Journey Through The Past 31 : David Bowie Station to Station - It was theside effects of the Cocaine

Station to Station cemented David Bowie's reputation as rock's finest chameleon - a continuing search for fame and artistic relevance combined with an ability to pick from the best of the current alternative music and drug induced paranoia produced an album unlike anything else at the time.

When it was released it was not initially received that well by critics.  For a start there were only 6 (!) songs on it and one of them was, for rock fans, an obscure cover song.  It was not the "plastic soul" that Bowie described of Young Americans disco but a much funkier incarnation.  It was not really until the tour that accompanied it that its qualities started to be acknowledged.

Golden Years was the lead off single and probably the weakest track.  It was however the link between the previous album and the new one.  In NZ the images of Bowie on Soul Train looking emaciated and decidedly unfunky were worrying.   However this was at a time in Bowie's career when image meant less than the music though and the album was within hindsight a natural progression between Glam, Plastic Soul and the Berlin Period

Kicking off with the 10 minute title track the album delivers what I would call a metallic almost passionless funk. While the album as a whole is one of Bowie's most consistent the highlights are very high including Station to Station itself, the funky workout of Stay and Bowie's reinterpretation of the Johnny Mathis, Nina Simone song Wild is the Wind.  The latter is one of my stereo auditioning albums - and I particularly like the way that the drum lick at 4:25 comes in.   A few years ago a deluxe reissue of the album was made with a blistering live set from Nassau Coliseum in LA where many of the songs on the album were delivered with even more energy - with a particularly good version of Stay.