David Bowie has had a long and storied career that started way back in the late 1960's and is still going today. Love him or hate him, he has delivered memorable music while refusing to be categorized. He was at the forefront of glam rock in the 1970's, when he took on a number of sexually ambiguous alter egos, and went onto a lot of dance music through the 1980's. It is those 80's which are the focus of this collection. It is not one of his better eras, but there are still some good tunes to be found.
The Best of David Bowie 1980-1987 spans the years that Bowie himself has described as being a creative lowpoint. This collection is targeted at casual fans who may not have discovered the two disk Best of Bowie collection, or the three disk Platinum Collection, from which this disk was taken. That's right, this was originally part of a box set, three disks covering a different part of his career. The first disk covered 1969-1974 with hits like "Space Oddity," "Suffragette City," and "The Man Who Sold the World," while the second covered 1974-1979 with tracks such as "Young Americans" and "Heroes." Each of the disks was also released separately, with this third disk being the first to find release in the US. As an added incentive it also includes a DVD with 15 videos from this era.
Deciding whether or not this disk is for you comes down to a number of factors. If you already own all of the studio albums, there is little use for the CD. Likewise, if you have the Best of Bowie DVD, you have most, if not all of the videos included. As for the casual fan, you would probably be better served with the two disk Best of Bowie CD release. However, if you are a complete-ist, or have a particular affection for this era and need a few songs or videos to pad out your collection, this may be right up your alley. This isn't to say that this is a bad collection by any stretch, weaker, definitely, but not bad. There have just been so many collections, compilations, and reissues over the years that it is hard for any of them to cover any new ground.
Article comments
1 - handyguy
Some of us think "Absolute Beginners" is one of the 3 or 4 best singles he ever recorded. [And the brilliant opening dance number of the uneven movie musical it came from makes the DVD worth renting.]
2 - Pablo Jubany
I agree with the notion that this is Bowie's weakest period, that's something everybody knows: he wasn't at his peak. I also agree with the spirit of this review, because it remarks that it wasn't that bad. But I think that the videos in the compilation are, indeed, what you would call great videos, because of their historic relevance. To mention "Ashes To Ashes" as an example of "goofiness", being this video considered as fundational, one of the greatest videos of all time, that's something no one can agree with. It seems that, at that point, this review lacked of historic perspective.
3 - haha
Yer FaTT.