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Why the re-issues, you may ask? Is there such a tremendous sound
difference between my old cd versions of these awesome David
Bowie live shows and these new re-mixed ones? The answer,
my good friend, is yes. Tony Visconti, who originally recorded
and mixed both Stage and David Live, is once again
responsible for re-mixing the records into the 21st century. Sound
quality is crisper, instrumentation clearer at times, and the
actual running order of the live shows has been followed, rather
than the chronological ordering of songs as on the initial releases.
Both albums come packaged in a cool 2-disc digipak, complete with
new liner notes by Mr. Visconti, and are being released not only
in CD format, but also as DVD-A's for those of you that care for
that sort of thing.
But the meat of these re-issues lies in the addition of just
2 songs each set, that round out a Bowie fan's need to hear more
from that golden 70's transitional Bowie. On David Live,
"Panic In Detroit" and "Space Oddity" are
the previously unreleased tracks. This version of "Space
Oddity" alone is worth trading up to the re-issue CD. This
version is spaced out, and slowed down a bit, creating a much
more dramatic air to the song. "Panic In Detroit" is
available for the first time on CD here, and rocks as hard as
it ever did. The guitars are phased and distorted and pure sonic
bliss. The classic re-workings of "The Width Of A Circle"
and "Suffragette City" are present, being obvious staples
of this era's live sets.
On Stage, the new tracks are "Be My Wife" and
"Stay". This set is more cohesive than the transitional
era sound of David Live, and songs are included from records
as varied as Ziggy Stardust to Heroes. From the
opening classical operatic-ness of "Warszawa" to the
closing pop of "TVC-15", this is Bowie at his live finest.
High energy, both from the crowd and stage, are obvious in this
set, and the album flows much better with the track list being
set to actual stage set lists, instead of the previously released
track listing. "Heroes" kicks off the vocal set in high
style - it's a marvelous performance, from what must have been
a marvelous show. The version of "Be My Wife" is bluesy,
rhythmic and magical. "Beauty And The Beast" is chock
full of the Eno-esque keyboards that characterized the
Low album, and which marked the turning point of Bowie's
musical genius. This version of "Ziggy Stardust" is
remarkably energetic, even with most of the guitar being replaced
with keyboards. The onus of this record is the transition from
guitar rock to more of a keyboard oriented sound, and it is well
documented how David was reworking songs into his newly chosen
format. "Stay" is full of near disco guitars and slurring
hi-hats, being very representative of the original album version,
and leads oddly well into the closing "TVC-15". It's
difficult to believe that not too long after this record, Niles
Rodgers took over as Bowie's producer and ruined what could
have been the highlight of the early 80's rock scene.
Any fan of Bowie, or anyone that doesn't already own either
David Live or Stage, needs to run out and get these
re-issues. They are not only classic representations of live rock
and roll perfection, but they are musical and much more contiguous
with the new track lists.
-L. Keane
Track Listings:
David Live
Disc: 1
1. 1984
2. Rebel Rebel
3. Moonage Daydream
4. Sweet Thing
5. Changes
6. Suffragette City
7. Aladdin Sane
8. All the Young Dudes
9. Cracked Actor
10. Rock & Roll With Me
Disc: 2
1. Knock On Wood
2. Here Today, Gone Tomorrow
3. Space Oddity (Previously Unreleased)
4. Diamond Dogs
5. Panic In Detroit (First Issue on CD)
6. Big Brother
7. Time
8. The Width Of A Circle
9. Jean Genie
10. Rock 'n' Roll Suicide
Stage
Disc: 1
1. Hang on to Yourself
2. Ziggy Stardust
3. Five Years
4. Soul Love
5. Star
6. Station to Station
7. Fame
8. TVC 15
Disc: 2
1. Five Years
2. Soul Love
3. Star
4. Hang On To Yourself
5. Ziggy Stardust
6. Art Decade
7. Alabama Song
8. Station To Station
9. Stay (Previously Unreleased)
10. TVC-15
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