Track Listing

1. Station To Station
2. Golden Years
3. Word On A Wing
4. TVC 15
5. Stay
6. Wild Is The Wind

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1688 in Music
• Released on: 1999-09-20
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Enhanced, Original recording reissued
• Dimensions: .47 pounds

Amazon.co.uk Review
An eerie dispatch from the furthest reaches of Bowie's cocaine paranoia, Station To Station has not become easier to listen to with the passing years. At this stage, Bowie was wrapped up in his peculiar--even by his standards--Thin White Duke period, which revolved largely around dressing like a fugitive war criminal and not blinking, at least not in public. Appropriate to such a detached, deranged persona, Bowie set about making what was effectively a soul record devoid of any soul whatsoever. He did it, as well. Station To Station spawned one lingering hit, in "Golden Years", but the album was littered with malevolent miracles. Bowie crooned like a replica Sinatra on "Word on A Wing" and "Wild is the Wind" and may have single-handedly invented the New Romantic movement with "TVC15". He sounds throughout on the verge of cackling dementedly and wandering off into the night; Station To Station is an absorbing postcard from somewhere you're kind of glad you haven't been. --Andrew Mueller

CD Description
STATION TO STATION was the soundtrack to Bowie's nightlife.This time around he fashioned himself as the king of slick,the "Thin White Duke/Throwing darts in lover's eyes". This new persona enabled Bowie to show his sensual side and his affection for American soul music--something that would have seemed out of context on previous efforts.
The album's smooth vibe is evident in the funky guitar of "Golden Years", and mixed with a dangerous charm and the "side effects of the cocaine" on "Stay". Bowie had miraculously done it again--he picked up a new musical identity, and molded it to perfection.
STATION TO STATION was a refining period for Bowie.Gone was his other-worldly sexuality; The Thin White Duke was right here on Earth, no alien veneer, just a man completely run by his desires. It is then purely appropriate that the medium through which he expressed this lustful angle wouldbe soul music. Carlos Alomar's biting guitar on "Golden Years" is straight out of the James Brown catalogue, while the frantic drums and background vocals of "Stay" are pure strobe light disco.

Customer Reviews

In this age of grand illusion ...
Although Station to Station contains only six songs (eight tracks with the two live versions), they are the most memorable that Bowie ever recorded. The fast-paced title track Station to Station falls in a genre of journey songs - emphatically not the familiar rock road song - like Kraftwerk's 1977 track Europa Endloss on Trans Europa Express that creates the impression of a train ride with constantly changing scenery.

In the disco era, the French singer Patrick Juvet recorded a 14-minute long suite I Love America on his Got A Feeling album that was a musical tour through the United States. Closer to Bowie's own style was the hypnotic I Travel with its propulsive rhythm by Simple Minds and Touch by Lori & The Chameleons.

The tempo slows down somewhat for the melodic Golden Years with its catchy hooks, poetic lyrics, appealing rhythm and soulful tonality. What a gem of a song! Next comes another masterpiece, this time a devotional one. Word on a Wing is a sublime ballad with an enchanting tune and lyrics expressing spiritual yearning that match any poem in the English literature on this theme. The vocal arrangement is spectacular on many levels, including subtle segments and soaring sections.

There is some similarity in literary technique here with the Ben Jonson poem To Celia that was set to music as Drink to me Only with Thine Eyes and recorded by artists as diverse as Kathleen Ferrier and Swans. The similarity lies in the ambiguity; parts of both compositions contain phrasing that seems to deal with romantic love but the overall tone is clearly spiritual.

TVC15 is a powerful uptempo number in a sort of proto-disco style whilst Stay's nervous guitar-driven rhythmic texture and tempo shifts place it firmly in the rock tradition. Then follows the theme song of the 1957 movie Wild Is the Wind, written by Dimitri Tiomkin & Ned Washington, originally recorded by Johnny Mathis and later covered by Nina Simone on her album Wild Is the Wind. As a melodious ballad with a wistful air, it perfectly complements Word on a Wing.

The enhanced album has live versions of Word on a Wing where Bowie sings with a blocked nose (a cold or what, hmmm?) and Stay, both recorded on the 1976 Station To Station tour. They are both beautiful and appealing in their slightly different arrangements and vocal delivery. In my opinion Station is Bowie's best album, surpassing even the influential The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust in song quality and emotional depth.

One not to be overlooked
This review is for the casual fan, as every Bowie diehard knows how brilliant this album is already, in fact it rates amongst his best, so if you're getting into Bowie more and more and have either bought: 'The Singles Collection', 'Best Of Bowie' or 'The Platinum Collection' then you'll already be familiar with 'Golden Years', 'TVC 15' and 'Wild Is The Wind' and could easily come to the conclusion that this isn't worth getting on the basis that as it's only six tracks long, you already own half of it. This would be a big mistake, because the remaining three tracks: 'Station To Station', 'Word On A Wing' and 'Stay' are cracking sublime stuff, plus they're all fairly longish tracks, with the title track clocking in at about eight mins long, so there is still a lot of this album to listen to. This review will concentrate on just those three tracks.

'Station To Station' is an adrenalized rhythmic tour-de-force of a rock track that is slick and cool beyond words and builds up momento as it progresses along. 'Word On A Wing' is a very laid back soulful song, that like 'Golden Years' has excellent harmonies to it. 'Stay' is a seriously tight, rhythmic funk fuelled rock track, with great base playing from Carlos Alomar and soaring guitar solos from Earl Slick.

This is a must have, not to be overlooked because you'll be seriously missing out.

One of Bowie's finest albums
From the sublime title track onwards this remains one of Bowie's best albums. The track listing may look a little on the small side, but these are simply some of Bowie's best recordings to date.

The opener, clocking in at over 10 minutes, is nothing short of stunning. Other standout tracks such as 'Stay', 'Word on a Wing' and the often underrated (although not by Bowie himself) 'TVC 15' round off an amazing package. The best-known cut on the album is proably 'Golden Years' (the album's big single) but it's actually one of the least interesting songs here.

The remastered version drops the two additional mixes of 'Stay' and 'Word on a Wing' that were found on the early-90's Ryko reissue, but the album isn't any poorer for losing them. The actual remaster doesn't sound a whole lot different from the original, but as it didn't sound bad to start off with, this is nothing to lose sleep over.

A must-have for any Bowie fan.