That David Bowie was a brilliant artist is pretty much
universally accepted, though few fans have much affection for his Deram-era
recordings. Before taking off with “Space Oddity” or zapping the glam movement
into action, Bowie fancied himself a Dickensian waif and crooned Anthony
Newley-esque psychedelic show tunes. This stuff is a tough sell for the average
Ziggy Stardust or “Heroes” fan, but I must admit that
there is something appealing about Bowie’s weird early stuff. Not that it
betrays his future brilliance. While his melodies are generally fine, his
singing is often overly mannered and his lyrics are downright bad: rambling,
pretentious, and so, so corny. His twee topics include his desire to buy a
coat, his desire to sell some toys, a magical land populated by children, and
his dream of being Sir Lancelot or something.
Yet, while this stuff should drive one bonkers well before
reaching the end of the Deram-era comp The
World of David Bowie (which Bowie, himself, mostly culled from his eponymous
debut album), it has quite the reverse affect. It’s a grower. Certainly the
ornate, super-’67 instrumental arrangements account for a great deal of this
collection’s charm, but perhaps it is also the fact that Bowie’s own innate
charm is irrepressible even when he’s partaking in a pretty major folly. And
some of the songs are good enough to enjoy without reservations or
qualifications, particularly catchy stuff like “Karma Man”, “Let Me Sleep with
You”, and “Silly Boy Blue”, which almost sounds like it could have found a home
on Hunky Dory (sadly, the truly mad “Laughing
Gnome” is not in attendance, though). Throw caution to the wind and enjoy.
The World of David
Bowie is another special record store day reissue from Universal Music.
This limited edition of 3,500 units is presented on blue vinyl and sounds quite
nice.
