| David Bowie | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1 June 1967 | |||
| Recorded | 14 November 1966 – 1 March 1967 | |||
| Studio | Decca (London) | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 38:19 | |||
| Label | Deram | |||
| Producer | Mike Vernon | |||
| David Bowie chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from David Bowie | ||||
| ||||
David Bowie is the debutstudio album by the English musicianDavid Bowie, originally released in the United Kingdom on 1 June 1967 throughDecca subsidiaryDeram Records. Produced byMike Vernon and recorded from November 1966 to March 1967 in London, the album followed a string ofsingles Bowie released forPye Records that failed to chart. Vernon hired numerous studio musicians for the album's sessions; Bowie and his former Buzz bandmate Derek Fearnley composed music charts themselves using a musical guidebook.
The album displays abaroque pop andmusic hall sound influenced byAnthony Newley and theEdwardian styles of contemporary British rock bands. The songs are primarily led by orchestral brass and woodwind instruments rather than traditional instruments in pop music at the time, although some tracks feature guitar. The lyrical content varies from lighthearted childhood innocence todrug use andtotalitarianism, themes that Bowie would return to in later works. The cover artwork is a headshot of Bowie with amod haircut and wearing a high-collared jacket.
Released in bothmono andstereo mixes,David Bowie received positive reviews frommusic journalists but was a commercial failure due to a lack of promotion from Deram. Two tracks were omitted for its release in the United States in August 1967. Following its release, Bowie provided more tracks for Deram, all of which were rejected and led to his departure from the label. Retrospective reviews unfavourably compareDavid Bowie to Bowie's later works, but some recognise it positively on its own terms. The album was reissued in a two-disc deluxe edition in 2010, featuring both mixes and other tracks from the period.
David Bowie was let go fromPye Records in September 1966 following a string of singles that failed to chart.[1] A lack of promotion from Pye also contributed to his disenchantment with the label.[2] In order to secure him a new record contract, his soon-to-be managerKenneth Pitt financed a recording session at London'sRG Jones Recording Studios.[3] On 18 October, Bowie and his backing band the Buzz conducted a four-hour session with a group of local studio musicians, producing a new version of the rejected Pye track "The London Boys" and two new songs, "Rubber Band" and "The Gravedigger".[1][2]
Pitt showed acetates of the tracks to executives atDecca Records, who were impressed and signed Bowie to the label'sprogressive pop subsidiary labelDeram Records. His contract gave him a deal that financed the production of a full-length studio album and paid £150 for the three tracks and a further advance of £100 for royalties on the album. According to the biographerNicholas Pegg, being granted an album deal before having a hit single was a rare occurrence at the time.[2][4] Decca A&R manager Hugh Mendl later said: "I had a minor obsession about David—I just thought he was the most talented, magical person. ... I think I would have signed him even if he didn't have such obvious musical talent. But he did have talent. He was bursting with creativity."[3]
.jpg)
Bowie spent time before the album sessions writing songs, accumulating almost 30 new compositions. According to the authorPaul Trynka, his songwriting focused less on traditional instrumentation and more in favour of orchestral arrangements, in the vein ofthe Beach Boys' recently releasedPet Sounds.[3] The sessions officially commenced on 14 November 1966 at Decca Studio 2 inWest Hampstead, London with the recording of "Uncle Arthur" and "She's Got Medals".[2] Decca in-house producerMike Vernon handled production whileGus Dudgeon engineered.[5] Bowie's band the Buzz contributed with the exception of keyboardist Derek Boyes.[6]
We didn't realise how ludicrous [the scores] must have looked. I guess it was just the audacity of it that none of the guys laughed us out of the studio. They actually tried to play our parts and they made sense of them. They're quite nice little string parts – we were writing for bassoon and everything. IfStravinsky can do it, then we can do it![7]
