The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars

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The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars

The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (often shortened to Ziggy Stardust) is a 1972 concept album

Concept album

In popular music, a concept album is an album that is "unified by a theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, narrative, or lyrical". Commonly, concept albums tend to incorporate preconceived musical or lyrical ideas rather than being musical improvisation or composed in the studio, with all songs contributing to narrative....
by English

England

David Bowie

David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and Arrangement. Active in five decades of rock music and frequently reinventing his music and image, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s....
. It peaked at number five in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom , the UK or Britain,is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe....
and number 75 in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a Federal government constitutional republic comprising U.S. state and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its Contiguous United States and Washington, D.C., the Capital districts and territories, lie between the Pacific Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, Borders of the U...
on the Billboard Music Charts. A concert film of the same name

Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (film)

Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars: The Motion Picture was a 1973 documentary film and concert movie by D.A. Pennebaker. It features David Bowie and his backing group The Spiders from Mars performing at the Hammersmith Odeon, July 3rd 1973....
directed by D.A. Pennebaker was released in 1973.

album presents the story, albeit vaguely, of "Ziggy Stardust," the human manifestation of an alien being who is hoping to present humanity with a message of hope in the last five years of its existence.

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Encyclopedia

The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (often shortened to Ziggy Stardust) is a 1972 concept album

Concept album

England

David Bowie

United Kingdom

United States

Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (film)

Conception and inspiration

The album presents the story, albeit vaguely, of "Ziggy Stardust," the human manifestation of an alien being who is hoping to present humanity with a message of hope in the last five years of its existence. Ziggy Stardust is the definitive rock star: sexually promiscuous, wild in drug intake and with a message, ultimately, of peace and love; but he is destroyed both by his own excesses of drugs and sex, and by the fans he inspired.

In interviews, Bowie has said that the real-life inspiration for Ziggy was chiefly Vince Taylor

Vince Taylor

Vince Taylor was a British rock and roll singer.As the frontman for The Playboys, Taylor was successful primarily in the UK and Europe during the late 1950s and early 1960s, afterwards falling into obscurity amidst personal problems and drug abuse....
,, though the lyrics hint at Jimi Hendrix ("played it left hand ... jiving us that we were voodoo") and the character was likely a composite. Bowie claimed that the name came from a tailor's shop in London

London

London is the capital of both England and the United Kingdom, and the most populous municipality in the European Union. An important settlement for two millennia, History of London goes back to its founding by the Roman Empire....
called Ziggy's. He later told Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone

Rolling Stone is a United States-based magazine devoted to music, politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J....
it was "one of the few Christian names I could find beginning with the letter 'Z'." "Stardust" comes from one of Bowie's labelmates, a country singer named Norman Carl Odam, The Legendary Stardust Cowboy

Legendary Stardust Cowboy

The Legendary Stardust Cowboy, born Norman Carl Odam on October 10, 1947 in Lubbock, Texas,Texas, is an incoherent rock and roll performer who invented an early example of the genre that came to be known as psychobilly in the 1960s....
. Bowie covered a Legendary Stardust Cowboy song, "I Took a Trip (On a Gemini Spaceship)" thirty years later on Heathen
Heathen (album)

Heathen is an album by the British singer-songwriter David Bowie, released in 2002.Heathen was considered something of a comeback for Bowie in the U.S....
.

Production

The Ziggy Stardust sessions began just a few weeks after Hunky Dory was released. The first song recorded for the album, the cover "It Ain't Easy," was recorded in September 1971. The first session in November produced "Hang on to Yourself," "Ziggy Stardust," "Rock 'n' Roll Star" (later shortened to "Star"), "Moonage Daydream," "Soul Love," "Lady Stardust," and "Five Years."

