Bowie’s once in a lifetime performance

“We've got four years”

Despite playing many February shows during his concert career, David Bowie only ever played one concert on this date, 29th February.

It's generally accepted that a David Bowie performance scheduled for the Locarno Ballroom, Sunderland, on Tuesday 29th February, 1972, was cancelled.

However, in 1976, exactly four years later, he performed at the Olympia Stadium in Detroit, Michigan, and not at the Cobo Arena in the same city as is sometimes reported. (He did play the Cobo on tours either side of the 1976 Isolar Tour in 1974 and 1978.)

The picture here was taken by MICHAEL MARKS At the Olympia Stadium Show on the 29th (Bowie also played the following evening at the same venue).

In fact, it's most likely that he never performed on this date again on account of 29th February being a four-yearly occurrence every leap year. But why let a flimsy theory stand in the way of a great picture? 😉

#BowieDetroit

David Bowie Ultimate Record Collection Part 1

“Where there's trouble there's poetry”

Editor John Robinson has been in touch with an exclusive first look at the latest in Uncut’s Ultimate Record Collection series, the first of their artist-led specials: David Bowie: 1964-1976.

The magazine apparently presents: “every record Bowie made, in order, in the period – with contributions from the people who made them.”.

An example is artist Mike Weller’s explanation of how the original title of the album eventually known as The Man Who Sold The World came about.

Weller: “I said to DB, “These are very troubled songs”, and he said, in a cod Yorkshire accent, “Aye, it’s me troubled-est.” And I said, “And that’s going to be your title.” That was DB – very serious, and also very, very funny. And that, spelled ‘Metrobolist’, was going to be the title.”

Here is the concluding section of John Robinson’s introduction:

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Lifetimes have been dedicated to the many delightful regional sleeve variations in this period of the Bowie catalogue, and we’ve given a flavour of them here, even if we can’t (as we have elsewhere in this magazine as far as possible) hope to track and trace them all.

Perhaps that’s key to the appeal of Bowie that we’re trying to elucidate in this magazine. As much as you can look, listen and read, there always seems to be more to discover. As the godfather of our Bowie

collection, Jens Döpke (of the Bowie-collection.de website), explains in our Miscellany, “There’s no such thing as a ‘complete’ Bowie collection…”

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Never a truer word spoken, Jens.

#BowieURC

Alabama Song at #1 on the Official UK Vinyl Singles Chart

“You know why“

Following the trend started when the Official UK Vinyl Singles Chart started in April 2015, Alabama Song (the latest David Bowie 40th Anniversary 7” vinyl picture disc issued by Parlophone), has entered today’s new chart at #1, after its release last week.

Of the 40th Anniversary discs, the only one not to hit the top spot so far is Be My Wife, though it still managed a very respectable second place. It’s also fair to assume that had the chart been around at the time, all of the other 40th Anniversary discs from Starman onward would have performed similarly well.

Currently the Official Vinyl Singles Chart covers the period from 12th April 2015 to 21st February 2020 . All releases listed below are 40th Anniversary 7” vinyl picture discs, unless otherwise stated.

#1 - Alabama Song - February 2020

#1 - D.J. (2017 Tony Visconti mix - single edit) - July 2019

#1 - Boys Keep Swinging (2017 Tony Visconti Mix) - May 2019

#1 - The Rebels - David Bowie’s Revolutionary Song - April 2019 - RSD (Music On Vinyl - Numbered sleeve, transparent blue vinyl 7”)

#1 - Breaking Glass EP - November 2018

#2 - Let's Dance (Full Length Demo) - April 2018 – RSD (Black vinyl 12")

#1 - Beauty And The Beast - January 2018

#1 - "Heroes" (Single Version) - September 2017

#2 - Be My Wife - June 2017

#1 - No Plan EP - April 2017 – RSD - (Sony Music - Numbered sleeve, transparent blue marbled vinyl 12”)

#8 - Placebo Featuring David Bowie ‎- Without You I'm Nothing - April 2017 - RSD - (Universal Music - picture disc 12”)

#1 - Sound And Vision (2017 Remastered Version) - February 2017

#1 - TVC15 (Original Single Edit) - April 2016

#1 - Golden Years (Single Version) - November 2015

#1 - Space Oddity (UK Single Edit) - October 2015

#1 - Fame (Original Single Edit) - July 2015

#1 - Changes - April 2015 - RSD

#2 - Tom Verlaine Kingdom Come - David Bowie Kingdom Come - April 2015 - RSD (Elektra/Parlophone Side By Side series - translucent white 7")

The week after Bowie’s passing (in January 2016), the Official Vinyl Singles Chart top 20 was dominated by 13 different Bowie singles.

