on this, but didn't know who sang them. Incredible album!

6th Bowie album out of the first 411. Come. On. I don't think I have much effort anymore with Bowie reviews; my last one (which felt like last week) was for Aladdin Sane and I made commentary about how I felt like I could copy/paste my previous Bowie review.... and since that absolutely once again applies here, I'll just *literally* copy/paste, while replacing a few specifics. I stand by it: -------copy/paste------ Without looking, I'd bet I could copy/paste my review from _Aladdin Sane_. It's a catchy-at-first early 70s rock album that I slowly get tired of because I'm just not able to really be moved by Bowie's music. It's fine - starting with "_Changes_" which is perhaps his most famous cut and deservedly-so. It's admittedly timeless and very well-crafted musically ..... And the cut "_Life On Mars?_" is a nice diversion from the initial track - but then it just gets...Bowie-ish. And if you're a Bowie fan I can see how you'd like this but his voice is always a little distracting for me. On a positive note, aside from "Low" which feels to me like an Eno record that Bowie happens to sing on, this is probably one of the more-enjoyable or perhaps immediately-accessible records of his but I'll never voluntarily put it on. It feels like I always use his voice as a cop-out because there are plenty of artists who I listen to that I don't necessarily like the singer's voice and I like the music. It's as simple as this even if I can't articulate it well: I don't connect with his music on any emotional level - can just appreciate it from a distance. -----end self-plagiarism----- TL;DR: I don't hate his music, I just don't really *like* it or ever connect with it and after so many years don't really care that much. 5/10 2 stars

My favourite Bowie album. Simple but excellent songwriting. Some lesser known gems on here like Eight Line Poem which has more emotion with only a piano and a guitar in the intro than a lot of other bands have in their entire back catalogue.

I should really give this a 4 based on individual track ratings, but the peaks on here are elite. Probably 5th or 6th best Bowie album. Life On Mars aside, Queen Bitch has always been the highlight for me. 1. Changes - usually skip this because it's so overplayed but it's shit hot 9.5/10 2. Oh You Pretty Things - a highlight 9.5/10 3. Eight Line Poem - Doesn't do it for me 5/10 4. Life On Mars - possibly the best track of the 70's 11/10 5. Kooks - used to find this kind of annoying but it's harmless enough 7/10 6. Quicksand - forgot about this 8.5/10 7. Fill Your Heart - quirky 7/10 8. Andy Warhol - It's alright 7/10 9. Song For Bob Dylan - another classic 9/10 10. Queen Bitch - Top 10 Bowie tune 10/10 11. Bewley Brothers - Love it man such a unique track. Starving for me gravy - 9/10

An album that was certainly not up to the standard of singer-songwriters of the time, but it showed that Bowie was more than just a pop singer. (7/10) FT: Changes, Oh You Pretty Thing, Life On Mars, Queen Bitch

There's nothing wrong with kooks!

David Bowie has a unique sound all to his own and this album is a perfect encapsulation of that

Feels like the last album he did for quite some time with obvious flashes of himself - Bewlay Brothers; Quicksand (both amazing) - in there, rather than whichever persona he had created. It's quite open about his influences, and it also feels like he's still trying on lots of different styles to see what fits. So you get some early glimpses of glam like Oh! You Pretty Things, and a VU homage/parody/rip-off, straight acoustic songs, show songs and all sorts of other stuff chucked into the mix. Also casually in the middle of it all one of the best songs of all time, and it opens with another all-time Bowie classic. Don't much care for Fill Your Heart or Andy Warhol, but I love everything else. It's a 5 alright.

The album where Bowie became Bowie. He then spent the remainder of the decade being anyone BUT Bowie.

Don't need to relisten, ceritifed hood classic. Every song after Life on Mars could be Bowie farting into a microphone and it's still a Top 50 all time record

As my Polish friend zbig, may say — This kicks many asses

Bowie was the greatest album artist of the 1970s, a period noted for great album artists (Stevie Wonder, Neil Young, The Clash, Led Zeppelin, Kraftwerk...), and Hunky Dory was his first album where he organically combined his varied artistic passions. In the credits, Bowie is credited as "The Actor" (though his films may make you think otherwise). As such, the listener senses a multiplicity to this album, that of numerous roles being adopted. Since this was Bowie's lifelong creative persona, and since this is the first album where he fully expounds on this iridescent philosophy. Indeed, the opening Changes serves as a manifesto. However, don't believe that this album, for all its theatricality, lacks tenderness and heart. The piano-led melodies are at turns bombastic and fragile, and the whole record demonstrates that Bowie settling into the role of Bowie was in pursuit of his muse. Indispensable, and yes, hunky dory.

