THE MAN WHO SOLD THE WORLD

One of the most interesting hard rock albums out there! Bowie's career is so diversified in terms of music and quality, and this is really his first great album, and probably most underrated and overlooked. The guitar playing here is phenomenal, as is the bass playing, played respectively, by Mick Ronson and producer Tony Visconti.

David Bowie is not a great melodist. His usual routine is to have quite poor melodies, backed by great instrumentations (though he's had his share of good melodies over the years). Here, the melodies are great, and his faux-cockney vocals sound really good. Never before or after did he sound as good as he does here, as consistently. It's the diversity in the lyrics, from madness, to blood lust, to a melancholy waltz with lyrics about God knows what. Bowie's next album, goes into full on folk-pop, and his previous offering to this was quite folky, but this mixture of hard rock, folk, lyrical imagery and great guitars/vocals, makes this Bowie's earliest masterpiece. Check this one out before his more well known one's, and you might be surprised how good it is. I'd give it an "A-".