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Originally Posted by viewtiful_alan
Anyone here heard his first album? I've heard a single from the era, but I've heard the album is awful
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The album is pretty much a collection of singles. I don't think it's awful at all though.
He hadn't found himself as an artist yet (he wasn't even going by David Bowie when he released it, but Davy Jones, which he had to change to differentiate himself from the Monkees singer), but the root of who he would become was pretty evident in hindsight. The show-tuney sound that comes through on "The Wild-eyed Boy from Free Cloud" on Space Oddity was also pretty prevalent on a lot of those singles as were all the influences he layed out in the open later with the covers on Pinups. For a whimsical record from an artist of immense potential, it's really quite good. "Silly Boy Blue", "Join the Gang", and "Come and Buy My Toys" are really decent songs, and for all the novelty "The Laughing Gnome" is a pretty fun Syd Barrett rip off. "Please Mr. Gravedigger" is actually quite brilliant, and a must play for Halloween radio shows and mix tapes.
I think it's a much stronger record than many I've heard called genius by such and such indie rock songwriter who's just trying to do pretty much the same thing.