The 4 instrumental songs on side 2 of Heroes are the peak of Bowie's career?

[molan]

Said a journalist for Mojo. . .

In all seriousness how can anyone, let alone a music journalist, say that 4 instrumentals are the pinnacle of such an amazing vocalist's career?

I get all the stuff about it being influential to a swathe of electronic musicians but there was also Kraftwerk, Neu, Can, Moroder plus Brian Eno's earlier work pre Bowie.

I checked and I have 188 Bowie songs on my iPod (it's one of the 160GB ones, lol) and I reckon there may well be 100 I'd rate higher than side 2 of Heroes!

Do some of these people just write any old twaddle to appear 'contraversial'?

[Stacker]

Bollox. I hate to use the word 'peak' but if I did it would be 'Low'.

Journalists exist to be controversial. Otherwise, they would find no employ!

Edited July 14, 2013 by Stacker

[bobbass4k]

Surely he's a musician and a songwriter first? Can't say I'm familiar enough with Bowie to comment but I see no reason why an instrumental couldn't be a high point of any musicians career.

[flyfisher]

It's an opinion - nothing more, nothing less. Agree or disagree (or don't give a toss) and move on.

[toneknob]

It's just one bloke's opinion.

Heroes is a brilliant album. So is Low, also Lodger. Scary Monsters as well for the first 6 tracks.

But my favourite current Bowie instrumental is Crystal Japan. I only discovered it last week, it's an outtake from Scary Monsters and appears on the All Saints compilation album of instrumentals. It's on Spotify: [url="http://open.spotify.com/album/1TavCukHKgRsOx8nXcmY2c"]David Bowie – All Saints[/url]

[steve-bbb]

[quote name='molan' timestamp='1373825106' post='2141988']
Do some of these people just write any old twaddle to appear 'contraversial'?
[/quote]

is it the same journo who compiled the list of the worlds best bass players and put john taylor at number one ?

[paul_5]

bloody Hacks eh? These are the sae people who initially slated Nirvana's performance at the Reading festival, and then, after Kurt's death it was suddenly the pinnacle of live rock and roll. I saw it on CD the other week. Sycophants.

[molan]

[quote name='bobbass4k' timestamp='1373826421' post='2142001']
Surely he's a musician and a songwriter first? Can't say I'm familiar enough with Bowie to comment but I see no reason why an instrumental couldn't be a high point of any musicians career.
[/quote]

Totally agree - above all else he's a great songwriter and plays decent guitar (still love the raw tone on Rebel Rebel), good sax, some keys etc. etc.

However with something like 25+ albums. of material on which he sings on maybe 95% of all songs, I just find it hard to accept anyone could think that his top 4 are all instrumental

[Dingus]

[quote name='molan' timestamp='1373825106' post='2141988']
Said a journalist for Mojo. . .


Do some of these people just write any old twaddle to appear 'contraversial'?
[/quote]

Have you read many of my posts ?

[molan]

[quote name='flyfisher' timestamp='1373826990' post='2142006']
It's an opinion - nothing more, nothing less. Agree or disagree (or don't give a toss) and move on.
[/quote]

Or ask other people what they think on a discussion forum. . .

[molan]

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1373831379' post='2142096']


Have you read many of my posts ?
[/quote]

But you're not being paid

Hopefully, anyway

[cytania]

It's the old prejudices. Classical music is superior to pop so only pop artists' work that verges on symphonic is truly worthy. Slow and depressing works are superior to uptempo frivolity. Music history written by old men reembracing their old school music teacher's pomposity.

[BigRedX]

Silly, silly "journalist".

Ziggy Startdust is Bowies greatest work as any fule kno.

[molan]

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1373875042' post='2142385']
as any fule kno.
[/quote]

Reality is so unspeakably sordid it make me shudder. . .

[BigRedX]

*grin*

[Happy Jack]

So is this chump really suggesting that anything Bowie did could ever top [i]The Laughing Gnome[/i]?

[skankdelvar]

[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1373892149' post='2142689']
So is this chump really suggesting that anything Bowie did could ever top [i]The Laughing Gnome[/i]?
[/quote]

I could top The Laughing Gnome. I'd set fire to his house with him in it.

[Dingus]

[quote name='skankdelvar' timestamp='1373905955' post='2142969']
I could top The Laughing Gnome. I'd set fire to his house with him in it.
[/quote]

Gnomist !

[JapanAxe]

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1373875042' post='2142385']
Silly, silly "journalist".

Ziggy Startdust is Bowies greatest work as any fule kno.
[/quote]
Ah master Molesworth... I have been listening to [i]Ziggy Stardust[/i] since 1974 and was disappointed (to say the least) when I first heard [i]Low[/i], but now I rate [i]Low[/i] just as highly. Back on topic - don't forget DB's vocalisations on the 4 'instrumental' [i]Heroes[/i] tracks.

[skankdelvar]

You know that 'Standing - by the [i]wall[/i]. We kissed as the guns fired over our heads' line.

That was Bowie looking out the studio office window and seeing producer Tony Visconti in the street swapping saliva with his girlfriend du jour.

True story.

[toneknob]

[quote name='skankdelvar' timestamp='1373913812' post='2143097']
You know that 'Standing - by the [i]wall[/i]. We kissed as the guns fired over our heads' line.

That was Bowie looking out the studio office window and seeing producer Tony Visconti in the street swapping saliva with his girlfriend du jour.

True story.
[/quote]

Maybe true story, if you believe that Tone's mistress (girlfriend du jour wasn't Mrs Visconti) claims that "Heroes" was complete by the time the affair started, according to the footnote on the "Pushing Ahead of The Dame" blog entry about the song, [url="http://bowiesongs.wordpress.com/2011/05/11/heroes/"]http://bowiesongs.wordpress.com/2011/05/11/heroes/[/url] - one of the very few blogs I've seen that is compelling page-turning stuff for the middling-to-serious Bowioid. (If "page-turning" is something you can apply to blogs)

[skankdelvar]

Ta for that ^ info, Mr Toneknob.

A really interesting blog, particularly the reference to the German painting of two people stood by the wall. TBH, I just remembered the bit in Visconti's slightly self-serving autobiography where he claims to have been the inspiration for the lines. Good to have a different perspective.

[EssentialTension]

Robert Christgaau - Dean of American Rock Critics - said at the time of release:

"But most of the movie music on side two is so far from hypnotic that I figure Bowie, rather than Eno, must deserve credit for it. I mean, is Eno really [i]completely[/i] fascinated by banality? [b]B+[/b]"