Rather than hire an arranger, Bowie and Buzz member Derek "Dek" Fearnley used Freda Dinn'sObserver's Guide to Music, a musical guidebook, to study orchestra arrangements and requested Vernon hire the appropriate musicians. Fearnley had little experience writing music charts, while Bowie could not read music at all, so Fearnley found it a daunting task, later stating: "It was bloody hard work. I knew how to read the staves and that a bar had four crotches; David had never seen or written a note, so I was the one qualified to write stuff out."[3][5] He found that when presenting the charts to the musicians, some of whom were members of theLondon Philharmonic Orchestra, they threw them back and requested new scores, which he had to do himself while Bowie monitored from the control room.[2][3][6]
"There Is a Happy Land", "We Are Hungry Men", "Join the Gang" and the B-side "Did You Ever Have a Dream" were completed by 24 November.[2] Around the same time, Pitt and Bowie's current manager Ralph Horton decided that Bowie would cease live performances so he could focus on recording the album and that he would part ways with the Buzz. Bowie and the Buzz made their final live performance together on 2 December, the same day Deram issued the "Rubber Band" single. The sessions continued between 8 and 13 December with the recording of "Sell Me a Coat", "Little Bombardier", "Silly Boy Blue", "Maid of Bond Street", "Come and Buy My Toys" and "The Gravedigger", now titled "Please Mr. Gravedigger".[2][6]
Besides the orchestra, Vernon hired several uncredited session musicians who were integral to the album's sound; credited players included guitaristJohn Renbourn, whose playing is heard prominently on "Come and Buy My Toys", and multi-instrumentalistBig Jim Sullivan, who contributedbanjo andsitar on "Did You Ever Have a Dream" and "Join the Gang", respectively. Fearnley's friend Marion Constable also contributed backing vocals to "Silly Boy Blue".[2] Vernon recalled having "a lot of fun" during the sessions and described Bowie as "the easiest person to work with", further adding that "some of the melodies were extremely good, and the actual material, the lyrics, had a quality that was quite unique".[2] Dudgeon also found the material unique, telling the biographer David Buckley that "the music was very filmic, all very visual and all quite honest and unaffected".[8]
A provisional running order was drawn up at the end of December 1966, which included tracks that were absent from the final album, such as "Did You Ever Have a Dream", "Your Funny Smile" and "Bunny Thing". In mid-January 1967, Bowie fired Horton as his manager after months of financial mismanagement and hired Pitt in his place.[2] Bowie and the musicians reconvened at Decca on 26 January, recording the backing tracks for "The Laughing Gnome" and "The Gospel According to Tony Day", which were chosen as the next single; vocals were added in early February.[9] A new version of "Rubber Band" was recorded for inclusion on the album on 25 February, as well as "Love You till Tuesday" and "When I Live My Dream". These tracks featured uncredited arrangements byArthur Greenslade. The sessions completed on 1 March.[9]
David Bowie wasmixed in bothmono andstereo,[9] making it one of the first albums to be released in both formats. According to Pegg, the two variants featured minor differences in instrumentation and mixing:[2] mono editions used slightly different mixes of "Uncle Arthur" and "Please Mr. Gravedigger".[10]
Lyrically, I guess it was striving to be something, the short story teller. Musically it's quite bizarre. I don't know where I was at. It seemed to have its roots all over the place, in rock andvaudeville and music hall. I didn't know if I wasMax Miller orElvis Presley.[2]
