David Live was a concert album recorded in July of 1974 at the Tower Philedelphia. It was released on CD back in the 80s, and just recently, it has been re-released on DVD-Audio with brand new 5.1 mixes, and a brand new improved Stereo Mix. This and, David Bowie - Stage are two of Bowies early concert CDs now available on DVD-Audio. Before this, only The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars was available on Super Audio Compact Disc in the Surround Sound format. Let's Dance and Scary Monsters are also available on SACD, but are only in stereo. Why the switch to DVD-Audio? I don't know, but since my systems play both, it doesn't matter.
So lets take a listen to this concert.
DVD-Audio Tracks
For those of us with DVD-Audio players, there is a 5.1 DVD A track, those with DVD players, a DTS 5.1 track, and a PCM stereo track, especially remixed for this album. All 3 tracks are sampled at 48K with a 24 bit depth.
The Songs / Performance
The concert starts with a rousing version of 1984 right into Rebel, Rebel and Moonage Daydream. Michael Kamen was the musical tour director and played keyboards and oboe in this concert. Mike Garson was also on keyboards, and hot guitarist Earl Slick was Bowie's lead guitarist for this show. David Sanborn was on alto saxaphone, and Pablo Rosario was the percussionist. He also had Geoffrey MacCOrmack and Gui Andisano on backup vocals and acoustic guitar. Needless to say, the band has a very full sound throughout this concert.
The tempo slows down for a bit for a melody of Sweet Thing/Candidate and Sweet Thing (reprise) Bowies voice is deep and drawn out as he sings these Diamond Dog tunes. The songs get a slow moody drawn out feel that they didn't get on the studio album, and the sound is great. The song melody is punctuated by the saxaphone. Bowie and his band have the ability to make a song sound raw and polished all at the same time.
An off key piano starts off Changes which suddenly finds its pace as Bowie starts to sing. Soon the familiar chorus rings out Ch ch ch changes, time may change me, but I can't change time.
Growling lead guitars start off Suffragette City. This song sounds pretty close to the studio version, but with a bit of extra 'growl' to it.
One of my favorite Bowie tunes is next, the title cut to Aladdin Sane. The sound starts off with a crazy amount of percussion, until the familiar wind instruments start in on the opening refrain of the song watching them dash away, tracking an old bouquet .. dead roses passionate bright young things, uh uh uh uh uh uhhhh you'll love a lad insane. The band adds flavors of instruments throughout, adding a whole new flavor to the song. As the song fades out, the piano goes crazy riffing back and forth.
A caberet like performance is given to All the Young Dudes a song Bowie wrote for Marc Bolin of T-Rex. brothers back at home with his Beatles and his Stones, I never got off on that revolution stuff. Then its Cracked Actor a song that doesn't even try to hide its overtly sexual themes. You found yourself a trick down on Sunset and Vine Whose it about? I'm not sure, but it could be about anyone today even. Cracked actors and sex scandals just go together.
Ziggy's Rock n Roll with Me is played slow and melancholy with almost lounge like piano accompaniment. Banging drums start in the next tune Watch That Man which plays out with frantic energy. Some silly ones come next with Knock on wood; Here Today, Gone Tomorrow, and Space Oddity. Space Oddity rocked! Can You hear me Major Tom? Can you hear me Major Tom? I'm here and I'm floating in my tin can, far above the moon.
Diamond Dogs comes up next with a straight out performance followed by Panic in Detroit Panic is extended to give Earl Slick to go into some blazing extended guitar riffs and solos. A few other instruments join in including, sax, drums and bass. The opressive Big Brother starts in with heavy Orwellian overtures. Bowie sounds like he just had a long visit with the Ministry of Truth as he sings We'll build a glass asylum, with just a hint of mayhem, We'll build a better whirlpool, we'll be living in sin, we can really begin Heavy saxaphones and drums crash down on either side of Bowie.
Time starts off with an old vaudeville piano, some assorted strange fun house noises 'til Bowie wails out Time is waiting in the wings, it speaks of senseless things, its script is you and me booyyy Bowie wretches every bit he can out of each word, as he laments how time demanded Billy Dolls and other friends of mine. The Width of a Circle a tune I had forgotten from The Man Who Sold the World gets a rocking treatment next. On the studio version, its a quiet mellow song, live, a new life is given to it.
The Gene Genie poor gene genie snuck into the city Bowie sings, with just a subtle bass riff behind him, til the song explodes with the whole band jamming out. The song slows down again as Bowie sings out some more about Gene Genie, then boom, the band explodes with the chorus again.
The concert closes with Rock 'n'Roll Suicide
Summary The engineering of this DVD-Audio mix was really well done, I felt like I was right there in one of the front rows. Audience ambiance and some echo effects are in the rear channels, and the band's sound stage is spread across the left, center, right channels as if you were actually at the concert. Different instruments are easy to place on stage. Bowies vocals sound fantastic, and the sound is very good. I felt that Bowie and his band were in very good form for this show. I've seen Bowie four times live in concert, and this is one of three concert albums I have by him. (The others being Stage on CD and DVD-Audio and the Reality Tour on DVD). Although others are a bit better, this certainly merits four stars.
For more DVD-Audio Reviews:
David Bowie Stage // Eric Clapton & B.B.King - Riding with the King // Alice Cooper - Welcome to My Nightmare // Dire Straights - Brothers in Arms 20th Anniversary Edition (Dual Disc with DVD-Audio on DVD side) // The Doors - L.A. Woman // The Flaming Lips - Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots // Fleetwood Mac - Rumours // Foreigner - Four // Alicia Keys - Songs in A Minor // Metallica - Metallica (the Black Album) // Santana - Supernatural // Britney Spears - In the Zone //
Steely Dan - Two Against Nature // Neil Young Harvest // On the Beach // Hawks n Doves // Road Rock Volume 1
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