Obviously, anything from after 1980’s Scary Monsters... can immediately be discounted – the 90s were a particularly awful period full of electronica-influenced songs and ill-thought out concept album ideas which really didn’t suit the more subtle and mature sound he was looking for. More recent efforts Heathen and Reality have however provided a much-needed return to form such that they really have far more in common with the great Bowie albums of old than their contemporaries.
Obvious earlier high-points are the 70s glam-rock excursions of The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars and Aladdin Sane, which launched Bowie into the mainstream with his mysterious androgyny and other-worldly ideas. Ziggy... came on the back of a number of years essentially in the musical wilderness, during which time Bowie had tried and failed to prove that he was more than a one-hit wonder. It is easy to draw parallels between these albums and that one hit which gave him his first big break – 1969’s “Space Oddity.” There are the obvious similarities in lyrical theme – aliens and spaceships galore, but more than that, it was clear from the outset that Bowie wasn’t going to be playing by anybody else’s rules
This manifested itself clearly on Ziggy... with its apocalyptical theme and typical glam-rock excesses; a far cry from “Space Oddity” and the album of the same name. This earlier effort had showcased a younger, perhaps more naive and idealistic Bowie, with acoustic songs that seem light, quaint and quintessentially English in an almost Kinks-esque way. But that is also to its detriment – Bowie’s best work has always been deeper, heavier, and dare i say more intellectual.
Perhaps then, one could make a case for another great period in his career as containing his best album – the so called Berlin trilogy of the late 70s. Considering the background to their writing and recording, they certainly fit the criteria for being darker. Consider Bowie’s mental and physical wellbeing at the time – living on a well-documented diet of just milk and cocaine he was able to create this groundbreaking experimental music. Low in particular blends avant-garde styles with his classic song-smithery to haunting and beautiful effect. A perhaps more interesting and certainly a clearly transitional album is Station to Station, released the year before, in 1976.
Simultaneously building on Young Americans’ soul and funk whilst moving in new electronic directions influenced by the likes of Kraftwerk and Neu! Station to Station remains somewhat of a paradox, marking the boundary between glam-rock Bowie and Berlin Bowie. Mixed with bizarre references to religion, politics and the occult though, the album as a whole is perhaps a little too impenetrable for some, despite containing arguably his finest and most beautiful vocal performance on a cover of Nina Simone’s “Wild is the Wind.”
This process of elimination seems to have left me with few options. There are two more albums however, which really stand out. In 1971, a still relatively unknown Bowie released Hunky Dory which provides us with an insight into a more settled period of his life. There are songs about his young son and half-brother, as well as semi-autobiographical lyrics paying homage to his influences, making this probably his most intimate and accessible album. Similarly, the hugely underrated The Man Who Sold the World has just the right amount of subtle introspection, merged with a developing heavier rock style, and marks the beginning of the David Bowie as we now know him. Both efforts are indicative of all that is fantastic about him – ever-changing musical styles complemented by his classic deep baritone drawl of lyrics about everything from his own childhood to an omniscient computer. Influences ranging from Nietzsche and Aleister Crowley to Bob Dylan and Andy Warhol give an indication of things to come and prove that David Bowie is one of the foremost musical innovators of all time.
