Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars (Original Motion Pictue Soundtrack) (2 Lp's)

Recorded at the Hammersmith Odeon, London, England in 1973. Includes liner notes by D.A. Pennebaker. When David Bowie killed off his fatalistic rock-star character Ziggy Stardust, he also announced his retirement from live performance. His "final" concert was filmed and the soundtrack sat on a shelf for a decade before its release in 1983. ZIGGY STARDUST -THE MOTION PICTURE is an interesting audio snapshot that represents the Ziggy Stardust arc and incorporates a few different facets of Bowie's career up to that point. Starting with the ragged, garage-rock meter of "Hang on to Yourself," Bowie introduces his beloved alien ("Ziggy Stardust"), and flirts with his flamboyant side (the medley of "Wild Eyed Boy From Freecloud/All The Young Dudes/Oh! You Pretty Things"). From here, Ziggy's transition ("Changes") into messianic figure takes him through a host of rock-star realities ("Let's Spend The Night Together," "White Light/White Heat") before his meteoric rise gets snuffed out in a flash ("Rock 'N' Roll Suicide"). Throughout the performance, it is easy to see how Bowie's combination of solid rock & roll aesthetics and over-the-top theatricality eventually spawned and shaped everything from glam-rock to later developments such as punk and Madonna. This is one of Bowie's best and most underrated live performances.