David Bowie consists of 14 tracks, all written entirely by Bowie.[7] His influences at this time includedAnthony Newley,music hall acts likeTommy Steele, British-centred material byRay Davies ofthe Kinks,Syd Barrett's psychedelic nursery rhymes for earlyPink Floyd and theEdwardian flair shared by the contemporary works of the Kinks andthe Beatles.[8] Pitt's desire for Bowie to become an "all-around entertainer" rather than a "rock star" also impacted the songwriter's style.[11] According to the author James E. Perone, the songs include styles of up-tempopop,rock andwaltz;[12]BBC Music retrospectively categorisedDavid Bowie asbaroque pop and music hall.[13] Rather than using traditional instruments in pop music at the time, such as guitar, piano, bass and drums, the instruments onDavid Bowie likened to those in music hall andclassical music, such as brass instruments (tuba,trumpet andFrench horn) and woodwind instruments (bassoon,oboe,English horn andpiccolo).[12] Buckley notes almost a complete absence of lead guitar in the final mix.[8]
Brass-led tracks include "Rubber Band", "Little Bombardier" and "Maid of Bond Street",[8] woodwind-led tracks include "Uncle Arthur" and "She's Got Medals".[14] "Little Bombardier" and "Maid of Bond Street" are in waltz time,[8] while "Join the Gang" includes sitar and a musical quotation ofthe Spencer Davis Group's recent hit "Gimme Some Lovin'".[15] Newley's influence is present on "Love You till Tuesday", "Little Bombardier" and "She's Got Medals".[2][5] Regarding the influence, Newley himself stated in 1992: "I always made fun of it, in a sense. Most of my records ended in a stupid giggle, trying to tell people that I wasn't being serious. I think Bowie liked that irreverent thing, and his delivery was very similar to mine, that Cockney thing."[7]
%2c_Bestanddeelnr_920-9272.jpg)
"Love You till Tuesday" and "Come and Buy My Toys" are among the few songs on the album with an acoustic guitar, the former heavily augmented by strings.[16] The latter is noted by the biographer Chris O'Leary as more minimalist in nature,[5] and exemplifies folk in a way the authorPeter Doggett likens toSimon & Garfunkel.[17] "Please Mr. Gravedigger", which Buckley described as "one of pop's genuinely crazy moments",[8] utilises various studio sound effects and no backing instrumentation. Biographers compare it to a radio play from the 1940s and 1950s and consider it a comedic parody of the old British song "Oh! Mr Porter".[5][18]
Like the music, the lyrical themes onDavid Bowie are widespread, ranging from lighthearted, to dark, to funny to sarcastic. The characters range from societal outcasts, to losers, "near-philosophers" and dictators.[12] According to O'Leary,David Bowie found Bowie composing third-person narratives compared to the first-person love stories of his previous releases,[5] a statement echoed by Kevin Cann, who likens the song narratives to traditional folk stories.[7] In 1976, Bowie commented that "the idea of writing sort of short stories, I thought was quite novel at the time".[5]Marc Spitz writes thatDavid Bowie contains several "vaguely dark, arcane English story songs" ("Please Mr. Gravedigger", "Uncle Arthur", "Maid on Bond Street") that Pitt envisioned Bowie performing in lounges.[19] "Rubber Band", "Little Bombardier" and "She's Got Medals" all evoke the Edwardian theme.[7]
Lighthearted themes, such as childhood innocence, are celebrated in "Sell Me a Coat", "When I Live My Dream" and "Come and Buy My Toys",[7] as well as the psychedelic-influenced "There Is a Happy Land", which took its title and subject matter from theAndrew Young hymnof the same name.[5][20] "Silly Boy Blue" expresses Bowie's then-recent interest inBuddhism.[21] Darker ideals such aspeer pressure anddrug use are discussed in "Join the Gang",[16] while "We Are Hungry Men" depicts atotalitarian world that reflects messianic worship andcannibalism in a comedic way.[22][23] "Little Bombardier" concerns a war veteran who is forced to leave town after being suspected forpedophilia,[12] and thea cappella "Please Mr. Gravedigger" details a child-murderer contemplating his next victim while standing in a graveyard.[5][8][18]
.png)
David Bowie was released in the United Kingdom on 1 June 1967, with the catalogue numbers DML 1007 (mono) and SML 1007 (stereo).[2] Its release coincided with the Beatles'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.[24][25][26] The American release, issued in August 1967, omitted "We Are Hungry Men" and "Maid of Bond Street", which Pegg speculates was possibly due to the US practice of trimming track listings in order to "reduce publishing royalties".[2]
