378. David Bowie - Low (1977)
















Track Listing

1. Speed of Life
2. Breaking Glass
3. What in the World
4. Sound and Vision
5. Always Crashing in the Same Car
6. Be My Wife
7. New Career in a New Town
8. Warszawa
9. Art Decade
10. Weeping Wall
11. Subterraneans

Review

Pitchfork Media recently voted this the best album of the 1970's, and even though I probably wouldn't go as far as that I would go pretty close to it. This is one of my favourite albums of all time and if you have been following this list you have to think that for me a mix of Eno and Bowie would always be a bit orgasmic.

So what are probably my two favourite single artists of all time get together to make some albums, and the first thing they come out with is this little piece called Low. The first half of it is full of some of the most interesting pop tracks ever committed to vinyl, by themselves these tracks would already get a 10 rating, particularly Sound And Vision, but then you turn to the other side and the Eno bit comes in stronger with strong input from Bowie in some amazing ambient tracks with only indiscernible lyrics.

This album is inventing all kinds of stuff, it is no wonder that Joy Division were originally called Warszawa as a tribute to that track there are the birth-pangs here of new-wave, post-punk, synth-pop but done with such avant-garde artistry that it was never surpassed. Eno and Bowie would go on to make two other great albums but none better than Low.

Track Highlights

1. Sound And Vision
2. Weeping Wall
3. Warszawa
4. Be My Wife

Final Grade

10/10

Trivia

From Wikipedia:

ow earned mixed reviews on its initial release. It was a financial success, peaking at #2 on the UK charts and #11 in the U.S.. "Sound and Vision" and "Be My Wife" were released as singles; the former reached #3 in the UK.

Low has risen to the top of many critics' "best album" lists. It was rated the #1 album of the 1970s by Pitchfork Media. In 2000 Q placed it at number 14 in its list of the 100 Greatest British Albums Ever. In 2003, the album was ranked number 249 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

Philip Glass based his 1992 classical album Low Symphony on Low, with Bowie and Eno both assisting in its creation. "Bowi", an EP by Nick Lowe, was named in response to Low.

The influence of Low spans many genres that would come to prominence in following years such as Post-punk, New Wave and Industrial. Not only was it an influence on these styles, but the fact that an artist of Bowie's prominence had experimented with these styles made other proponents of the genres more respectable. Trent Reznor would later claim Low to be one of his influences while creating The Downward Spiral. As late as 2000, Radiohead looked to be attempting a similar concept and sound with their album Kid A.

Sound And Vision: