Episodes
Friday Jul 05, 2019
Bowie in the Year 2019: Releases So Far
Friday Jul 05, 2019
Friday Jul 05, 2019
So here we are, half way through the Year of Our Lord 2019. It's been a stupidly prolific year for our man Bowie and it seems like a good time to take a look at what the Bowie kingdom has been tossing out so far to an unprepared and largely unappreciative world. And hey, we'll also take a peek at what's to come for the second half. Why not?
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January
David Bowie Is... The AR Exhibition App
David Bowie Is... was an apparently fabulous museum exhibition that traveled the globe for five years. If you're like me, it didn't find its way anywhere near your home so this app version is a fabulous look at what you might have seen. It's a great experience and narrated by Gary Oldman to boot. I recommend it.
February
In February, the Bowie camp released "breakouts", or standalone copies, of some of the remastered titles included in last year's big ol' 80s-centric box set, Loving the Alien. Nothing new if you already own the set but possibly of interest if you skipped it. It marks the first audio-only release of Serious Moonlight and the first standalone release of Glass Spider.
Let's Dance LP
Let's Dance CD
Serious Moonlight Live 2xCD (no standalone release on vinyl)
Tonight LP
Tonight CD
Never Let Me Down LP
Never Let Me Down CD
Glass Spider Live 2xCD (no vinyl for this one either)
March
Ricochet Book
Previously released last year as an absolutely insane $4,000 dollar version, someone finally came to their senses and put it out as a normal hardcover that doesn't require taking out a second mortgage on your house. It's the first book ever to be officially approved by the Bowie Archive. I haven't read it yet, but it looks good.
April
Spying Through a Keyhole Box Set
The first truly interesting release of the year, it features nine previously unreleased Bowie demos from 1968. Exciting! Unfortunately, they decided to release it only on four 7" discs which makes for an annoying- and expensive- listening experience.
Pin Ups 12" Picture Disc, Revolutionary Song/Just a Gigolo 7" Colored Disc, World of David Bowie 12" Colored LP
These three little numbers were all Record Store Day exclusives. While they look pretty, there's no new music here. Record Store Day releases are brick & mortar store exclusives but you can certainly find something on Discogs or eBay if you search.
May
Clareville Grove Demos Box Set
Another exciting collection of early demos, this time from 1969. 4 out of 6 of them are unreleased. Like Spying Through a Keyhole above, it was released exclusively as 7" singles for some reason. I'm so disappointed in the format and price that I didn't buy this even though I'm such a big fan that I run my own Bowie website and podcast.
Boys Keep Swinging 40th Anniversary Picture Disc
Another in a quite long line of 40th anniversary picture disc singles; you're pretty much into these things or you're not. Personally, I'm not.
Tin Machine Nine Song Compilation
A surprise digital release of a long unavailable video from Bowie's late 80s/early 90s hard rock side project, Tin Machine. You can buy it on iTunes (see link above) or watch it for free on YouTube.
Diamond Dogs Red LP
Because we really need Parlophone to continue honoring Bowie's 45th anniversaries along with the 50th, 40th, and 30th. It's Diamond Dogs! Again! Just like when they re-released it in 2016! Except on red vinyl for some reason! No link on this one because it was a brick & mortar shop exclusive. They also released the original UK single version of "Rebel Rebel" sourced from the master tapes which were discovered sometime after it was released in 2016 as a needle drop recording. You can buy it digitally here.
June
Mercury Demos Box Set
Another exciting batch of almost entirely unreleased 1969 demos, this time sensibly released on a single LP. Not so sensibly priced at an absolutely absurd $70. Again, Parlophone, when you manage to put out 40 minutes of unreleased Bowie music that a guy like me refuses to purchase, you know you're doing something wrong.
DJ 40th Anniversary Picture Disc
The next in the long line of 40th anniversary picture discs.
Notably, in late June-early July, the three exclusive vinyl box sets found their way onto streaming services, which is appreciated. I'm still really hoping for a CD or digital release before the end of the year, though.
July
Space Oddity 50th Anniversary Box Set
Scheduled for release on July 12, this is the fourth in their campaign of unnecessarily elaborate and expensive vinyl only box sets. It features a replica of the original "Space Oddity" 7" vinyl single, the same thing remixed, and a bunch of swag. No new material.
The Future
So that's what we've had so far. What can we expect for the rest of the year? Nothing else has been officially announced yet, which probably means there won't be anything for August. Past that? We have a few safe bets.
Tin Machine Big Ol' Box Set
The Bowie camp has released a big ol' box set (13-15 LPs, 11-12 CDs) for the last four years in a row. It looks like they will again this year and it looks like it will center around the Tin Machine years (1989-1992). It'll probably come out in September or October. I wrote at length about my thoughts for this set here.
More 40th Anniversary Picture Disc Singles
These have been a staple of Bowie releases for the last few years. Bowie released three other singles in '79 though two of them ("Look Back in Anger" and "Yassassin") weren't released in the UK, which seems to be their basis. That leaves "John, I'm Only Dancing (Again)".
David Bowie 1969 Album 50th Anniversary
The Bowie camp has made it clear that they're obsessed with anniversaries, particularly the 50th anniversary of Bowie's breakthrough single, "Space Oddity". Its parent album, originally self-titled and later just titled Space Oddity was initially released in November of 1969. I can't image they won't honor this with a release of some kind. Maybe a multi-disc box set for the album collecting the vinyl sets from the year? Maybe a complete remix by Tony Visconti (he already remixed the single this year)? Maybe other unreleased material? Here's hoping it's something exciting and at least moderately affordable. Copyrights expire after 50 years if the recorded material has never been released in any format. The Bowie camp is going to have to get some more stuff out or ultimately lose rights forever. Notably, not a single live recording has been released from '69 (aside from a BBC session) and Bowie did 70+ shows. I have to assume at least one of them was recorded.
David Bowie Is... Virtual Reality App
When the above mentioned David Bowie app was first released it came out in an augmented reality version. They immediately promised a virtual reality version later in the year. We'll likely see it before 2019 is out.
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