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| David Bowie - Space Oddity Band: David Bowie Tracks: - Space Oddity - Unwashed and Somewhat Slightly Dazed - Don't Sit Down - Letter to Hermione - Cygnet Committee - Janine - Occasional Dream - Wild Eyed Boy from Freecloud - God Knows I'm Good - Memory of a Free Festival - Conversation Piece [Ryko Edition Only] - Memory of a Free Festival, Pt. 1 [Ryko Edition Only] - Memory of a Free Festival, Pt. 2 [Ryko Edition Only] A good album Older Bowie fans probably first heard this album after "Hunky Dory" and "Ziggy Stardust" when it RCA re-released it side by side with a reissue of "The Man Who Sold the World" to take advantage of his rising popularity. Aside from the timeless "Space Oddity," this album probably came as a bit of a shock to those of us expecting something flashier (or, perhaps, spacier). Mostly acoustic, this album shows the influence of Bob Dylan on the former David Jones, especially in the epic "Cygnet Committee," but that pretentious, though interesting track aside, there is much to recommend here. "An Occasional Dream" is a lovely ballad, "Janine" is a memorable pop song, and "The Wild Eyed Boy from Free Cloud" has an unusual western flavor very much at Odds with most of Bowie's output. Though it doesn't compare to later, more ambitious works, this is a good album. "Spy spy pretty girl. . ." There are Truly some outstanding lyrics and songs here. Allow me to begin with my personal favorites: "Unwashed and Somewhat Slightly Dazed," (hence my review title), "Janine," "Cygnet Committee," and "Memories of a Free Cloud Festival." Yes, we all know the title track (even non-Bowie fans know it well), but I don't think that it's the best track on this album. Perhaps I would think otherwise it I hadn't heard the song, oh, about ten thousand times. Do I exaggerate? Perhaps. But I do know that my non-Bowie fan friends (and I'm one of those Truly obsessive Bowie fans out there, as in "Oh I adore this musician I must absolutely own everything he has ever released and not only listen to all his albums day in and day out-- an offhand allusion there to his album "Never Let Me Down"-- but I must also make everyone in my circle listen to Bowie with the hope that they will, if not at least Love his music as I do, then they should certainly appreciate him as a musician!"), recognize "Space Oddity," and will at least humor me when it is played, by singing along. :)<BR>There is so much more to this album. It is a breakthrough, yes; somewhere between the Adorable likes of his early early stuff (such as "Love You Till Tuesday," "Little Bombadier," and his exquisite cover of "Penny Lane") and, say, "Hunky Dory," or "Alladin Sane," etc, etc., but it is a stupendous breakthrough, nevertheless. Critics may say that he was "finding his voice" with this album, that with this album he was becoming the David Bowie persona that would Change and Change again for his audience, and I must agree, but I'm not certain that it is necessary to listen to this album while comparing it to the rest of his oeuvre. Genius, yes. Way before his time, naturally. His lyrics appeal to my most poetic side while still compelling me to sing (or at least hum) along to his melodies. And "Space Oddity" does this; the songs grasp you, make you want to sing along, spaced out as you Change lanes, but you cannot help but to ponder the metaphorical/metaphysical/ philosophical aspects of his lyrics: "And I want to Believe/ In the Madness that calls "Now."/ That's a light's shining through,/ Somehow. . . And I Want to Believe. . . I Want to Live. . ." Even so, there are some lyrics that are maddingly simplistic and unforgettable: "So take your glasses off and don't act so sincere. . ." The best of all possible worlds, perhaps? That is to say, the profound and philosophical realm merging with the simplistic and beatific realm of happiness and well-being. . ."It was God's land/ It was ragged and naive/ It was Heaven. . ." It may sound exhaustingly cliched, but this album definitely captures the transition between the peachy blissed-out state of the sixties and the new awareness/consciousness of the se a strange and often marvellous album 'space oddity,' is perhaps one of the most bizarre david bowie albums ever made, and that really is saying something. unlike the glam-rock bombast that would be ziggy stardust or the cold, funky thin White duke, bowie presents us with major tom, an Astronaut who is lost in space. the songs on, 'space oddity,' veer from one musical style to the next. the title track displays bowie at his most dreamy and loose, but then, 'unwashed and somewhat slightly dazed,' explodes as a dylan-esque blues romp (this is also the song that features bowie's Immortal line, 'i'm a phallus in pigtails'). but after the short and forgettable, 'don't sit down,' 'cygnet committee really displays beautiful songwriting. it's sort of an extended jam which goes over 9 minutes. the next few songs are very forgettable, but once, 'wild eyed boy from freecloud,' comes on, you realize that his cheesy lyrics and subject matter can in fact be profound. this is perhaps most evident on, 'memory of a Free festival,' a wandering, isolated song. so get this album if you like any of bowie's transformations. it's hard to tell which character of his could make such an unpredictable album. 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