Great album, I've listened to it numerous times and it's grown on me, maybe even being better than Ziggy Stardust. Changes is such a great opener, one of the best actually. I also learned that a riff from Andy Warhol was the inspiration for one in Metallica's Master of Puppets. Who knew?

This was an easy 5 for me. Been a Bowie stan for awhile now, and "Queen Bitch" is one of my all time favorite Bowie songs. Plus we got "Changes" and "Life on Mars," so come on we gotta give it up for this record. A lot of interesting subject matter on this one too. The tributes to Andy Warhol and Bobby D were cool to see. Also love hearing Bowie espousing occult teachings and getting freaky on "Quicksand." An all over good time album for me.

the first of (i assume) many bowie albums. more mellow than his later ziggy and aladdin sane records. beautiful and soulful melodies. the first half is somewhat stronger than the latter.

The awe-inspiring ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes, followed by sweet, enjoyable songs.

Not a big Bowie fan but I appreciate the impact and influence that he had on so many artists. For me, this is fine but not really special.

This is the first Bowie album we’ve heard that did not raise my appreciation for him in any way. I’m sure I’ll get hate for this but It just doesn’t speak to me lyrically or sonically in any way. I’d rather just hear the Beatles or the Kinks, as this album feels like worse version of their songs. “Queen Bitch” was a highlight for me.

Wow instant classic

Early Bowtie is tough to beat. Changes is an all time classic. This is a solid album all the way through. An easy 5 stars in my book.

How could one give this album less than five stars? It features most of my favourite songs by Bowie where the presence of piano makes every one of them so melodic and interesting, intriguing. Perfection

Perfect from start to finish and “Quicksand” is one of the greatest songs Bowie ever wrote.

One of my very favorite albums by one of my very favorite artists. I misheard "Changes" when I was a young child and thought he was singing "Don't let them grow up in Olivette." Olivette is a suburb of St Louis, Missouri and I was amazed that this British bloke would get so specific. Like he was singing just to me. Bowie has somehow managed to maintain that intensely personal intimacy with my soul, even when he is singing about Mars, a place where I've spent much less time than St Louis.

This has never been my favorite of the "classic" Bowie albums, although listening again it seems I'm just being picky. What's a few lesser music-hall numbers when there's "Changes", "Oh! You Pretty Things", "Life On Mars?", and the goddam genius "Bewlay Brothers" ffs? Fun to trace the evolution of "White Light, White Heat" into "Queen Bitch" and then on to "Transformer" in hindsight. It's a 5*, glad to hear it again. Mark - if you like the more spooky/Nietzschean stuff (e.g. "Quicksand") but wished it rocked a bit harder, you'd probably like "The Man Who Sold The World", unlikely to be on here but (gun to the head) the better album

My favorite Bowie album. Life on Mars and Kooks are for me the highlights on a great album.

All y'all not giving this a 5 are the real kooks. This is some peak Bowie, elevated among an already great discography. Not a single weak point on here, and so many moments to savor individually. Album opens on an absolute classic, Changes. A catchy AF ode to the inescapable changes that time renders across us all. This bleeds over into the piano-led melody of Oh! You Pretty Things. Love the off-kilter sway of the chorus here. Built for shouting along to. Life on Mars? is up there with the best songs ever written IMO. And I love that Kooks is a song to his newly born son. Andy Warhol is a kooky one at the outset, but develops into a driven acoustic jam that, interestingly, Metallica interpolated a riff from into Master of Puppets. Queen Bitch is another energetic jam that taps a similar spirit to Suffragette City. I've listened to this album countless times and never tire of it.

arguably where Bowie reached his full potential. an eclectic mix that isn't incoherent, kind of like a Beatles album

