David Bowie had always yearned for fame and success. In his search for success, he had tried out a variety of alter egos and guises as influence for his studio recordings and live performances. These attempts got him varying amount of success, and by the time he had joined the Beatles, he basically dropped the idea entirely. That was until late 1971. Bowie played local clubs and venues with his side band Hype when the Beatles weren't recording or playing the odd performance (John Lennon hadn't gotten fully around to playing live just yet), and it was during this period of time that he began to develop a character, one that would serve as the main character of a story that would play out on an album. The androgynous space alien was inspired mainly by Vince Taylor, but Andy Warhol, Lou Reed, Iggy Pop and Gary Glitter would all serve as other influences.
After farming out songs within a matter of months by the summer of 1972, Bowie knew he had a goldmine on his hands and knew he had to save it for the Beatles. Lennon and Paul McCartney surprisingly liked what they heard, although McCartney famously told Bowie to "tone down the poof stuff". Recording began in late 1972 with Lennon and McCartney giving Bowie full reign of the project. This proved to be an issue down the line, as Bowie couldn't stop writing new (and really good) songs. With the amount of songs that Bowie (as well as Lennon and McCartney) had, the band decided not only to make the album a double, but to extend the story into a second album that would release sometime after the first. Bowie's vision of the story grew more and more to the point of hyper-fixation. In later years, Bowie would release entire manuscripts of unused Ziggy Stardust concepts.
The album, Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, would release on April 20, 1973. It's release would prove massive, with rock critics and fans alike agreeing that the Beatles had finally caught up with other huge bands at the time. A rock opera was just what they needed to reach out to old and new fans and bridge the gap between classic rock and the emerging glam-rock subgenre. The only thing people criticized was just how much Bowie contributed. It was starting to feel like Lennon and McCartney were being left out, even though it was still their band. Their next album, released only a few months later, would prove the criticism even more correct.
Story for Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars:
A news broadcast reveals that Earth only has five years before impending apocalyptic disaster. People around the world hear the news as they go about their everyday lives. They show a mix of negative emotions, with some feeling confused, some going about their everyday lives and some turning to God to be saved. A rock star space alien named Ziggy Stardust and his backing band, The Spiders from Mars, introduces themselves, and Ziggy proclaims himself a savior for the human race. He shines his message of hope over the people, saying only they can save the world. He tells them through radio to relieve their sins while still having a good time. The people revere him as a god-like figure.
Ziggy and his band go on a world tour, bringing goodwill to all in his path. He plays the hardest rock and roll music of his day, with his atonement of sin ironically bringing more sin through his raunchy music. It's because of this that Ziggy questions his role as a rock and roll star and asks if it's all worthwhile. Sure it may be easy for him to say it, but if all he gets is sex and appraisal, what's the point of it all? Ziggy is put in front of the stage and abandons his sexual climax for a chance at stardom, and yet he fails, leading to his downfall. His downfall makes him down and out, leading to a figurative "Meat City", before realizing he can't satisfy his fans. He dies, not in blood, but directly on the stage as the whole world watches. But it is for naught, as the wishes of the audience brings him back to life as a new, and holier, man. His band is not so lucky, and they are arrested. Now they have to watch the world burn stuck inside those four walls.
THE BEATLES - ZIGGY STARDUST AND THE SPIDERS FROM MARS
Released: 20 April 1973
Genre: Pop rock, glam rock, soft rock, hard rock, art rock
Producer: The Beatles, George Martin, Ken Scott
Side A
Five Years
Good Morning, Young Master
One Day at a Time
Soul Love
Country Dreamer
God Save Us
Side B
Moonage Daydream
Get on the Right Thing
Only People
Devil Woman
Hi, Hi, Hi
Starman
Side C
Night Out
Watch That Man
Soily
Rock 'n' Roll Star
Rock 'n' Roll People
Velvet Goldmine
Easy for Me
Side D
Hang On to Yourself
Down and Out
Meat City
Live and Let Die
My Death
Here We Go Again
Track list sources:
Tracks are sourced from Ziggy Stardust, Red Rose Speedway (Archive Collection), Mind Games, Imagine (Ultimate Collection), Ringo, Aladdin Sane, Venus and Mars (Archive Collection), Menlove Ave., Five Years (1969-1973), and Goodnight Vienna. "Good Morning, Young Master" is "1882" from the Archive Collection of Red Rose Speedway. A mix is planned for this album in the future that fixes transitions.
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