Of course, not only is this an indication of how Bowie’s music endures, it’s also a reflection of how faithful Bowie fans are, for it is you that have made the David Bowie 40th Anniversary 7” vinyl picture disc series the success it is. Thank you.

The images used on the A and B sides of the picture disc are by (A-side 1980) DEAN CHAMBERLAIN © THE DAVID BOWIE ARCHIVE® (AA-Side 1978) CHRIS WALTER © CHRIS WALTER COURTESY OF GETTY IMAGES

#BowieVinyl #BowieOCC #DBALAS40

I’m Only Dancing for Record Store Day 2020

“It’s got you reeling and rocking”

In addition to the already announced Record Store Day 2020 album CHANGESNOWBOWIE, Parlophone Records are proud to also announce the release of previously unissued recordings of Bowie in concert in 1974, in the form of I’M ONLY DANCING (THE SOUL TOUR 74) on 2LP and 2CD.

Keep reading for the press release. Meanwhile, before you scroll down, we’ll leave you with the updated release schedule:

~ Friday 20th March: Limited Edition IS IT ANY WONDER? physical EP on 12” vinyl and CD released.

~ Friday 20th March: FUN (Dillinja mix) 1 track digital download and streaming single due.

~ Saturday 18th April: CHANGESNOWBOWIE vinyl LP and CD released for Record Store Day.

~ Saturday 18th April: I’M ONLY DANCING (THE SOUL TOUR 74) Double vinyl LP and 2CD released for Record Store Day.

#BowieIOD74 #CHANGESNOWBOWIE #BowieRSD20 #BowieIIAW

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DAVID BOWIE - RECORD STORE DAY 2020 - NEVER BEFORE HEARD 1974 LIVE RECORDINGS UNEARTHED:

'I’M ONLY DANCING (THE SOUL TOUR 74)' (2LP / 2CD) LIMITED EDITION RECORD STORE DAY 2020 RELEASE

In addition to the previously announced Record Store Day 2020 release of CHANGESNOWBOWIE, Parlophone Records are proud to also announce the unearthing of never before heard recordings of David Bowie in concert in 1974 in the form of I’M ONLY DANCING (THE SOUL TOUR 74) on 2LP and 2CD.

Taken from recently discovered sources in The David Bowie Archive®, I’M ONLY DANCING (THE SOUL TOUR 74) was recorded mostly during David’s performance at the Michigan Palace, Detroit on 20th October, 1974, with the encores taken from the Municipal Auditorium, Nashville on 30th November, 1974. The only song missing from the full set on the 20th October performance is ‘Diamond Dogs’ which was unfortunately only recorded in part. To make up for that it was decided to include the encores from the 30th November performance which featured ‘Diamond Dogs’ but also enables a fuller representation of the set from The Soul Tour including such numbers as ‘Knock On Wood’ and the ‘Foot Stomping / I Wish I Could Shimmy Like My Sister Kate’ medley.

The Soul Tour was a radical departure from the first part of the 1974 Diamond Dogs theatrical extravaganza. During a three week break in late 1974, the Diamond Dogs Tour’s elaborate six-ton Hunger City stage set was drastically stripped back, and the tour’s set list overhauled to include as-yet-unreleased tracks from the Young Americans sessions at Sigma Sound in Philadelphia. The Soul Tour also featured a revamped band, augmented to include musicians and vocalists from those sessions, and rechristened The Mike Garson Band.

I’M ONLY DANCING (THE SOUL TOUR 74) follows on from the previous Record Store Day 2 LP release Cracked Actor (Live Los Angeles ’74) and is an incredible historical document of a performer and band at the height of their live powers. The artwork for both the 2 LP and 2 CD releases is based on the original design for the programmes available at venues for dates on The Soul Tour. The Soul Tour has taken on a mythical status among Bowie fans, as the tour visited fewer than twenty cities in the East and South of US. This is the first time that audio from this incarnation of the tour has ever been officially released.

