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by
David Bowie
- Record Label: Rhino
- Release Date: Nov 26, 2021
- Summary:
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- Record Label: Rhino
- Genre(s): Pop/Rock, Alternative/Indie Rock, Contemporary Pop/Rock, Album Rock, Experimental Rock, Art Rock, Dance-Rock
- More Details and Credits »
Score distribution:
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Positive: 8 out of 9
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Mixed: 1 out of 9
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Negative: 0 out of 9
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Nov 29, 2021Although you won’t find an overlooked “Life on Mars?” or “The Man Who Sold the World” here, it’s still Bowie, challenging himself again after those years in the wilderness, with the familiar haunting refrains, the unusual chord changes, the verses in Cockney accent, the Syd Barrett and Ray Davies-esque melodies, and most of all his still-stunning voice. Nearly all of the albums here have at least glimpses of that greatness and a couple of killer songs or moments.
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Nov 29, 2021Toy features Bowie revisiting a bunch of songs he wrote in the '60s, most written and recorded prior to "Space Oddity." Hearing Bowie apply Hours aesthetics to swinging, mod-ish material is odd but mildly appealing; it's a slight record but it's nice to have it as part of the official discography. The rest of the box follows a familiar and comforting pattern, confirming that the '90s were a bit of a creative resurgence for Bowie.
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Nov 29, 2021While the Toy highlight Shadow Man introduces “… a man back a-ways/Who believes at where he is”, at this stage of his career, David Bowie could reflect on where he’d been with pride – including, as Brilliant Adventures shows, another decade of committing to himself.
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UncutNov 29, 2021The pick of the bunch are the two recordings made in 2000. The first is a live set recorded shortly after Glastonbury at the BC Radio Theatre featuring Bowie's well-drilled band on a post-Glasto high, working through the hits. The second is Toy. [Jan 2022, p.38]
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MojoNov 29, 2021It's a daunting but ultimately rewarding listen. [Jan 2022, p.92]
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Classic Rock MagazineNov 29, 2021A rich feast for connoisseurs, a rewarding research project for curious casual fans. [Dec 2021, p.78]
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Nov 29, 2021In the 70s and 80s, you were never far from a new release repackaging Bowie’s pre-fame 60s material, usually with a cover photograph that deceptively implied the contents were contemporary rather than archival. Toy offers a more tasteful sampling of that era. It includes the two best songs Bowie wrote before Space Oddity.
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