Also recorded during the November Ziggy Sessions were two more cover songs intended for the as-yet untitled album. They were Chuck Berry

Chuck Berry

Charles Edward Anderson "Chuck" Berry is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter.Chuck Berry is an influential figure and one of the pioneers of rock and roll music....
's "Around and Around

Around and Around

"Around and Around" is a rock song written by Chuck Berry.The Rolling Stones covered the song on their second US album 12 X 5 in 1964. It was also included on the 1977 live album Love You Live, as part of the El Mocambo club gig in Toronto....
" (re-titled "Round and Round") and Jacques Brel

Jacques Brel

Jacques Romain Georges Brel was a Belgium singer-songwriter. The quality and style of his lyrics are highly regarded by many leading critics of popular music....
's "Amsterdam" (re-titled "Port of Amsterdam"). A re-recording of "Holy Holy

Holy Holy

"Holy Holy" is a song by David Bowie, originally released as a single in 1971. It was recorded shortly after the completion of The Man Who Sold the World, in the perceived absence of a clear single from that album....
" (first recorded in 1970 and released as a single, to poor sales, in January 1971) was initially slated for Ziggy, but was dropped in favour of "Rock 'n' Roll Suicide." "Round and Round" was replaced by "Starman" and "It Ain't Easy" replaced "Amsterdam" on the album's final running order. All three were eventually released as b-sides

A-side and B-side

A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of 7 inch vinyl records on which single s were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or flipside, is a secondary song that ofte...
.

"Velvet Goldmine

Velvet Goldmine (song)

"Velvet Goldmine" is a song written by David Bowie and recorded during the Hunky Dory sessions in 1971. However, it did not make it to the album and was eventually released as the B-side to the UK rerelease of "Space Oddity" in 1975....
," first recorded during the Hunky Dory sessions, was also intended for Ziggy, but was replaced by "Suffragette City." RCA released it in 1975 as the b-side to the UK re-release of "Space Oddity

Space Oddity

"Space Oddity" is a song written and performed by David Bowie and released as a single in 1969. It is about the launch of Major Tom, a fictional astronaut who becomes depressed during an outer-space mission....
" after having it remixed and mastered without Bowie's approval.

After recording some of the new songs for Sounds of the 70s
Sounds of the Seventies

Sounds of the Seventies was a BBC radio programme broadcast on weekdays, 2200-0000, on BBC Radio 1 during the early 1970s. Among the DJs were Alan Black, Pete Drummond, Anne Nightingale, John Peel , and Bob Harris ....
with Bob Harris

Bob Harris (radio)

"Whispering" Bob Harris is a radio host who currently works for BBC Radio 2, presenting music two nights a week. His programmes feature a moderately eclectic blend of mostly American and British rock and roll, country music, and occasional folk music from the 1950s to the present....
(which appear on Bowie at the Beeb
Bowie at the Beeb

Bowie at the Beeb is a compilation album by David Bowie, first released in 2000. Originally, it came in a three CD set, the third, bonus CD being a recording on the at the Broadcasting House BBC Radio Theatre....
) as the newly-dubbed Spiders from Mars in January-February 1972, the band returned to Trident. They recorded "Starman," "Suffragette City," and "Rock 'n' Roll Suicide" by the end of the month.

"Starman," released as a single in April (and not intended for the final album at first), has never appeared in its original "loud" mix on CD. It differs somewhat in that it "features a subdued 'morse code' section between the verse and the chorus" compared to the original released in 1972. "Starman"'s b-side, "Suffragette City," was mastered for the album with a three-note coda leading in from "Ziggy Stardust" to make the songs sound linked. They were never played as such by Bowie in concert.

Recorded and released during the ensuing Ziggy tour were two other songs. The first, "John, I'm Only Dancing

John, I'm Only Dancing

"John, I?m Only Dancing" is a single by David Bowie, released in September 1972. The song was widely believed to be concerned with a homosexual relationship, the narrator informing his boyfriend not to worry about the girl he's with because he's "only dancing" with her....
," was recorded at Trident in late June and released (in the UK only) in September. "The Jean Genie

The Jean Genie

"The Jean Genie" is a single by David Bowie, released in November 1972. One of Bowie?s most famous songs, it was the lead single for the album Aladdin Sane ....
," recorded at RCA Studios in New York in early October at the start of the American tour, was released in the U.S. in November. The song was remixed for Aladdin Sane
Aladdin Sane

Aladdin Sane is an album by David Bowie, released by RCA Records in 1973 . The follow-up to his breakthrough The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, it was the first album Bowie wrote and released as a bona fide pop star....
.

