David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars [180g Vinyl LP]

David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars [180g Vinyl LP]

Details

• Format: Vinyl LP, Album, Reissue, Remastered, Stereo
• Catalogue Number: 082564 6287376
• Barcode: 825646287376
• Genre: Glam Rock / Art Rock / Proto-Punk
• Label: Parlophone / Rhino / Warner Music
• Originally Released: 16 June 1972
• Reissue Released: 26 February 2016
• Pressing: 180 Gram Vinyl
• Condition: New & Sealed

Description

The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars is the fifth studio album by David Bowie — released on 16 June 1972 on RCA Records — and one of the most consequential records in the history of popular music. Recorded at Trident Studios in London between July and November 1971 and produced by Bowie alongside Ken Scott, it arrived as a fully formed conceptual and aesthetic statement: a loose narrative about a fictional alien rock star named Ziggy, sent to Earth as a saviour during the planet's final five years, who is ultimately destroyed by his own fame. The character and album together transformed Bowie from a cult figure into a global phenomenon, and the androgynous, sexually ambiguous persona he inhabited as Ziggy — most memorably demonstrated to mainstream British audiences by the performance of "Starman" on Top of the Pops in July 1972, at which Bowie draped his arm around guitarist Mick Ronson — had a seismic effect on popular culture, fashion and the boundaries of gender expression in public life that has never been fully surpassed.

The album debuted at number five on the UK Albums Chart and was certified Platinum by the BPI. In the five decades since its release it has consistently ranked among the greatest albums ever recorded: Rolling Stone placed it at number 35 on their 500 Greatest Albums of All Time (2012 list), and it was selected for preservation in the US National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress in 2017, deemed "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant." Its influence spans every strand of post-1972 rock — cited directly by artists including Iggy Pop, Freddie Mercury, Morrissey, Kurt Cobain, Trent Reznor, Lady Gaga, Arcade Fire and Harry Styles among many others. Ken Scott, who engineered the Beatles' Abbey Road and Let It Be before producing this record, has said that "95 percent of the vocals on the four albums I did with Bowie were first takes."

The Spiders from Mars — Mick Ronson (guitar), Trevor Bolder (bass) and Woody Woodmansey (drums) — were the ideal vehicle for Bowie's vision: Ronson's guitar work throughout the album is among the most distinctive and influential in rock, and his string and brass arrangements — heard to greatest effect on "Five Years", "Moonage Daydream" and "Rock 'n' Roll Suicide" — give the record an orchestral grandeur that few rock albums have matched. "Starman" was the album's breakthrough single, reaching number ten in the UK; "Suffragette City" and "Ziggy Stardust" (the title track) completed the record's commercial and creative peaks. The closing "Rock 'n' Roll Suicide" — performed as the finale of every Ziggy Stardust tour show — is among Bowie's most emotionally direct vocal performances, building from intimate confessional to full orchestral catharsis in under three minutes.

This pressing presents the 2012 remaster by Ray Staff — supervised for the album's 40th anniversary and widely regarded as the finest-sounding version of the record on vinyl — on 180 gram black vinyl, pressed in Germany, with the original sleeve faithfully reproduced. The package includes both a poly-lined inner sleeve and a replica of the original 1972 inner picture/lyric sleeve. The front cover carries a hype sticker reading "Remastered heavyweight 180g vinyl". The label reads Parlophone, with recording credit to Trident Studios, London.

Tracklist

Side A

1. Five Years
2. Soul Love
3. Moonage Daydream
4. Starman
5. It Ain't Easy

Side B

1. Lady Stardust
2. Star
3. Hang on to Yourself
4. Ziggy Stardust
5. Suffragette City
6. Rock 'n' Roll Suicide

Credits

• David Bowie – Vocals, Guitar, Saxophones
• Mick Ronson – Guitar, Piano, String & Brass Arrangements
• Trevor Bolder – Bass
• Woody Woodmansey – Drums
• Ken Scott – Producer, Engineer
• Ray Staff – Remastering (2012)
• Brian Ward – Cover Photography
• Terry Pastor – Cover Colouring
• Label – Parlophone / Rhino / Warner Music