Space Oddity is my personal favorite, and it’s the only one I own that isn’t a Bowie Compilation, of which I have 2-3.
Other artists/albums that (depending on age) everybody’s probably already heard that I’d recommend:
Billy Joel, has always been a favorite of mine, which may or may not be to everyone’s taste (shrug), and if I had to pick best albums it would probably be Nylon Curtain, Piano Man, and Storm Front.
If you end up liking any of Billy Joel’s work, I’d recommend the more modern Gabe Dixon Band, especially their self titled 2008 album.
Or for something completely different, I am also a huge fan of Shinedown, so I’d take a look at Somewhere in the Stratosphere.
This is specifically the UK version, which is a 2 CD set. It pretty much covers a wiiiiiiide era of Bowie’s music, so if you like his older stuff more than the later stuff, you’ll feel kinda meh about half of it. And of course, the reverse applies. The US version is one cd, and about half the songs, but half the price as well, still hitting on many of the best known songs as well.
Ah, I was listening to that through prime. It’s great to hear Man Who Sold the World, which is an example of a song where the cover(Nirvana) has always been etched into my mind much more than the original.
I’m not sure if this has been recommended in the thread already, but…
Every Breath You Take - The Police is one of my favourites. It reminds me of when I was but a naive wee lad and listened to it in my dad’s 1999 Jeep for the first time.
Yeah, The Police could be an interesting diversion, particularly Synchronicity and Ghost in the Machine. @Mahaloth if strong lyrically driven music is your thing maybe check out Leonard Cohen’s I’m your Man. Cohen can’t sing but his compositions are incredible.
So, yeah, I started a thread “Thoughts on albums noone has heard, except you and the bartender’s girlfriend from somewhere in Canada". But it’s, like, on a much sweeter message board, that nobody goes to, doesn’t even have a name…
Been listening to Ziggy Stardust and there are some good songs on there and some songs I did not find too interesting. I liked:
Starman <–yes, this obviously rang a bell from TV and movies
It Ain’t Easy
Rock N Roll Suicide
I liked some other tracks OK as well, but those stood out. I saw a performance of Starman from 1999 that was honestly so joyful, it was even better than the studio track.
I was going to dispute this, as I own the 2-CD US version, but it turns out there were 2 US/Canada versions, one single disc and one double. Searching Amazon turns up the single disc version, but after clicking on “all formats” I eventually found mine in the CD/Vinyl section. Streaming appears to be limited to the single disc version.
Bowie had so many different phases, it’s probably better to start with a compilation, figure out what you like, and then explore those albums in depth. Personally I love the glam rock, the Berlin trilogy and the 80s pop stuff, but usually skip over his “plastic soul” era of the 70s and some of the 90s dance stuff.
Thanks! Ignorance fought. I just wanted to make sure Mahaloth had the best option, and my 2 CD UK set was my most ‘complete’ compilation. Glad to know there was an equivalent US option.
Another good Bowie compilation is 2014’s Nothing Has Changed. It’s three CDs and covers all periods (skipping Tin Machine) from an early pre-“Space Oddity” single up to a track that wouldn’t appear on an album until Blackstar two years later, days before his death. It includes the key hits but also includes a handful of interesting remixes, like the Pet Shop Boys version of “Hallo Spaceboy.” It’s sequenced in reverse chronological order for some reason, but it’s a worthwhile package good for either fans or newbies.
Moving Pictures has “Tom Sawyer” (which you are no doubt familiar with) and “Red Barchetta” and “Limelight” (which you may have heard). One short instrumental, one of their long 10 minute epics… I’d call it fairly representative.
I’ll check it out, but I’m not sure I’ve ever heard a single Rush song. I’ll probably end up finding out that they have many songs featured in movies and TV that I had no idea were theirs.
Some trivia about him…well, he’s Sean Penn’s (and the late Christopher Penn’s) brother. And he’s married to Aimee Mann, who was in 'Til Tuesday and sang “Voices Carry.”
I really enjoy his guitar, harmonies, lyrics, the whole bit.
In 2012, Penn began work as the composer for the HBO TV show Girls .[10]
In January 2013, the Girls Vol. 1 soundtrack was released on iTunes. The album contained a new song by Michael Penn titled “On Your Way”, which was featured in the finale of Season 1.
He also joined the crew of Showtime’s Masters of Sex in 2013 as series composer. The show’s pilot episode was initially set to be scored by Thomas Newman, but this did not come to fruition and Penn scored both the pilot and the rest of the series.
In 2018, he joined two new TV series as a composer - Good Girls on NBC and Here and Now on HBO.
In 2020, Penn released a new single, “A Revival”. It was his first non-soundtrack work in 15 years.[11]