Rock keyboardist Rick Wakeman

Rick Wakeman

Richard Christopher Wakeman is an England keyboard player best known as the keyboardist for progressive rock group Yes . Originally a classically trained pianist, he was a pioneer in the use of electronic keyboards and in the use of a rock band in combination with orchestra and choir....
was given the opportunity to play keyboards on the album but Rick opted to join the progressive rock

Progressive rock

Progressive rock is a form of rock music that evolved in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." The term "art rock" is often used interchangeably with "progressive rock", but while there are crossovers between the two genres, they are not identical....
group Yes

Yes (band)

Yes are an England progressive rock band that formed in London in 1968 in music. Their music is marked by sharp dynamic contrasts, extended song lengths, abstract lyrics, and a general showcasing of instrumental prowess....
instead.

Plot

The album was intended by Bowie to serve as the soundtrack and musical basis for a stage show and/or television production telling the story of Ziggy Stardust. As well as the songs on the album, Bowie also intended songs such as "All the Young Dudes

All the Young Dudes (song)

"All the Young Dudes" is a song written by David Bowie, originally recorded and released as a single by Mott the Hoople in 1972. NME editors Roy Carr and Charles Shaar Murray have described the track as "one of that rare breed: rock songs which hymn the solidarity of the disaffected without distress or sentimentality"....
", "Rebel Rebel

Rebel Rebel

"Rebel Rebel" is a song by David Bowie, released in 1974 as a single and on the album Diamond Dogs. Cited as his most-covered track, it was effectively Bowie's farewell to the Glam rock movement that had made him a star....
" and "Rock 'n' Roll With Me

Rock 'n' Roll With Me

"Rock 'n' Roll With Me" is a song written by David Bowie and Warren Peace that first appeared on the Bowie's Diamond Dogs album in April 1974....
" (the latter two later recorded for Diamond Dogs
Diamond Dogs

Diamond Dogs is a concept album by David Bowie, originally released by RCA Records in 1974. Thematically it was a marriage of the novel Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell and Bowie's own glam-tinged vision of a post-apocalyptic world....
) for this realization of the Ziggy story. In a Rolling Stone interview with William S. Burroughs

William S. Burroughs

William Seward Burroughs II was an United States novelist, essayist, social critic, Painting and spoken word performer.Much of Burroughs's work is semi-autobiographical, drawn from his experiences as an opiate addict, a condition that marked the last fifty years of his life....
, Bowie outlined the full plot of the Ziggy Stardust story:

"The time is five years to go before the end of the earth. It has been announced that the world will end because of lack of natural resources. Ziggy is in a position where all the kids have access to things that they thought they wanted. The older people have lost all touch with reality and the kids are left on their own to plunder anything. Ziggy was in a rock-and-roll band and the kids no longer want rock-and-roll. There's no electricity to play it. Ziggy's adviser tells him to collect news and sing it, 'cause there is no news. So Ziggy does this and there is terrible news. 'All the young dudes' is a song about this news. It's no hymn to the youth as people thought. It is completely the opposite. [...]

The end comes when the infinites arrive. They really are a black hole, but I've made them people because it would be very hard to explain a black hole on stage. [...]

Ziggy is advised in a dream by the infinites to write the coming of a Starman, so he writes 'Starman', which is the first news of hope that the people have heard. So they latch onto it immediately...The starmen that he is talking about are called the infinites, and they are black-hole jumpers. Ziggy has been talking about this amazing spaceman who will be coming down to save the earth. They arrive somewhere in Greenwich Village. They don't have a care in the world and are of no possible use to us. They just happened to stumble into our universe by black hole jumping. Their whole life is travelling from universe to universe. In the stage show, one of them resembles Brando, another one is a Black New Yorker. I even have one called Queenie, the Infinite Fox...Now Ziggy starts to believe in all this himself and thinks himself a prophet of the future starmen. He takes himself up to the incredible spiritual heights and is kept alive by his disciples. When the infinites arrive, they take bits of Ziggy to make them real because in their original state they are anti-matter and cannot exist in our world. And they tear him to pieces on stage during the song 'Rock 'n' roll suicide'. As soon as Ziggy dies on stage the infinites take his elements and make themselves visible."

