Bowie, David And Friends: The 1980 Floorshow

David Bowie performed as Ziggy Stardust at The Marquee Club, Soho, London on October 18/19/20, 1973. This was the artist's first performance since he announced his retirement a few months earlier. It was also the last time Bowie performed with Mick Ronson in the '70s. They wouldn't play again together until 1983. Bowie put the show together for the U.S. television show 'Midnight Special' and originally had planned for a major concert production but that was deemed to be too expensive. Bowie opted for a futuristic set to perform his material and for the most part him and his band put in an excellent performance. On classics like "1984" and "The Jean Genie" he sounds positively rejuvenated. "Sorrow" is also a rollicking good time as is an excellent rendition of "Space Oddity" where the guitar and keys come together in a rather sublime way. The dramatic "Time" is also one to be savoured as Bowie's performance is positively emotive. The Who classic "I Can't Explain" is absolutely rocking supplemented with Bowie's patented sax lines.

The Troggs' performance is energetic in a garage band sort of way although not near as impactful as Bowie's. Marianne Faithful does a nice job with The Stones' classic "As Tears Go By" adding pretty acoustic guitar and orchestrations. The disc ends with Sonny Bono's "I Got You Babe", a charming duet from Bowie and Faithful.

The main issue I have here is the sound quality which I suppose is to be expected. At times the loudness level is quite high adding an unnecessary shrill on the ears.

So, it's not perfect but the actual performance from Bowie is excellent and for Bowie fans this is certainly an important '70s document as Ziggy played one last time.

Track Listing:
1. David Bowie – 1984/Dodo (5:32)
2. David Bowie – Sorrow (3:04)
3. Carmen – Bulerias (3:53)
4. David Bowie – Everything's Alright (2:26)
5. David Bowie – Space Oddity (5:19)
6. David Bowie – 1984 (1:40)
7. David Bowie – I Can't Explain (2:08)
8. Marianne Faithful – As Tears Go By (2:31)
9. David Bowie – Time (5:04)
10. The Troggs – Wild Thing (2:52)
11. Carmen – Bullfight (4:30)
12. David Bowie – The Jean Genie (5:52)
13. Marianne Faithful – 20th Century Blues (2:47)
14. The Troggs – I Can't Control Myself (2:56)
15. The Troggs – Strange Movies (2:50)
16. David Bowie & Marianne Faithful – I Got You Babe (3:29)

Added: January 28th 2018
Reviewer: Jon Neudorf
Score:
Related Link: Artist's Official Site
Hits: 1423
Language: english

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