The sleeve photograph is a full-headshot of Bowie in amod haircut wearing a high-collared jacket. The sleeve was taken by Fearnley's brother Gerald in his basement studio nearMarble Arch, where Bowie and Dek Fearnley had conducted rehearsals for the sessions. Bowie himself chose the jacket and later recalled that he was "very proud" of it, quipping that "it was actually tailored".[2] Spitz considers the image "very rooted" in the mid-1960s,[19] whileConsequence of Sound's Blake Goble called it "perhaps the most uninteresting and dated album cover of Bowie's career" in 2018.[27] Pitt's sleeve notes described Bowie's vision as "straight and sharp as a laser beam. It cuts through hypocrisy, prejudice and cant. It sees the bitterness of humanity, but rarely bitterly. It sees the humour in our failings, the pathos of our virtues."[2]
Despite promotional attempts by other countries outside the UK and US,[7]David Bowie was a commercial failure, in part due to lack of promotion from Deram; the label were unimpressed with the "Rubber Band" single and one of the executives who was instrumental in Bowie's signing departed the company in May 1967, leaving little confidence in Bowie.[2][28] Vernon later felt that Decca "didn't understand what rock music was ... at all".[8] Bowie's other Deram singles "The Laughing Gnome" and a remake of "Love You till Tuesday", issued in April and July, respectively,[29] both failed to chart, further signalling his downturn with the label.[2][19]
David Bowie received few, albeit positive, reviews frommusic critics on release.[2] In theNew Musical Express, Allen Evans praised the record as "all very refreshing" and called the artist "a very promising talent", with "a fresh sound to [Bowie and Fearnley's] light musical arrangements".[30]Chris Welch ofMelody Maker enjoyed the album as "a singularly rewarding collection" featuring "excellent" production. Welch was surprised Bowie had yet to impact the pop scene.[31] A reviewer forDisc & Music Echo described the album as "a remarkable, creative debut album by a 19-year-old Londoner", declaring: "Here is a new talent that deserves attention, for though David Bowie has no great voice, he can project words with a cheeky 'side' that is endearing yet not precious ... full of abstract fascination. Try David Bowie. He's something new."[32] The journalist also suggested that Bowie could garner more attention if he "gets the breaker and the right singles".[32] Pitt sent copies ofDavid Bowie to music executives in order to generate publicity, receiving letters of admiration fromLionel Bart,Bryan Forbes andFranco Zeffirelli.[2]
After the album's failure, Bowie recorded several more tracks for Deram from late 1967 to early 1968 as potential singles, all of which were rejected.[2] Departing from the sound ofDavid Bowie, these included "Let Me Sleep Beside You", "Karma Man", a new version of "When I Live My Dream", "In the Heat of the Morning" and a remake of "London Bye Ta–Ta".[33][34][35] The failure ofDavid Bowie, its singles and failed follow-up attempts led to Bowie's departure from Deram in May 1968.[2] Outside of music, he acted inmime actorLindsay Kemp's playPierrot in Turquoise throughout early 1968, performing theDavid Bowie songs "When I Live My Dream", "Sell Me a Coat" and "Come and Buy My Toys".[36]
The commercial failure ofDavid Bowie led Pitt to authorize a promotional film in an attempt to introduce Bowie to a larger audience. The film,Love You till Tuesday, went unreleased until 1984.[37] Bowie wrote a new song for the film, "Space Oddity", a tale about a fictional astronaut.[38] Produced by Dudgeon and released as a single in July 1969 forMercury affiliatePhilips Records, "Space Oddity" became the artist's first hit, 18 months afterDavid Bowie's release.[2][39]
I wouldn't say that we struggled, but it was an adventure. I wasn't sure what to make of [the album] at the time or if it was even commercial, but as usual, I just put all my likes and dislikes aside and got on with it. It was a very, very quirky one-off record and ideal for Deram.[7]
