Product Description

Track listing 1. Future Legend 2. Diamond Dogs 3. Sweet Thing 4. Candidate 5. Sweet Thing (reprise) 6. Rebel Rebel 7. Rock 'n' Roll With Me 8. We Are The Dead 9. 1984 10. Big Brother 11. Chant Of The Circling Skeletal Family

Track Listing

1. Future Legend
2. Diamond Dogs
3. Sweet Thing
4. Candidate
5. Sweet Thing (Reprise)
6. Rebel Rebel
7. Rock & Roll With Me
8. We Are the Dead
9. 1984
10. Big Brother
11. Chant of the Ever Circling Skeletal Family

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1815 in Music
• Released on: 1999-09-06
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Enhanced, Original recording reissued
• Dimensions: .24 pounds

Amazon.co.uk Review
George Orwell's classic tale of totalitarianism, 1984, was the inspiration for a project that David Bowie hoped would further solidify his standing as a rock visionary. Bowie was a natural artist to helm a musical companion to Orwell's allegory, since his own music exhibits an innate alienation. The concept ultimately broke down, but the music didn't. "Rebel Rebel" has become a rock staple, while "Sweet Thing," "Candidate," and the forthright yet experimental title track (Bowie as puppet master) offer additional highlights. Still, despite such benchmarks and its conceptual flaws, Diamond Dogs is best listened to as a thematic collection. --Rob O'Connor

CD Description
After George Orwell's widow refused Bowie the right to use 1984 as the title of his forthcoming album, he instead used the novel as a conceptual blueprint for what became DIAMOND DOGS. Accompanied only by keyboardist Mike Garson, bassist Herbie Flowers, and drummers Aynsley Dunbar and Tony Newman, Bowie played guitar, sax, Moog, and Mellotron, in addition to his contributions as vocalist, composer, arranger, and producer of the album. With the Orwellian themes as a loose backdrop, DIAMOND DOGS has much of the apocalyptic sense of future shock that informed ZIGGY STARDUST AND THE SPIDERS FROM MARS.
While the album doesn't have the musical punch or the songwriting strengths of ZIGGY, its gems make it more than worthwhile. The lush strings and dominant wah-wah guitar of "1984" seem like a nod to Isaac Hayes, while Bowie's howlsand snarling sax on the title track make it instantly memorable. The glam rock classic "Rebel Rebel", with its edgy guitar riff and strutting 4/4 beat, is the disc's highlight, and one of Bowie's all-time great songs. Amidst the imagery ofa gray, totalitarian future, Bowie injected some optimism by including the nostalgic "Rock 'N' Roll With Me", a good time, rootsy number that presaged his next transformation intothe blue-eyed soul singer of YOUNG AMERICANS.

Customer Reviews

How can you pick one favourite Bowie album!
Yes, it was originally supposed to be for a musical based on 1984. At the end of the day though it stands alone on the strength of the songs. This is, on occasion, my favourite Bowie album - although a great many of his albums have also held that spot. It starts with the spoken Future Legend which Bowie later made the mistake of trying to emulate on the Glass Spider. It sets the tone for one or two fairly dark moments - notably the Sweet Thing/Candidate/Sweet Thing (Reprise) section. This for me is the highlight of the whole album - strong both lyrically and musically. While some of the songs link obviously to the 1984 theme, these fit in feel unlike the rather more obvious 1984 and Big Brother. All in all a strong album which benefits from being listened to as a whole. If you want to hear some interesting cover versions of some of the tracks - try to find the Wedding Present doing Chant of the Ever Circling Skeletal Family or Rickie Lee Jones doing Rebel Rebel.

Halloween Jack's a real cool cat...
What began life as a sountrack to musical called 1984 ended up being this nightmare where the world is destroyed and mutants run across the landscape, only in the world of David Bowie could you end up with this!
With Bowie's backing band the Spiders from Mars having been dispenced with after the 1973 tour, the artist sets about playing and recording most of the songs here on his own playing the guitar part on "Rebel Rebel" himself.
The lyrics to this album are quite strange in construction I don't know if he used the "Andy Warhol" method of cutting up the words and re-arranging them afterwards to make something new or not but it sure sounds like to me, not that this is a bad thing you understand it sometimes gives you surreal results.
The re-mastering of this futuristic nightmare brings even more of "Bowies" vision to life to amuse and entertain the listener,with the clearer sound of this version allowing you to hear a lot more of what's going on.
This album was so far a head of the pack they still haven't caught up, with 1984 giving us a sneek preview of what was to come next in the "Bowie" world of tunes. An essental purchase for the causal or serious follower of the mans music...

Simply superb!
A dark and moody album where distorted guitar and sax are magically interwoven to produce an all time classic from Bowie. Not at all like Aladdin Sane which has an almost pop feel, nor like Ziggy which is acoustic-based, this album is far more complex and mature.

One of the interesting things about this music is the band - or lack of it! This album was recorded in 1974 just after the spiders had disbanded. Bowie therefore had a far greater input into this album than any previous, one would imagine. Evidence of this is the number of instruments he plays - accompanied by a drummer and occasional pianist and guitarist.

Get this it will grow on you with time and stay with you for ever.