Hunky Dory For a long time this was possibly my favourite Bowie album, although it has been superseded by others, and as a result I haven’t listened to this for quite a while. Of course it still is truly excellent. Despite on the surface being one of his most ‘conventional’ albums it really is full of odd little corners and strange/absorbing/literary/facist*/cryptic lyrics, all the while being carried by a cinematic musical momentum, whether folk, orchestral, music hall or guitar led rock. There are some fantastic strings and horns and brilliant arrangements and instrumentation. Also I only just made the connection that the producer, Ken Scott, is the same Ken Scott who was engineer for quite a few Beatles sessions.
*not really, he just mentions Himmler and homo superior a bit. I won’t necessarily go through song by song, as I genuinely like every one on here, but there are moments throughout that I love. The guitar in the intro of Eight Line Poem for example, or the Dr Who beeps on Andy Warhol and the acoustic guitar line intro. I like the music hall influences too, similar to Macca in that regard. And I’ve always loved the opening stanza of Oh! You Pretty Things. Also I took me a while to appreciate Quicksand, but it really is a superb song. I’ve also never noticed it before but the way he sings ‘still the days seem the same’ at 1.44 in Changes is very very Dylan. Life on Mars stood out today - not because I’m not aware of what an incredible song it is - but sometimes you hear something you’ve heard a thousand times in a slightly different way. Maybe it’s mood, what you are doing or how receptive your brain is but it just seems different and feels fresh. I suppose that’s the thing that separates the truly great artists (your Bowies, your Youngs, your Tamsin Archers, your Beatles, your Dylans) from the good, that the songs endure and evolve as time passes, you find moments or angles you never noticed before and it feels like a new song. It’s of course an easy 5. Not just a transformational album in his career but one of the greatest albums ever recorded. If he only ever released this album he would still be regarded as one of the greatest ever. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

It’s amazing to think that David Bowie was still a relative outsider when this album came out and that it sold poorly on first release. There is a lot here that points the way to the directions that his music would take with complex cinematic arrangements on Life on Mars alongside pop classics and lyrics namechecking Warhol, Dylan and the Velvet Underground. My high point is Kooks, an utterly charming song dedicated to his new born son.

This was the album that got be into Bowie in the first place. Queen Bitch was the first Bowie song I ever heard that I was consciously aware of as being a Bowie song. This entire album is perfect. Obviously it's full of hits, but even the 'lesser' tracks shine. Quicksand and Andy Warhol are some of my most favorite tracks ever.

5 stars. I’m pretty familiar with this album. I lump it in with Bowie’s other great albums (Ziggy Stardust, Heroes, Station to Station). This one feels more like a collection of songs that some of my other favorites, but maybe I’m being too hard on him

Peak Bowie. Doesn’t get better than this.

Excellent album top to bottom with great music and clever lyrics describing life and society. Wide variety of themes and styles but it still builds momentum from one song to the next. Changes. Oh you pretty things, life on Mars, kooks, fill your heart. Andy Warhol.

Just an incredible record. A landmark album.

Not all of this works for me, but most does, and those songs are great. The closer, The Bewlay Brothers, has just hit me like some weird force.

Changes is such a jam of a song. Soooo easy to get into. Life on Mars? is also such a jam. I knew those songs pretty well going in but not a whole lot of others. Very different vibes overall from some of the other Bowie albums we've listened to which tracks (and I love). Andy Warhol's intro was a bit loopy I dig it. Also apparently there is a riff in Master of Puppets that paid homage to this song. Went back and listened and it's clear as day. Queen Bitch rules also I know that's a popular one. All in all an above average album with a few serious jams on it. Knocking a star because it doesn't live up to other Bowie I've heard which is probably unfair but it's my rating so suck it.

Oh you pretty thing!

Again, I am surprised how I could miss basically the complete work of David Bowie. It's a great album that had been unknown by me until today.

Very original feeling songs, really enjoyed them. I didn’t like David Bowie before but I do now. I think it’s the fact that the songs are fairly unpredictable in tone and cadence, but at the right amount so it’s not crazy

what a ride. this ablum is like forrest gumps box of chocolates (or paul mersons bag of Revels). you might get an absolute all time belter of a song, you might get a mime stuck in a phone box or you might get a song that didn't make it on to mary poppins. still throroughly enjoyable and it feels weird giving it a high score when there are songs on there that i would happily never hear again but the belters, well they're the reason everyone has such a hard on for Bowie.

I was late at the Bowie party. Like really late. In 2004 David Bowie canceled a concert at Roskilde Festival. The festival administration had a hard time finding a replacement. But they found a band: Slipknot. Lol! I was excited, 'caus Slipknot was more down my alley. However, at the festival I had a conversation with a girl who was really into Bowie, and she opened up my views on him. In the following years i bought a couple of his albums, and now I really enjoy his musical universe. Honky Dory is one of my favourite albums. For me, the start of the album is the best. My top tracks are "Changes", "Oh, you Pretty Things" and "Life on Mars?".

