LET'S DANCE

To be fair to Bowie, his attempt at going commercial did at least pay off big time, which is more than some art rockers from the 1970s can say - remember Camel's debacle with The Single Factor? As time goes by and the 1990s backlash against the slick aesthetics of 1980s pop fades, I find I have more and more time for Let's Dance; it's a really dynamite set of songs which might not be particularly art rock but hit the new wave art pop style of the era with perfection. (It can slot nicely between ABC's The Lexicon of Love and Prefab Sprout's From Langley Park to Memphis in any collection.)

The best song on the album is probably China Girl. Yes, I find the original version on Iggy Pop's debut solo album The Idiot is far superior - Iggy's tortured roar really brings out the raw emotion of the piece, the post-punk delivery rocks harder, and it isn't afflicted with the irritating appropriation of Chinese musical motifs and Orientalism that Bowie indulges in here. Nonetheless, it somehow works in Bowie's hands, transforming from a heart-wrenching cry of pain into a jaded reflection on a relationship gone awry. It's just very, very cool, and that's true of the rest of the album too: as suggested by Bowie's prizefighter posing on the cover, this is a soundtrack for rolling with the punches and coming out on top.