The more generally acknowledged story, however, has Ziggy Stardust himself being the "starman", from Mars, who has come to save the Earth with messages of love and peace, and Bowie has referred to Ziggy as a "Martian" in several interviews.

Styles and themes

Many of Bowie's songs are homages to his favorite musicians, frequently with chords and styles taken and reinterpreted in a glam rock

Glam rock

Glam rock , is a sub-genre of rock music that developed in the UK in the post-hippie early 1970s which was "performed by singers and musicians wearing outrageous clothes, makeup, hairstyles, and platform-soled boots." The flamboyant lyrics, costumes, and visual styles of glam performers were a camp , theatrical blend of nostalgia references t...
fashion. "Star" begins similarly to The Who

The Who

The Who are an England Rock music band formed in 1964. The primary lineup was guitarist Pete Townshend, vocalist Roger Daltrey, bassist John Entwistle and drummer Keith Moon....
's "Pinball Wizard" (from Tommy
Tommy (rock opera)

Tommy is the fourth album by the English Rock music band The Who. A double album telling a loose story about a "deaf, dumb, and blind boy" who becomes the leader of a messianic movement, Tommy was the first musical work to be billed overtly as a rock opera....
), while surf rock

Surf rock

Surf rock is a style of music that originated in the USA that mixes elements of surf music and rock music, and partially due to the number of Mexican immigrants in southern California, added elements of Spanish rooted melodies, as well as popular titles like "Mexico", "Baja", and "Esperanza"....
(such as The Beach Boys

The Beach Boys

The Beach Boys are an American rock band. Formed in 1961, the group gained popularity for its close harmony and lyrics reflecting a California youth culture of cars and surfing....
) influenced "Suffragette City." Most of the other songs are pure glam rock, influenced by T. Rex, Ray Davies

Ray Davies

Ray Davies, Order of the British Empire is an English Rock music musician, best known as lead singer and songwriter for The Kinks - one of the most prolific and long-lived British Invasion bands - which he led with his younger brother, Dave Davies....
, The Stooges

The Stooges

The Stooges are an American rock music rock band that were first active from 1967 to 1974, then reformed in 2003. The Stooges sold few records in their original incarnation and often performed for indifferent or hostile audiences....
and The Velvet Underground

The Velvet Underground

The Velvet Underground was an American Rock music band first active, in various incarnations, from 1965 to 1973. Their best-known members were Lou Reed and John Cale, who both went on to find success as solo artists....
, among others.

Many of the songs on this album show Bowie's habit of inserting powerful exhalations, usually nothing more than a "ha" or "ah" shouted with great intensity. One more complex example is on "Suffragette City" where the frantically shouted "wham, bam, thank you ma'am" was an improvised replacement for "one more time," and was a homage to the song of a similar title ("Wham Bam Thank You Mam") by Small Faces. In addition, simple two-syllable phrases provide the spine for "Suffragette City" ("hey man"), "Hang on to Yourself" ("come on"), "Lady Stardust" ("all right"), and "Five Years" ("five years").

In "Five Years", the album's opener, the title is hoarsely shouted repeatedly, each time more and more powerful as though Bowie were having a breakdown in the studio. "Star" is a pure rock and roll

Rock and roll

Rock and roll is a form of music that evolved in the United States in the late 1940s and early 1950s. Its roots lay mainly in rhythm and blues, Country music, folk music, gospel music, and jazz....
song, describing the beauty of being a rock star; it is Ziggy's dream, ending with the prophetic "just watch me now," taken from the Velvet Underground's "Sweet Jane

Sweet Jane

"Sweet Jane" is a song by the Velvet Underground, originally appearing on their 1970 album Loaded . The song was written by Velvet's leader Lou Reed, who continued to incorporate the song into his own live performances years later as a solo artist....
." "Starman," the album's single, has been described as a cross between mod

Mod (lifestyle)

Mod is a subculture that originated in London in the late 1950s and peaked in the early to mid 1960s.Significant elements of the mod lifestyle included pop music, such as African American Soul music, Jamaican ska, and British beat music and Rhythm and blues; fashion ; and Italian Scooter ....
and "Somewhere Over the Rainbow", with an exhilarating chorus of Ziggy sending a message to Earthlings via the radio, warning them that he will come to liberate their minds if they are ready for it. "Soul Love" is notable for Bowie's pioneering and original use of a jazz

Jazz

Jazz is a primarily American musical art form which originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States from a confluence of African and European music traditions....
y saxophone

Saxophone

The saxophone is a conical-Bore transposing instrument musical instrument considered a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and are played with a Single-reed instrument mouthpiece similar to the clarinet....
.

