THE MUSIC BLOGGING HIVE MIND

David Bowie

Hunky Dory

  • AMG Review of Hunky Dory

    Amg
    Stephen Thomas Erlewine
    All Music Guide

    After the freakish hard rock of The Man Who Sold the World, David Bowie returned to singer/songwriter territory on Hunky Dory. Not only did the album boast more folky songs ("Song for Bob Dylan," "The Bewlay Brothers"), but he again flirted with Anthony Newley-esque dancehall music ("Kooks," "Fill Your Heart"), seemingly leaving heavy metal behind. As a result, Hunky Dory is a kaleidoscopic array of pop styles, tied together only by Bowie's sense of vision: a sweeping, cinematic mélange of high and low art, ambiguous sexuality, kitsch, and class. Mick Ronson's guitar is pushed to the back, leaving Rick Wakeman's cabaret piano to dominate the sound of the album. The subdued support accentuates the depth of Bowie's material, whether it's the revamped Tin Pan Alley of "Changes," the Neil Young homage "Quicksand," the soaring "Life on Mars?," the rolling, vaguely homosexual anthem "Oh! You Pretty Things," or the dark acoustic rocker "Andy Warhol." On the surface, such a wide range of styles and sounds would make an album incoherent, but Bowie's improved songwriting and determined sense of style instead made Hunky Dory a touchstone for reinterpreting pop's traditions into fresh, postmodern pop music.

HELLO,HELLO,HELLO.........WHAT'S GOING ON HERE THEN ?
over 2 years ago
Blog post image preview

Did anyone else notice the mistakes in "Life On Mars" on BBC 1 last night ?The satellite dishes had been taken down off the walls of the houses,but the brackets were still there.So were the uPVC windows,plastic guttering and drainpipes !!........in 1973 !!.

More >
Sixty|Sixty
over 2 years ago
Blog post image preview

Sixty Things About David Bowie. There were actually a few I did not know.4. Rock guitarist Peter Frampton was Bowie's friend at school - his dad was head of the art department. He's gone on to play guitar with Bowie many times during his career.Ok, I saw him play with him in '87. Awful album (Glass Spider) great concert though. 5. His right pupil is permanently dilated - due to his friend Georg...

More >
Quicksand (demo)
over 2 years ago
Blog post image preview

One of my favorite Bowie songs. This is the demo version that appears as an extra track on the CD.http://www.aquariumdrunkard.net/songs/14%20Quicksand%20(Demo%20Version).mp3David Bowie - Quicksand I'm closer to the Golden Dawn Immersed in Crowley's uniform Of imagery I'm living in a silent film Portraying Himmler's sacred realm Of dream reality I'm frightened by the total goal Drawing to the ra...

More >
If Talking To Them Doesn't Work or Zzzzzzttt, Zzzzzzt, POP ....
over 2 years ago

That's the sound I hear from most conservative braincases who like to think they have me figured out. That sound happens right after I tell them my views on the Second Amendment. I know what you may be thinking, "But Chris, You talked about freedom of religion and free speech, What happened to Freedom of the Press? Are you chicken?" No, I am not afraid to express my views and listen to opposing...

More >
Pseudo Cyborg
Pseudo Cyborg of Rapscallion The Ne'er-Do-Well, Erased Files
The Film Is A Saddening Bore
about 1 year ago

"Turbulent", sure, but that's too easy. But truth really is stranger than fiction (if you can dodge the horrible cliché like a Heisman Trophy). Sometimes I wonder if I really am just living some sort of Truman Show: The On-Going Adventures of David Zulaica—filmed before a live studio audience. Then I remind myself that I don't suffer from delusions of grandeur.It's been one hell of a year.I'll

More >
David Bowie
about 1 year ago

Reminds me of listening to an old Mono record player in a 70's council flat.

More >
Sixty|Sixty
over 2 years ago
Blog post image preview

Sixty Things About David Bowie. There were actually a few I did not know.4. Rock guitarist Peter Frampton was Bowie's friend at school - his dad was head of the art department. He's gone on to play guitar with Bowie many times during his career.Ok, I saw him play with him in '87. Awful album (Glass Spider) great concert though. 5. His right pupil is permanently dilated - due to his friend Georg...