DAVID BOWIE - I’M ONLY DANCING (THE SOUL TOUR 74) (2LP / 2CD) TRACKLISTING

CD 1

LP Side 1

1. Introduction - Memory Of A Free Festival

2. Rebel Rebel

3. John, I’m Only Dancing (Again)

4. Sorrow

5. Changes

6. 1984

LP Side 2

1. Moonage Daydream

2. Rock ’n’ Roll With Me

3. Love Me Do / The Jean Genie

4. Young Americans

CD 2

LP Side 3

1. Can You Hear Me

2. It’s Gonna Be Me

3. Somebody Up There Likes Me

4. Suffragette City

LP Side 4

1. Rock ’n’ Roll Suicide

2. Panic In Detroit

3. Knock On Wood *

4. Foot Stomping / I Wish I Could Shimmy Like My Sister Kate / Foot Stomping *

5. Diamond Dogs / It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll (But I like It) / Diamond Dogs *

Recorded at the Michigan Palace, Detroit on 20th October, 1974 and * at the Municipal Auditorium, Nashville on 30th November, 1974.

Musicians:

David Bowie - Vocals, 12 string acoustic guitar, harmonica

The Mike Garson Band:

Earl Slick - Guitar

Carlos Alomar - Guitar

Mike Garson - Piano, Mellotron

David Sanborn - Alto sax, flute

Pablo Rosario - Percussion

Emir Ksasan - Bass

Dennis Davis - Drums

Backing vocals - Warren Peace, Anthony Hinton, Luther Vandross, Ava Cherry, Robin Clark and Diane Sumler.

These recordings have been mastered from the only available sources to provide the best sound quality possible. Any flaws and distortion are inherent in the original sources and we hope the historical importance of the recordings outweighs any such imperfections and does not detract from the enjoyment of the performances.

Is It Any Wonder? Pre-order links

“It’s happening now”

As mentioned yesterday, the limited edition physical version of the Is It Any Wonder? EP is available to pre-order through the Bowie Official Store now.

Aside from the vinyl and CD, you can also find a range of Is It Any Wonder? associated exclusive merchandise in the store.

On 20th March the drum and bass mix of Fun (Dillinja mix), will be released as a 1 track digital download and streaming single. The track had only been available previously on the Liveandwell.com CD, an exclusive to BowieNet members released in 2000. This will be the digital debut of Fun (Dillinja mix) and it will also be available on the Club Bowie playlist.

To reiterate once more:

~ Friday 14th February: Complete 6-track IS IT ANY WONDER? streaming EP available.

~ Friday 20th March: Limited Edition IS IT ANY WONDER? physical EP on 12” vinyl and CD released. (Pre-order link above)

~ Friday 20th March: FUN (Dillinja mix) 1 track digital download and streaming single due.

~ Saturday 18th April: CHANGESNOWBOWIE vinyl LP and CD released for Record Store Day.

And here’s a reminder of the tracklisting for the limited edition physical version of the Is It Any Wonder? EP:

SIDE 1

Baby Universal ‘97

Fun (Clownboy Mix)

Stay ’97

SIDE 2

I Can’t Read ’97

Nuts

The Man Who Sold The World (Live Eno Mix)

#BowieIIAW

Is It Any Wonder? EP streaming and physical

“Back into the funhouse, music is sublime”

You’re no doubt getting a bit used to this and are expecting the final track of the Is It Any Wonder? streaming EP. Well, that track is The Man Who Sold The World (Live Eno Mix), originally released as a single in 1995, when it was coupled with Strangers When We Meet.

The Man Who Sold The World (Live Eno Mix), will be available where you are as the calendar turns to Valentine’s Day, Friday 14th February.

The even better news is that the Is It Any Wonder? EP will also be released on 12” vinyl and CD through the Bowie Official Store on Friday 20th March, with the CHANGESNOWBOWIE version of The Man Who Sold The World replaced by Fun (Clownboy Mix). Here's the tracklisting:

SIDE 1

Baby Universal ‘97

Fun (Clownboy Mix)

Stay ’97

SIDE 2

I Can’t Read ’97

Nuts

The Man Who Sold The World (Live Eno Mix)

To sum up, here's the schedule:

~ Complete 6-track ‘IS IT ANY WONDER?’ streaming EP available Friday 14th February.