Release and aftermath

Upon its release on 6 June 1972, Ziggy Stardust reached number five in the UK and number seventy-five in the US. The album was eventually certified platinum and gold in the UK and US respectively. The only single from the record, "Starman", charted at number ten in the UK while peaking at the sixty-fifth spot in the US.

In 1997, Ziggy Stardust was named the 20th greatest album of all time in a poll

Opinion poll

An opinion poll is a statistical survey of public opinion from a particular sampling . Opinion polls are usually designed to represent the opinions of a population by conducting a series of questions and then extrapolating generalities in ratio or within confidence intervals....
conducted in the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

HMV Group

HMV Group is an international entertainment retail chain and is the largest of its kind in the United Kingdom and Canada. The company also operate stores in Republic of Ireland, Hong Kong & Singapore....
, Channel 4

Channel 4

Channel 4 is a UK Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom television broadcaster which began transmissions on 2 November 1982. Although commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the #Channel Four Television...
, The Guardian
The Guardian

Sorry, no overview for this topic
and Classic FM

Classic FM (UK)

Classic FM is one of the United Kingdom's three Independent National Radio stations, broadcasting European classical music in a popular and accessible style....
. In 1998, Q magazine readers placed it at number 24 and Virgin All-time Top 1000 Albums ranked it at number 11, while in 2003 the TV network VH1

VH1

VH1 is an United States cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in television, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slighter older demographic than its sister channel, focusing on the lighter, softer side of popular music....
placed it at number 48. It was named the 35th best album ever made by Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone

Rolling Stone is a United States-based magazine devoted to music, politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J....
on their list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. In 2000 Q placed it at number 25 in its list of the 100 Greatest British Albums Ever. In 2004 it was placed at number 81 in Pitchfork Media

Pitchfork Media

Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication devoted to music journalism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews....
's Top 100 Albums of the 1970s. In his 1995 book, "The Alternative Music Almanac," Alan Cross

Alan Cross

Alan Cross is a Canada radio broadcaster and a writer on music. The host of CFNY-FM's most famous program, The Ongoing History of New Music, he also served as program director of the station from 2004 to 2008....
placed the album in the #3 spot on the list of '10 Classic Alternative Albums'. In 2006, the album was chosen by TIME
Time (magazine)

Time is a weekly United States newsmagazine, similar to Newsweek and U.S. News & World Report. A European edition is published from London....
magazine as one of the 100 best albums of all time. In September 2008, it placed #1 in Out Magazine's "The 100 Greatest, Gayest Albums" chart.

In 2005, Seu Jorge did a cover album of 14 Bowie songs, many of them from Ziggy Stardust, as a soundtrack for the movie The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou is Wes Anderson's fourth feature length film, released in the United States on December 25 2004. It was written by Anderson and Noah Baumbach and was filmed in and around Naples, Ponza and the Italian Riviera....
called The Life Aquatic Studio Sessions
The Life Aquatic Studio Sessions

The Life Aquatic Studio Sessions featuring Seu Jorge is an album by Brazilian musician Seu Jorge. It is a collection of David Bowie songs Jorge recorded in Portuguese language for The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou to the film The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou....
. The translation into Portuguese is not always exact, as Seu Jorge maintains the melodies and styles, but often varies the lyrics.

Cover

The cover photograph was taken outside furriers, K. West, at 23 , London, W1.