I'm always going to be happy to see David Bowie on this list. This is early 1970's Bowie, and it feels like a Bowie not fully formed, still exploring and finding his way, with the best of his work ahead of him. I see shades of what's to come, with Bowie exploring themes found in his other work (youth and pop culture, art, politics, philosophy) with the sense of individuality and surrealism/absurdity that became his hallmarks. Many of the songs here feature piano, but a couple of the later tracks show glimpses of glam rock and punk. The songs vary a lot in subject matter and feel, so I don't find it to be a very cohesive album, and there are a few tracks that, while not horrible by any means, I would probably seldom reach for as a Bowie fan, just because there are so many others that I love more. Obviously “Changes” and “Life on Mars?” are classics. I'm glad for the opportunity to hear him in his earlier career even if I consider it before his peak. 3.5 Lyric of note, from “Quicksand”: "I'm not a prophet or a stone age man Just a mortal with potential of a superman, I'm living on I'm tethered to the logic of homo sapien Can't take my eyes from the great salvation of bullshit faith If I don't explain what you ought to know You can tell me all about it on the next bardo I'm sinking in the quicksand of my thought I ain't got the power anymore Don't believe in yourself Don't deceive with believe Knowledge comes with death's release”

This underscores to me that I prefer later Bowie to the earlier stuff. Changes is great, but the rest is nowhere near the highs of Station to Station or Low.

Another classic. Pushing boundaries, but not so strange as to be inaccessible or unenjoyable.

I'm glad Bowie started doing cocaine after this album.

Restoring the messy remains of classic rock with pop purpose lovingly swiped from Black sources, at its best this is a signpost for the road too infrequently travelled by proggers. At its worst, he proves susceptible to the same tendencies. In the middle, he pays tribute to Warhol and Dylan by name, but not to Lou Reed, even though Queen Bitch doesn't exist without the Velvets. Then again, two bouts of overt hero-worship is probably enough for one record. Freaks, kooks, and queers everywhere are addressed directly for maybe the first time ever. And how about those camped John Lennon vocals? Some of his best.

Some decent songs, some weird songs. Mixed bag.

Good start. I hate the intro to Andy Warhol I had a bad time with this album

this wasn't a bad album but this was TWO BOWIE ALBUMS IN A ROW and like the fourth overall so far... I've had enough of Bowie now thanks dickhead author. 2/5 just because the sheer amount of Bowie in this list is starting to annoy me.

Bowie sucks

I enjoyed listening to an album I've never heard from an artist I love.

listened to it before, but God is this album fresh. bowie is the only person I know who can pull off pretense without actually being pretentious. how many people could sing a word on quicksand without appearing like the biggest dweeb on the planet?

Earlier in my trip through the 1001 I distinctly remember giving an excellent Bowie album four stars precisely because there are some GREAT Bowie records. This is one of those, a GREAT Bowie record. It really shows his development as a performing artist and as a songwriter.

If Bowie recorded a series of farts, it would be on this list. This has bangers though. 4.5.

As of this moment, this is my favorite Bowie album. Lots of incredible tracks. In my heart of hearts this is probably a 4.5 star album, but I'm going to round up in this case.

Some classic Bowie tracks on here. The lesser known songs didn't hit quite as hard as for me so maybe it's a 4. But it's possible Queen Bitch is good enough to get this to a 5. (12 known/18 new)

Classic Bowie.

Alright, this is my sixth David Bowie album on my journey, and the second one to break chronological order after Aladdin Sane broke the run of Young Americans through Low, followed by "Heroes". I am well familiar with the singles from Hunky Dory and a few cuts such as "Queen Bitch" and "Oh! You Pretty Things" that are undeniable bangers to me. How does the rest of the album stack up? This was Bowie's best album to date. Taking a more piano-focused songwriting approach, he crafted warmer rock tunes that placed more emphasis on melody. I've already mentioned the above tracks as good examples of this approach. I'll add to that notion the sporadic piano with spare guitar licks on "Eight Line Poem", the delightful "Kooks" that's a heartfelt dedication to Bowie's son Duncan, the spiritualistic nature of "Quicksand" that sounded like a stylistic precursor to Low, the swing and horn accompaniment of "Fill Your Heart", the more esoteric tributes to Andy Warhol and Bob Dylan on their respectively named songs, and the even more cryptic closer "The Bewlay Brothers" with the backmasked guitar solo and delectable guitar hooks as the end descends into a controlled madness with the chants of "Please come away". Even when these songs get bonkers in the lyrics, the hooks are there to sink you in deeper. Even if I can acknowledge that David Bowie would continue to experiment and improve his songwriting chops, knowing full well how much I loved Station to Station, I cannot deny Hunky Dory was an excellent cornerstone that showcased the man finding his style.