~ Limited Edition ‘IS IT ANY WONDER?’ physical EP on 12” vinyl and CD released Friday 20th March. (Pre-order details will be posted here tomorrow, Friday 14th February.)

~ ‘CHANGESNOWBOWIE’ LP and CD to be released on Record Store Day, Saturday 18th April.

Keep reading for the full press release.

#BowieIIAW

DAVID BOWIE IS IT ANY WONDER? STREAMING E.P. OF UNRELEASED & RARE MATERIAL

’THE MAN WHO SOLD THE WORLD’ (LIVE ENO MIX) AVAILABLE NOW THE LAST OF SIX TRACKS RELEASED OVER SIX WEEKS

PHYSICAL FORMATS WITH ALTERNATIVE TRACKLISTING TO BE RELEASED VIA DAVIDBOWIE.COM EXCLUSIVELY ON MARCH 20th

Parlophone Records is proud to announce ‘THE MAN WHO SOLD THE WORLD’ (LIVE ENO MIX), the final instalment of DAVID BOWIE’s IS IT ANY WONDER? streaming EP of six unreleased and rare tracks released over six weeks.

With this rare version of one of the most iconic Bowie songs of the last 50 years, the IS IT ANY WONDER? EP is now available to stream in its entirety. The six-track EP will also be made available on 12” vinyl and CD with an alternative tracklisting including ‘FUN’ (CLOWNBOY MIX).

Now available for the first time since its 1995 release, ’THE MAN WHO SOLD THE WORLD’ (LIVE ENO MIX) was previously issued as a double A-side green vinyl 7” single and CD single in various territories with the Outside version of ’Strangers When We Meet.’ The Live Eno Mix version of this classic song is based on the fairly radical trip-hop reworking performed on the Outside World Tour. Longtime Bowie collaborator Brian Eno reshaped, overdubbed and mixed this live recording of the song at Westside Studios in London on 30th October, 1995, recalling the session in his diaries: “I added some backing vocals and a sonar blip and sculpted the piece a little so that there was more contour to it.”.

The physical formats of IS IT ANY WONDER? on 12” vinyl and CD will feature ‘FUN’ (CLOWNBOY MIX) replacing ’THE MAN WHO SOLD THE WORLD’ (CHANGESNOWBOWIE version), leaving the CHANGESNOWBOWIE version exclusive to the CHANGESNOWBOWIE LP and CD to be released on Record Store Day, 18th April.

'FUN’ (CLOWNBOY MIX) originated as a modern revamp of the Bowie classic ‘Fame’, performed under the name ‘Is It Any Wonder?’ during David’s ‘club set’ on the Earthling tour.

The basic backing and sequencer tracks were worked at the Factory in Dublin docklands during pre-tour rehearsals in early 1997. A live version of ‘Fame,' recorded at the Amsterdam Paradiso on 10th June, 1997, was further worked on by Mark Plati and Reeves Gabrels at Looking Glass Studios in New York and mixed at Sony Music Studios in New York in February 1998. At one point the live version of ‘FUN', as it was now being called, was considered for inclusion on the BowieNet exclusive Liveandwell.com album and appeared on early reference masters. Referenced in interviews by Reeves as ‘Funhouse’, the song further developed lyrically and musically and, by the time Danny Saber created the Clownboy mix in May 1998, it was a completely new piece of work written by David and Reeves and featuring no elements of ‘Fame’. The Clownboy mix has previously only appeared on a BowieNet subscriber exclusive CD-ROM in 1998 and on Virgin Records in-house CDR’s along with four other Clownboy mix variants.

‘THE MAN WHO SOLD THE WORLD’ (LIVE ENO MIX) is produced by David Bowie, and mixed by Brian Eno. The track features backing vocals by Eno, Gail Ann Dorsey on bass and vocals, Peter Schwartz on synths, Zachary Alford on drums, Carlos Alomar on guitar and Reeves Gabrels on guitar and vocals.

‘FUN' (CLOWBOY MIX) is produced by David Bowie, Reeves Gabrels and Mark Plati. It was recorded by Steve Guest and Mark Plati and was mixed by Danny Saber at Ocean Way Recording May 1998, the mix was engineered by John X. The track features David Bowie on vocals, Zachary Alford on drums, Gail Ann Dorsey on bass/vocals, Mike Garson on piano, Reeves Gabrels on guitars/vocals and Mark Plati on keyboards/programming.