David Bowie, and the Deram period in general, were routinely mocked throughout Bowie's career, being dismissed, in Pegg's words, as "music-hall piffle derived from a passing Anthony Newley fad".[2] Dudgeon later acknowledged the similarities to Newley, saying that it "bothered" him and Vernon because they felt Bowie was "really good and his songs are fucking great".[8] Bowie himself downplayed or disowned the period entirely in later decades, dismissing it as "cringey" in 1990.[2] According to Pegg, Bowie's fans have attempted to place blame on Pitt for the record's sound, despite Pitt being absent from Bowie's person during the majority of the writing and recording period. The manager himself dismissed the theory in his memoir, stating that it was Bowie's sole idea to mimic Newley.[2]
Other claims made aboutDavid Bowie include the argument that it sounded like nothing else at the time,[26] which is mostly attributed to Dudgeon's "oft-quoted" description of the album as "about the weirdest thing any record company have ever put out".[2] Pegg debunks this idea, writing that the record's blend of "folk and short-story narrative" shared similarities with the more commercial releases of the Britishpsychedelia movement of 1966–1967, while themotifs of wartime nostalgia and childhood innocence reflected the contemporary ideals of Syd Barrett's Pink Floyd, theBonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band and the Beatles.[2] The Beatles, in particular, embellished similar ideas asDavid Bowie into their recent recordsRevolver (1966) andSgt. Pepper: the latter's "Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!" matched the waltz-style of "Little Bombardier", while Pegg compares the styles of "Uncle Arthur", "She's Got Medals" and "Sell Me a Coat" to "Eleanor Rigby", "Lovely Rita" and "She's Leaving Home".[2] Buckley writes that Bowie's use of brass and woodwinds on "Rubber Band" predated their use by the Beatles onSgt. Pepper,[8] while Doggett argues that "Rubber Band" and "With a Little Help from My Friends" both feature lyrical gags about performing "out of tune".[40] Regarding the blend of folk, pop and classical, Perone argues thatthe Moody Blues'Days of Future Passed, also released by Deram in 1967, was more commercially viable but displayed the combination onDavid Bowie, particularly on "Rubber Band" and "Sell Me a Coat".[12] Bowie also utilized the same sound effects as the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band's debut single "My Brother Makes the Noises for the Talkies" forDavid Bowie's "We Are Hungry Men", "Please Mr. Gravedigger" and the outtake "Toy Soldier".[2]
Commentators have recognised themes onDavid Bowie that informed the artist's later works,[16][8] such as the self-styledmessiah of "We Are Hungry Men".[2] Perone argues that the track anticipated thepost-punk andnew wave styles of the late 1970s, namingTalking Heads'first andsecond albums.[12] The folk of "Come and Buy My Toys" also anticipated Bowie's exploration of the genre on his1969 second self-titled album,[2] while Doggett finds the sense of desperation on "Rubber Band" foreshadowed theStation to Station and"Heroes" LPs of 1976 and 1977, respectively.[40] Others found the gender-bending themes of "She's Got Medals" foreshadowed 1971's "Queen Bitch" and 1974's "Rebel Rebel".[5][8]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [41] |
| Blender | [42] |
| Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [43] |
| Mojo | [44] |
| Rolling Stone | [45] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [46] |
| Uncut | 7/10[47] |
Retrospective reviews ofDavid Bowie have unfavourably compared the LP with the artist's later works, although some have recognised it positively in its own terms.[41][48] Pegg summarises:David Bowie justifiably resides in the shadow of [Bowie's] later work, but those with open ears and open minds know it as a sweet, clever album that has borne decades of derision with consummate dignity."[2]