This is my favourite Bowie album, I love the lyrics and the musical style, to me it is his most coherent and connected album. Over shadowed by Ziggy, unfairly I believe as this is a better work. Much more creativity and emotional content. Easily 5 🤩

I struggle to enjoy Bowie. I hate the "stuttering" on changes. It's very, very difficult to argue that this isn't a brilliant album though.

Album - Hunky Dory Artist - David Bowie Release - 1971 Genre - Art Pop/Pop Rock Heard it before? - Y Heard OF it before? - Y Bowie’s first truly great album. It seems to take a backseat to the glam years, which while understandable makes it somewhat more special. It takes a lot of cues from Sgt. Pepper in its instrumentation, but while that album’s orchestra and brass seemed bombastic, this one prefers to make it subdued. Less street parade, more live musical theater. The pianos are really pretty too. It’s lighter on the electric guitar than the albums that followed, but when it does appear (“Eight Line Poem,” “Queen Bitch”) it’s seems to be another piece in the overall machine, which fits these songs perfectly. I was going to make a longer review for this one but it’s Friday and I don’t think this is the kind of album that needs some framing review like the previous ones I got. It’s great piano-driven artsy pop from a brilliant songwriter, what more needs to be said? 9/10

Seems like every time I get a different Bowie album, I like it even more than the last. This album just hit differently than the others for me. I really enjoyed it from start to finish, and it provided a fantastic soundtrack to my weekly grocery shopping trip.

Well obviously five stars, it's Hunky Dory. Life on Mars, followed by Kooks followed by Quicksand, wow. Pretty things, Changes, Andy Warhol, Bewlays and of course Queen Bitch. The only minor bum note is Fill Your Heart and that's a fun enough cover. Class, top to bottom. Post album listening: Bombers, last minute replaced by Fill Your Heart, and the Bob Rose original of that song which is nice and feels more genuine.

If you don't like "Kooks" we can't be friends. Truly one of Bowie's best. I love the evolution of his sound here, he's still a little folksy/hippy at this point in his career.

This was already an all time fave of mine, but it was good to have a focused re-listen.

I like Bowie but not all of his music. Kooks really resonated with me.

need to remind myself that a 4-star bowie album is just a 5-star album

First record on the list that I enjoyed all the way through. Really really like it

Bowie before Ziggy

He did it again

Clearly exceptionally influential. Really hits hard too, even on a first listen. Classic for a reason!

Hunky Dory has some of Bowie’s best songs on it. That being said I do think he has better albums. That’s not necessarily a knock on Hunky Dory though, because Bowie has made some of my favorite albums ever. It’s just while this record has some of Bowie’s best songs, it also has some songs I could live without such as Andy Warhol. Despite having a few low points, I think this the perfect Bowie record to start with for a new fan, and it’s one that I hold dear because it was one of the first Bowie records I heard. It’s insane that there’s multiple albums I would take over this, because it is damn near flawless, but that just shows how consistent Bowie’s catalog is.

4.5 rounded up, because it deserves more credit than my last couple 4 stars, which were low+key 3.5s rounded up. That being said, this album still kicks ass. Changes, Pretty Things, and Life on Mars, all within the first 4 songs?!? David Bowie began to define his legacy on this album, as early as 1971, and he never looked back. Strange giving this 5 stars bc obviously he would go on to SMASH it out of the park, but my man David Bowie would take over the music industry with albums as unassuming as this. Before you know it he has cornered the game singing about space and extraterrestrial life forms and experiences. Bring it back to Earth, however, his humble piano ballads make this album very digestable before he goes on to be larger than life.

The start of a perfect run to Scary Monsters.

Bipperty-bopperty brilliant.

Outstanding. One of the best albums ever.