Track listing

All tracks written by David Bowie

David Bowie

"Five Years
Five Years

"Five Years" is a song written by David Bowie and released in 1972 in music. It was the opening track on the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars....
" – 4:43
"Soul Love
Soul Love

"Soul Love" is a song written by David Bowie in for the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars ....
" – 3:33
"Moonage Daydream
Moonage Daydream

"Moonage Daydream" is a song written by David Bowie in 1971 in music and first released as a single under the name Arnold Corns. A rerecorded version was released in 1972 in music on the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars....
" – 4:35
"Starman
Starman (song)

"Starman" is a single by David Bowie, released in April 1972. The song was a late addition to The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, included at the insistence of RCA Records?s Dennis Katz, who heard a demo and loved the track, believing it would make a great single....
" – 4:16
"It Ain't Easy
It Ain't Easy (song)

"It Ain't Easy" is a song written and originally recorded by Ron Davies , who died in 2003. Davies recorded the song on his 1970 album Silent Song Through the Land....
" (Ron Davies) – 2:56
"Lady Stardust
Lady Stardust

"Lady Stardust" is a song written by David Bowie in for the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars . The song is generally interpreted as alluding to fellow glam rock icon Marc Bolan....
" – 3:20
"Star
Star (David Bowie song)

"Star" is a song written by David Bowie in 1972 in music for the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars....
" – 2:47
"Hang on to Yourself
Hang on to Yourself

"Hang Onto Yourself" is a song written by David Bowie in 1971 and released as a single under the name Arnold Corns. A re-recorded version was released on the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars....
" – 2:37
"Ziggy Stardust
Ziggy Stardust (song)

"Ziggy Stardust" is a song written by David Bowie in 1972 in music for the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars....
" – 3:05
"Suffragette City
Suffragette City

?Suffragette City? is a single by David Bowie.Recorded towards the end of the The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars sessions, ?Suffragette City? is a trademark piece of early 1970s Bowie glam, with a piano riff heavily influenced by Little Richard, a lyrical reference to the film A Clockwork Orange and the...
" – 3:19
"Rock 'n' Roll Suicide
Rock 'n' Roll Suicide

"Rock 'n' Roll Suicide" is a song by David Bowie, originally released as the closing track on the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars in June 1972....
" – 2:57

Bonus tracks (1990 Rykodisc/EMI)

"John, I'm Only Dancing
John, I'm Only Dancing

"John, I?m Only Dancing" is a single by David Bowie, released in September 1972. The song was widely believed to be concerned with a homosexual relationship, the narrator informing his boyfriend not to worry about the girl he's with because he's "only dancing" with her....
" (previously unreleased mix
Audio mixing (recorded music)

Audio mixing is the process by which a multitude of recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics and panoramic position are commonly being manipulated and effects such as reverb might be added....
) – 2:43
"Velvet Goldmine
Velvet Goldmine (song)

"Velvet Goldmine" is a song written by David Bowie and recorded during the Hunky Dory sessions in 1971. However, it did not make it to the album and was eventually released as the B-side to the UK rerelease of "Space Oddity" in 1975....
" (single
Single (music)

In the record industry, a single is a song usually used from a current or upcoming album to promote the album. Singles are distributed through a number of ways; originally, they were packaged as "single" records with one or two other songs and sold before the release of the album....
b-side
A-side and B-side

A-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of 7 inch vinyl records on which single s were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or flipside, is a secondary song that ofte...
of from the 1975 RCA re-release of "Space Oddity
Space Oddity

"Space Oddity" is a song written and performed by David Bowie and released as a single in 1969. It is about the launch of Major Tom, a fictional astronaut who becomes depressed during an outer-space mission....
; original recording from the Hunky Dory
Hunky Dory

Hunky Dory is the fourth album by English people singer-songwriter David Bowie, released by RCA Records in 1971 . It was Bowie's first release through RCA, which would be his label for the next decade....
sessions, 1971) – 3:09
"Sweet Head
Sweet Head

"Sweet Head" is a song written by David Bowie and recorded in 1972. It took a while before it was released, and it first appeared on the Rykodisc CD release of The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars in 1990....
" (previously unreleased outtake
Outtake

An outtake is a portion of a work that is removed in the editing process and not included in the work's final, publicly released version. In the digital era significant outtakes have been appended to CD and DVD reissues of many albums and films as bonus tracks or features....
) – 4:14
"Ziggy Stardust
Ziggy Stardust (song)

