The seventies were a weird time for music. On the one hand there was the great new wave and punk movement, on the other there was the horribleness of disco. Yeah, but throughout the decade there was also the amazing and varied music of David Bowie.
The book I just finished, “The Man Who Sold The World: David Bowie And The 1970s” by Peter Doggett is a lengthy but interesting account of Bowie in arguably his most productive and interesting decade. Nothing against his other work, I am a huge fan of his, but from Space Oddity through Scary Monsters in the seventies (roughly) there was also Ziggy Stardust, Young Americans, Hunky Dory, Diamond Dogs and a number of other ground-breaking albums and ever-shifting personnas and identities.
The book focuses mainly on the songs, with each song (including unreleased tracks) getting an analysis based on Bowie’s personality as well as the state of the times. The author is a bit overly-intellectual at times but certainly thorough. Besides each song being dissected, there are also plenty of sections detailing the life of Bowie, his music, his films, his greatness and his flaws too.
The appendix actually does the same for his 60s songs, as a bonus. This lengthy book is mainly for the hard-core fans, with detailed song analysis that would be too much for a casual listener. But better extra-deep than too shallow. Right? And what a subject David Bowie is. Really, who can match his nearly 50-year career? I can’t think of anyone.
What do you think? Leave me a comment if you have an opinion.
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