Great album, so many great songs. Highlight being Life on Mars?

This is one of the greatest albums ever written and produced. First discovered it many years ago and even now find new things in it. Inventive, quirky and profound. "Oh! You Pretty Things" is one of my favourite tracks period plus.... "What did I say? "Hull." It's "hole." As in "holes." Andy Warh- Huh? Andy Warho- Andy War-War-ol, like hol—hol— "Andy War-hole," take one"

Crazy I got this album on the 9th anniversary of Bowie passing and sending the world into the tailspin we’re currently in.

Bowie can do no wrong in my book. One of my favorite Bowie albums. Everything about this album is Hunky Dory and more.

Amazing album, already liked it but was nice to hear it again

I’m super biased cause I adore David Bowie, but this is probably one of his more mainstream albums. This is a total classic, maybe two skips, but a nearly perfect album all round.

Another 5 star for Bowie. Never having done the dive into Bowie that I should have it is a revelation to hear the albums now. Looking forward to more Bowie albums on this journey.

What can I say? This is a masterpiece (maybe not the first, given that the rougher *The Man Who Sold The World* has left equally memorable moments to music history, even if they were less commercially successful at the time). *Hunky Dory* saw Bowie theorize his will to constantly mutate from one identity to another through the opener "Changes", one of three absolutely iconic songs in this album. The other two being "Oh You Pretty Things" and , of course, "Life On Mars?". The story goes that Bowie was first tasked to write the English adaptation of the French hit "Comme d'habitude", sung by Claude François (which would become the overblown *My Way*) but he lost the rights to the song, and so got inspired by the first song's dramatic chord changes to write something at least ten times better. What a genius move. We can all be thankful that he lost those rights, or something like that. There are also three gems that are admittedly a notch less famous in this LP: the moving "Quicksands", the livelier and reckless "Queen Bitch", and the part-moody, part-moving, and part-extravagant closer "The Bewlay Brothers". And if the rest can be considered as "deeper cuts", they are still tunes that are extremely pleasurable to listen to. Especially the best Vaudevillian one of the bunch, "Kooks". As for "Andy Warhol" and "Song For Bob Dylan", they are catchy and playful acoustic guitar-driven winks to two absolutely legendary pop culture figures, with those two songs retrospectively signalling Bowie was on his way to join their ranks. Historical album, the first of many victory laps during David Bowie's career. Of course, it's gonna be in a list such as this! Number of albums left to review: the 80-ish extra LPs listed on this app, included because different past editions of the book have mentioned albums that have since been dropped in subsequent editions. Number of albums I'll keep in my own list: half, approximately (including this one, I've temporarily lost count here) Number of albums I *might* keep: a small quarter, approximately Number of albums I won't keep: a large quarter

A classic

Frankly ridiculous how strong this record is. A real all-killer, no-filler affair. No best-of collections required when there is back catalogue like this to unearth. There are of course several era-defining bangers (Changes, Pretty Things, Life on Mars, Queen Birch) but those are so well known already that it's some of the slightly deeper cuts (Bewlay Brothers, Fill Your Heart, Eight Line Poem, Quicksand) that really stick with me these days. Peak Bowie. Maybe his best.

talented, brilliant, incredible, amazing, show stopping, spectacular, never the same, totally unique, completely not ever been done before, unafraid to reference or not reference, put it in a blender, shit on it, vomit on it, eat it, give birth to it

Great pick

A classic

My first true classic. This is probably in the top 50 albums one should listen to. Even so, I was not familiar with a number of the tracks and it was fun to hear them in the curated order they were intended among those I know very well. "Changes" and "Life on Mars?" are the types of tracks that are played all the time but don't get old. Particularly enjoyed "Fill Your Heart," "Andy Warhol," "Queen Bitch" (found myself bopping to this one), and "The Bewlay Brothers" was a excellent end track. Really felt like a conclusion.

Ugh. So when we first got all the Bowie albums, I was so annoyed because none of them sounded like this one. This one is great.

Immaculate pop craft. "Life on Mars?" is a certified classic, and the rest of the album is filled with super solid pop tunes as well. 5 stars

4.5/5

I do think the first half is stronger than the second half. But I just lock into Bowie’s stuff so I’m never having a bad time. 5/5

hook after hook, bop after bop. Not a foul step in this album

Higher peaks and lower valleys than ziggy stardust. But the peaks are so high it warrants a 5