Search - David Bowie :: Hunky Dory

Bowie's Undisputed Masterpiece

howzat | 06/06/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Hunky Dory (1971.), David Bowie's fourth studio album



David Bowie is arguably one of the greatest solo artists of all time and his unique alternative style (notice the omission of the word 'pop') is timeless and has deservedly won him loads of fans from generation to generation. Bowie has changed his style from album to album and has produced music in loads of different styles whilst still maintaining his distinctive sound. 'Hunky Dory', Bowie's fourth studio album, released in 1971 is one of the greatest chapters in his career and is definitely one of his most powerful releases.



'Hunky Dory' is the second album in what I would describe as Bowie's classic run of five albums from 'Man Who Sold the World' to 'Diamond Dogs' when he was at his very best. 'Hunky Dory' though is one of his most unique releases. Bowie was not yet into his famous Ziggy Stardust glam rock period but neither is this album as strongly guitar based as its predecessor 'Man Who Sold the World'. 'Hunky Dory' instead is much more acoustic based with lots of piano thrown in but most of all is an album of unbelievable songwriting - songs don't come much better than those on this album. The album is really well structured as well - each side of the original LP has happy/upbeat songs for the most part but finishes off with a darker, emotive and more powerful song ('Quicksand' and 'Bewlay Brothers'). Bowie's backing group are also excellent on this album. Rick Wakeman's jazzy piano playing is there practically throughout and really characterises the album. Mick Ronson plays some great guitar solos on the album especially in 'Life on Mars'. Bowie's accomplished and often overlooked saxophone playing is also top notch on this album.



David Bowie's album collection has undergone a number of remasters since CD's became commonplace about 20 years ago. Recently an enhanced CD version of 'Hunky Dory' was released. Obviously the sound quality is great but the version lacks any bonus tracks, which incidentally can be found on the 1991 remaster. The latter is the version I would recommend. It still has excellent sound quality and also has demo versions of 'Quicksand' and 'Bewlay Brothers' as well as an album outtake 'Bombers' and an alternative version of 'The Supermen' from 'The Man Who Sold the World' album.



Eventhough this masterpiece yielded a fair-share of singles, this album is not pop in my opinion but instead is a great serving of alternative, extremely listenable music. 'Changes', one of Bowie's well known songs starts the album. An excellent song, its got a classic chorus with loads of piano play. 'oh You Pretty Things' is a great follow up - brilliant for a sing along with another catchy chorus. It runs very cleverly into 'Eight Line Poem' which is a more reflective songs with somem rather bluesy guitar playing from Mick Ronson. 'Life On Mars?' is next up and this one truly one of Bowie's great songs. The lyrics are some of the best I've heard and Mick Ronson's closing solo is out of this world - listen out for the phone ringing at the end of the track! 'Kooks' is an upbeat acoustic track which Bowie wrote for his son, Zowy Bowie. Then we come to 'Quicksand', in my opinion the best track on the album. Its got an amazingly calming start before building into a powerful, heartfelt song - the chorus is really moving. A song about losing direction in life, this is one of Bowie's greatest songs.



What was side two of the LP kicks off with a happy sing along 'Fill Your Heart', a great track, although it is the weakest track on this great album - ironically Bowie didn't write this one! 'Andy Warhol' follows this; this strong acoustic jam is excellent. The goofing around in the studio at the start is a hillarious, where Bowie keeps correcting the sound engineer's pronunciation of 'Warhol'. 'Song For Bob Dylan' is a tribute to one of Bowie's great influences and is followed by 'Queen Bitch', the most rocking track on the album, Ronson's guitar work on this track is first rate. 'The Bewlay Brothers' is an unbelievably potent finish to the album. I'm amazed how many reviewers of this album overlook the greatness of this track. I've never heard a track like it. It's mostly acoustic based and is Bowie's telling story of his own brother's lifelong mental troubles. The warped sounding voice at the end of the album is really freaky and it makes your blood run cold but its a remarkable finish to an amazing album.



The 'Hunky Dory' album captures David Bowie on one of the high points of his career. I'm not sure if I'd call it his best album but its up there with his finest efforts and this album is sure to stand the test of time. I'd recommend this album to anyone who likes a unique alternative style of music or to any fan of David Bowie, although there isn't such such a thing as a Bowie fan who doesn't own this masterpiece!"

WOW!!!!!

Jon Clypto | 07/08/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"my first bowie cd, i just got it, ziggy stardust and diamond dogs. i just finished listening to this and now i am going to listen to the others. boy, this was great!! LIfe on Mars? Is without a doubt the best, the other songs are masterpeices. this was a very good introduction to bowie, none of theese songs are bad"

Even better than Ziggy

Pieter | Johannesburg | 08/16/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Hunky Dory was Bowie's last album as a wannabe, just before Ziggy Stardust made the breakthrough. It's a fascinating work on many levels that display lyrical depth, vivid imagery, wit and great musical variety, from the music hall pop of Changes through the sixties pop of Oh You Pretty Things to the cinematic lyricism of Life On Mars, a soaring masterpiece.



Another of my favorites is Fill Your Heart, a quirky number with his somersaulting voice over lively piano and cheeky sax. Elements of the folkie singer/songwriter are evident on numbers like Song For Bob Dylan while The Supermen reminds me of his later science fiction work like Diamond Dogs.



Bowie also salutes Lou Reed and Andy Warhol here, in fact the whole album makes references to his musical influences. Hunky Dory is a bridge between his earlier music hall style and the glamrock that was to follow, and this was just the right mixture of catchy tunes & brilliant lyrics to ensure a timeless classic. This edition includes alternate takes of two tracks."