Nuts available for streaming now*

“What would you rather be doing?”

While it’s the 6th of February for the majority as we post this, a bunch of hungry early birds are flying into the morning of the 7th. The latter can now feast on the fat worm that is Nuts, the fifth and penultimate instalment of the IS IT ANY WONDER? EP of six unreleased and rare tracks.

Again, for those of you who can access BBC Radio 6 Music, you can hear an exclusive first play of Nuts shortly, over on the Mary Anne Hobbs show.

The photograph in today's graphic, with no small measure of attitude, was taken in NY in 1996 by ALBERT WATSON.

Keep reading for the full press release.

*Available now if it’s the 7th where you are.

#BowieIIAW

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DAVID BOWIE IS IT ANY WONDER? STREAMING EP OF UNRELEASED & RARE MATERIAL

’NUTS’ (PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED) AVAILABLE NOW

THE FIFTH OF SIX TRACKS TO BE RELEASED OVER SIX WEEKS

‘NUTS’ (previously unreleased) is to be made available by Parlophone Records for streaming today as the penultimate release of DAVID BOWIE’s IS IT ANY WONDER? EP of six unreleased and rare tracks being released once a week.

The unreleased semi instrumental ’NUTS’ was jointly written by David, Reeves Gabrels and Mark Plati. It was recorded during the final Earthling sessions in November 1996, the same session during which ‘The Last Thing You Should Do’ was written and recorded.

Both songs were being recorded as bonus tracks but then, at the last minute David swapped out ‘I Can’t Read’ (released as track two from this streaming E.P. on 17th January) with ‘The Last Thing You Should Do’. However, ’NUTS' has remained unreleased until today.

'NUTS’ Features Bowie on vocals, Reeves Gabrels on guitars & Mark Plati playing keyboards and programming. It was produced by David Bowie, co-produced by Reeves Gabrels and Mark Plati and was recorded and Mixed by Mark Plati at Looking Glass Studios, NYC

The last track from the EP will be announced next week with a final extra surprise.

VIVE LE ROCK! 12-page Bowie and punk cover feature

“And I looked and frowned and the monster was me”

The current edition of VIVE LE ROCK! magazine (issue 70), has a 12-page cover feature on how David Bowie paved the way for punk rock.

It’s another superb Bowie piece by Kris Needs, who is more than qualified to comment, having rubbed shoulders with the midwife at both the birth of Ziggy Stardust and punk rock. Here’s a short excerpt from a much longer piece…

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“Bowie was something else, continuing to exert a strange fascination that towered above anyone else. Still reinventing rock in his own image, most recently he’d been flying as the ice-cold, coke-deranged Thin White Duke from ‘Station To Station’: last of his '70s masks and still unlike anything else at the time.

Those who’d grown up with Bowie considered him just about the only high-profile UK artist in the first half of the ‘70s treading a dangerously unpredictable path, making visionary new music, always different from the pack. It was life-affirming to have a cool superstar who opened so many doors and habitually trampled social taboos, fixated on what he was doing next with a method actor’s zeal, rather than recycling past glories; the past, present and, most importantly, future all rolled into one.

Punk came more like a natural progression than sudden impact for those who’d experienced Bowie’s rapid evolution in real time during those grey years between psychedelic ‘60s revolutions and ‘76’s burgeoning tsunami, bringing Mott The Hoople, Lou Reed and lggy Pop with him. By 1973, Bowie had already cleared the runway for glam with short, sharp songs, noisy guitars and outrageous wardrobes, providing the perfect antidote to progressive rock excess and earnest singer-songwriters while sky-sailing over the pub-rock barrelling in through the saloon doors as a rootsy alternative to stadium prog-on-ice.

Although presented as glam packages on the surface, ‘The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars’, ‘Aladdin Sane’ and ‘Diamond Dogs’ corralled rock ‘n’ roll’s original primal wildness, French chanson, avant jazz and classic Tin Pan Alley songwriting into vehicles heralding an other-worldly future where encrusted social taboos had been chucked out of the window with the nearest TV set. Pop and rock had been remade and remodelled by Bowie when the next generation started making its own noise.”

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VIVE LE ROCK! is on shelves now.

#ViveLeRockBowie