Writing forAllMusic,Dave Thompson called the LP "an intriguing collection, as much in its own right as for the light it sheds on Bowie's future career" and concluded that "though this material has been repackaged with such mind-numbing frequency as to seem all but irrelevant today,David Bowie still remains a remarkable piece of work. And it sounds less like anything else he's ever done than any subsequent record in his catalog".[41] The same publication'sStephen Thomas Erlewine saw it as "a fascinating, highly enjoyable debut" on its own merits.[48] Reviewing in 2010,BBC Music's Sean Egan found an "unrefined" talent in Bowie, noting "above average" lyrics that are "hardly deep". Nevertheless, he praised Bowie's commitment to the project, concluding that "David Bowie is hardly an essential listen but historically interesting as unmistakably the entrée of someone with a future."[13] In 2017, Dave Swanson ofUltimate Classic Rock found the music joyful, but felt the record was out of place with the music industry at the time, which mostly contributed to its failure.[26]
Bowie's biographers have held mixed opinions onDavid Bowie.NME criticsRoy Carr andCharles Shaar Murray said, "a listener strictly accustomed to David Bowie in his assorted '70s guises would probably find this debut album either shocking or else simply quaint",[16] while Buckley describes its status in Bowie's discography as "the vinyl equivalent ofthe madwoman in the attic", ridiculing it as a "cringe-inducing piece of juvenilia" only to be braved by "those with a high enough embarrassment threshold".[8] Perone felt the wide variety of musical styles were displayed "generally to good effect".[12] Trynka praises Bowie's confidence and highlights individual tracks, such as "We Are Hungry Men" and "Uncle Arthur", but notes that he lacked ambition and commerciality at the time.[49] Doggett similarly contends that its "whimsical character studies" stood against the "psychedelic ambiance" of the era.[50]
In a 2016 list ranking Bowie's studio albums from worst to best, Bryan Wawzenek ofUltimate Classic Rock placedDavid Bowie at number 23 (out of 26), criticising Bowie's vocal performances, lyrics and overall sound that lacks "wit and energy".[51] Including Bowie's two albums withTin Machine, the writers ofConsequence of Sound rankedDavid Bowie number 26 (out of 28) in their 2018 list. Goble called it "an awkward artifact", representing signs of what was to come for the artist but as a standalone album, it remains "not essential".[27]
| Deluxe edition | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Classic Rock | [52] |
| The Guardian | [53] |
| Record Collector | [54] |
| Rolling Stone | [55] |
Bowie's Deram recordings have been recycled in a multitude ofcompilation albums, includingThe World of David Bowie (1970),Images 1966–1967 (1973),Another Face (1981),Rock Reflections (1990), andThe Deram Anthology 1966–1968 (1997).[56]
Deram first reissuedDavid Bowie on LP in August 1984, followed by aCD release in April 1989.[57] In January 2010, Deram andUniversal Music reissued the album in a remastered two-disc deluxe edition package. Containing 53 total tracks, the collection compiles both the original mono and stereo mixes, Bowie's other Deram recordings, such as "The London Boys" and "The Laughing Gnome", single mixes, previously unreleased stereo mixes, alternate takes and for the first time, Bowie's firstBBC radio session (Top Gear, December 1967).[48][54][58] The tracks were remastered by Peter Mew and Tris Penna, who previously undertookVirgin's deluxe reissue ofDavid Bowie (1969). Penna stated in the deluxe edition liner notes that they wanted "to ensure [the tracks] sounded as good, if not better, than when they were first released".[59]
Reviewing the deluxe edition forThe Second Disc, Joe Marchese considered it a welcome supplement toThe Deram Anthology 1966–1968 that showed Bowie had talent but lacked direction. He concluded that the set allows listeners to reexamineDavid Bowie and "makes the best possible case for this 'lost era' of Bowie history".[59] Pegg similarly called the set "excellent".[2] Barry Walters ofRolling Stone described the collection as an "early portrait of pop's ultimate shape-shifter".[55] Erlewine praised the addition of the new tracks, arguing that they enhance the debut rather than diminish it, fully offering more insight into Bowie's talent at this stage of his career.[48] More unfavourably, Egan felt the collection was "comprehensive" but "aesthetically too much even if the parent album was the greatest ever made".[13]
All tracks are written byDavid Bowie.[7]
Side one
Side two
Notes
Technical