More >
Changes
over 2 years ago

Micki here.Chris "Crash" Pryor was so many things to a lot of people... sage, guru, brother I've heard him called... he was our Connector, indeed, Michelle. To me, he was so many things, too. He was my teacher and my student, and my brother, and my best friend; he was my lover, my soulmate, and amazingly, my fiancé... sometimes I felt as though he was my mother and father, and he was that one m..

More >
Quicksand (demo)
over 2 years ago
Blog post image preview

One of my favorite Bowie songs. This is the demo version that appears as an extra track on the CD.http://www.aquariumdrunkard.net/songs/14%20Quicksand%20(Demo%20Version).mp3David Bowie - Quicksand I'm closer to the Golden Dawn Immersed in Crowley's uniform Of imagery I'm living in a silent film Portraying Himmler's sacred realm Of dream reality I'm frightened by the total goal Drawing to the ra...

More >
I'm sinking in the quicksand of my thought...........
over 2 years ago
Blog post image preview

I'm the twisted nameon Garbo's eyesLiving proof ofChurchill's liesI'm destinyI'm torn between the light and darkWhere others see their targetsDivine symmetryShould I kiss the viper's fangOr herald loudthe death of ManI'm sinking in the quicksandof my thoughtAnd I ain't got the power anymore[Don't believe in yourselfDon't deceive with beliefKnowledge comeswith death's release]excerpt "Quicksand"...

More >
Friday August 4th FCUK
over 3 years ago

My superbig DJgig is coming up this Friday. Many thanks to Leigh Anne for hooking me up. I'll be playing various great things before and after a performance by Van Hunt. Some rock, some roll, some soul, some electroclash and other surprises. It's a big splashy evening with free drinks and Capitol will sign an artist for a special recording sesh, a la American Idol. It's at the French Connection...

More >
Quicksand.
3 months ago

Beautiful. Just beautiful. The demo version of "Quicksand" is far more powerful than the studio cut.

More >
HELLO,HELLO,HELLO.........WHAT'S GOING ON HERE THEN ?
over 2 years ago
Blog post image preview

Did anyone else notice the mistakes in "Life On Mars" on BBC 1 last night ?The satellite dishes had been taken down off the walls of the houses,but the brackets were still there.So were the uPVC windows,plastic guttering and drainpipes !!........in 1973 !!.

More >
Life On Mars
about 1 year ago

So, the new version of Life On Mars came out last night. Anyone catch it? What'd you think? My full review is here . In two words? Pretty good. Here's the list of songs used in the episode: Ground Zero - Chris Cornell Life On Mars - David Bowie Signs - Five Man Electric Band Baba O'Riley - The Who Little Willy - Sweet Out Of Time - The Rolling Stones Hype - Look

More >
Cover & Original: Life on Mars
about 1 year ago

Tomorrow, ABC will be airing the US remake of the brilliant UK show by the same name. The title takes its name from the David Bowie song, Life on Mars. In the story, detective Sam Tyler is hit by a car and wakes up in 1973, where he has to exist while trying to find his way home. The UK version is one of my absolute favorite shows of all time, and it's got a fantastic soundtrack to boot. ...

More >
This may very well be my favorite Bowie album...
over 3 years ago
Blog post image preview

I'm sure everyone's had this happen to them at some point...you have an album that you listen to constantly, and you love each and every track just as much as the last, and you're telling everyone about it, like it's the coolest thing on earth. And then, with no real explanation, you just sort of shelve it and forget about it for a long time. Then one day, something reminds you of it, maybe m...

More >
Cover Wars: Life On Mars? Edition
26 days ago

Life On Mars? was originally released on David Bowie’s 1971 album Hunky Dory. Life On Mars? would be released as a single in the U.S. two years later with The Man Who Sold The World as its B-Side. Talk about a killer combo.The Contestants:The Bad Plus: In addition to this adventurous take on a Bowie classic, this Bad Plus album from 2007 also features interpretations of Everybody Wants To Rule .

More >
"Hol...like halls"
over 3 years ago

I love this song because Andy Warhol hated it. Didn't he?

More >

Top Hunky Dory Listeners

© 2006-2009 Mog Inc. All Rights Reserved