David Bowie - Space Oddity

This 1969 release features David Bowie's first hit single, "Space Oddity," and sets the tone for the spacey Ziggy Stardust to come. But other than the title track, Space Oddity isn't a glam-rock album. For that phase, one must move ahead to 1970's The Man Who Sold the World. These folk-based tracks largely present Bowie as a surrealist singer-songwriter. The uncharacteristically bitter and sarcastic "Letter to Hermione" is the most impassioned track here, presenting, as it does, the angry side of this master of cool. While still earlier recordings are noted for their Anthony Newley affectations, Space Oddity is where the Bowie myth begins to take shape. --Rob O'Connor Amazon.com

why is this album not considered a classic?

Space Oddity is probably my favorite David Bowie album. I guess for most people, this album only shows signs of what Bowie would soon become in the future- a creative, glammy songwriting genius.

For me however, it shows a really melodic and exciting side of Bowie that we've never really had again. It's mellow without the spooky edge, which is really exciting to me.

I love the entire second half of the album. Every single song on the second half reminds me of either the Nashville Skyline-era of Bob Dylan, or the classic period of the Moody Blues with all the pretty orchestrations and flutes. The songwriting is top notch as well. The lyrics are definitely some of Bowie's most interesting, and I'm curious what some of the songs are even about.

The first half is quite fascinating as well. We all know the mysterious title song, with its eerie countdown in the beginning, and the floating-in-outer space atmosphere. A classic.

"Unwashed and Somewhat Slightly Dazed" features a very sad vocal melody in the beginning, and a nice unexpected harmonica jam a few minutes later. It's a shame "Don't Sit Down" is so short, because that melody certainty had the potential to carry on for a few more minutes.

I don't understand how so many people think "Cygnet Committee" sounds like a Bob Dylan rip-off. To me, it sounds more like something from Van Morrison's Astral Weeks. I love the way the song continues to build into different themes and emotions. "Janine" is brilliant. It's a pop song that sounds like -and I'm honestly not joking- Italian country pop (if such a thing exists!) That guitar playing is really splendid on this track and reminds me of CCR or the Band. "Memory of a Free Festival" is bizarre in the quiet Midwest country fair-like build-up and the "Hey Jude" like chorus that keeps repeating over and over.

Overall, the vocal melodies on this album really grab me every time. A masterpiece that more people should consider purchasing and placing on the same level as other Bowie classics such as Hunky Dory and Aladdin Sane. Really solid songwriting overall. February 9, 2008

Joan's Review of Space Oddity

This is one of David's favorite works of mine. Every song has words that make you think about life and God and what we should and should not be like. The music is inspiring and lifts you up. The songs start out calm and then lift you up. February 8, 2007

The Sun Machine is coming down, and we're gonna have a party.

This is David Bowie's first "rock" album, and his second album overall. That first album cast him as a Bob Dylan wannabe, and the less said about it, the better. Recorded several years before the title track became a hit in the U.S., Space Oddity marks the emergence of a different beast, a slippery rock & roll chameleon. Aside from the alien resonance of "Space Oddity", the album flounders amid indistinct writing and playing. The album does have it's moments, especially on "Unwashed and Somewhat Slightly Dazed", "Wild Eyed Boy From Freecloud" and "Memory of a Free Festival"; but Bowie is still trying too hard to emulate Dylan, rather then developing his own style. A decent album, but better things came later from Bowie. January 29, 2007

The Sun Machine is coming down...

Mr. Bowie's sophomore effort is a lot better than most people give credit. Although there are a couple of lame songs (mostly the soft acoustic stuff), a glimpse of greatness can be seen and in some slight cases, that greatness is realized. "Space Oddity" the song has been called out-of-place and may have been better served as a non-lp single, but the song is so great that as an album opener it's a no-brainer. His first real classic, this tale of a lost spaceman may seem to foreshadow Ziggy, but I don't believe that is accurate due to the latter being sci-fi in nature as opposed to the science fact (by 1969 anyway) of "Oddity". Other favorites include "Unwashed and Somewhat Slightly Dazed", a great acoustic tinged rocker (phallus in pigtails??); "Cygnet Committee", a long number that doesn't really seem that way as the anger in David's voice continues to build to a crescendo; "Janine" a catchy rocker with a great singalong chorus; and last but not least "Memory of a Free Festival" (did Oasis know this song before they did "Champagne Supernova", they are very similar). "Wild-Eyed Boy" I think is slightly overrated being not as memorable as some of the aforementioned tunes, but maybe that's me. I don't get the glam rock references in the other reviews, this has NO GLAM ROCK!(at least in how I would define the term.) As stylistically different from his debut as it would be from succeeding records, 'Space Oddity' is a decided step away from his greatest albums(the next one being his first true masterwork), but it is still an essential piece of work and definitely his first truly serious record. October 1, 2006

Great but not phenomanal

David Bowies album named for the song Space oddity is one of his greatest. Two songs people stand out in particular. Cygnent Comittie and God knows I'm good. CC is a great song about the down fall of the hippies. The lines like I gave them life I gave them all they draind my very soul dry showshow hippies have no charesmatic leader. God knows I'm Good is a song about theaving from a story. THe other songs are not worth mentioning >>
-- August 11, 2006

More reviews at Amazon.com ...