by
David Bowie
- Record Label: Rhino
- Release Date: Nov 25, 2022
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MojoNov 23, 2022Exhaustive box set. ... Very much like a portrait artist will make numerous sketches, so we see the evolution of these songs as Bowie rewrites lyrics, improves melodies, tweaks arrangements, each stage an improvement on the previous. [Jan 2023, p.94]
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Dec 12, 2022For a box set focused on a single album, it doesn’t feel as self-indulgent as it might have; the multiple versions of songs are perhaps excessive for a passive listen, but the collection represents an invaluable document of his artistic growth.
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Nov 23, 2022Divine Symmetry for once does what it promises to do, which is track Bowie's progression in one extraordinary year. ... This is a comprehensive trawl through 1971 - and an extraordinary one. [Dec 2022, p.84]
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Nov 28, 2022It’s a remarkable time that is documented in superfan-satisfying detail in the 4-CD collection “A Divine Symmetry,” the latest in the long and beautifully compiled series of reissues from the Bowie estate (the vinyl will be available in February).
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Dec 2, 2022The end result is historically significant but also a pleasure: for anybody who has wanted to live within the world of Hunky Dory, this offers an excellent place to do just that.
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Nov 28, 2022Divine Symmetry shows that this metamorphosis didn’t happen without a good deal of huffing and puffing. Therein lies its intrigue, as the groundwork is revealed. ... It’s a fascinating journey.
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Nov 23, 2022Those lyrics [from previously unreleased demo, Tired Of My Life], slightly tweaked, would also make the final It’s No Game; that they date to this period of self-doubt and self-discovery and ended up bookending one of the greatest decade-long streaks in music is revelatory. Demos of Hunky Dory standouts have fewer surprises: written during a spate of fevered creativity in Haddon Hall, his boho Beckenham pile, everything is all but there, a few lyrical improvements aside.
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Nov 23, 2022The collection’s treasure trove of five discs contains raw demos, radio sessions, a rare live concert, and alternative mixes that show how Bowie was desperate to figure out his next step. ... The songs that didn’t make it to Hunky Dory studio versions are even more revealing. Each shows Bowie was woodshedding new characters. ... The rest of the demos show how Bowie developed his sound and stuck to his vision when he got into the studio.