"Ziggy Stardust" is a song written by David Bowie in 1972 in music for the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars....
" (demo
Demo (music)

A demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. A demo is a way for musicians to approximate their ideas on Magnetic tape or compact disc, and provide an example of those ideas to record labels, Record producers or other artists....
) – 3:35
"Lady Stardust
Lady Stardust

"Lady Stardust" is a song written by David Bowie in for the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars . The song is generally interpreted as alluding to fellow glam rock icon Marc Bolan....
" (demo) – 3:35

Personnel

David Bowie
David Bowie

David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and Arrangement. Active in five decades of rock music and frequently reinventing his music and image, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s....
– vocals
Singing

Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the human voice, which is often contrasted with regular speech. A person who sings is called a singer or vocalist....
, acoustic guitar
Acoustic guitar

An acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only acoustic methods to project the sound produced by its strings. The term is a retronym, coined after the advent of electric guitars, which depend on electronic amplification to make their sound audible....
, saxophone
Saxophone

The saxophone is a conical-Bore transposing instrument musical instrument considered a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and are played with a Single-reed instrument mouthpiece similar to the clarinet....
, piano
Piano

The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard instrument. Widely used in Western music for solo performance, ensemble use, chamber music, and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to musical composition and rehearsal....
, harpischord
Mick Ronson
Mick Ronson

Mick Ronson was an England guitarist, composer, multi-instrumentalist, arranger and record producer. He is most well known for his work with David Bowie from 1970 to 1973, Bowie's glam rock period, including being part of The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars band....
– guitar
Guitar

The guitar is a musical instrument with ancient roots that is used in a wide variety of musical styles. It typically has six Strings , but Tenor guitar, Seven-string guitar, Eight-string guitar, Ten-string guitar, Eleven-string guitar, Twelve-string guitar, Thirteen-string guitar and doubleneck guitar string guitars also exist....
s, piano, backing vocals
Backing vocalist

A backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. In some cases, a backing singer may sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry....
, string
String instrument

A string instrument is a musical instrument that produces sound by means of vibrating strings. In the Hornbostel-Sachs scheme of musical instrument classification, used in organology, they are called chordophones....
arrangement
Arrangement

In music, an arrangement is either a rewriting of a piece of existing music with additional new material or a fleshing-out of a compositional sketch, such as a lead sheet....
Trevor Bolder
Trevor Bolder

Trevor Bolder is an England rock bass guitarist....
– bass
Bass guitar

The electric bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a plectrum.The bass guitar is similar in appearance and construction to an electric guitar, but with a larger body, a longer neck and Scale length, and usually four strings tuned to the same pitches as those of the double bass, whic...
Mick Woodmansey
Mick Woodmansey

Mick 'Woody' Woodmansey is an England Rock 'n' Roll drummer from Driffield, Yorkshire, best known for his work with David Bowie and the Spiders From Mars#The Spiders From Mars....
– drums
Drum kit

A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and sometimes other percussion instruments, such as cowbell s, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single drummer....

Additional personnel

Dana Gillespie
Dana Gillespie

Dana Gillespie is an England actress and singer....
– backing vocals on "It Ain't Easy"
Rick Wakeman
Rick Wakeman

Richard Christopher Wakeman is an England keyboard player best known as the keyboardist for progressive rock group Yes . Originally a classically trained pianist, he was a pioneer in the use of electronic keyboards and in the use of a rock band in combination with orchestra and choir....
– harpsichord
Harpsichord

A harpsichord is a musical instrument played by means of a musical keyboard. It produces sound by plucking a string when each Key is pressed....
, keyboards
Keyboard instrument

A keyboard instrument is any musical instrument played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include various types of organ s as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic musical instrument....
Lindsay Scott – violin
Violin

The violin is a Bow string instrument with four strings usually tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest and highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which also includes the viola and cello....
on 12

Technical personnel

Ken Scott
Ken Scott

Ken Scott is an English record producer and recording engineer....
– producer
Record producer

In the music industry, a record producer has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the musicians, organizing and scheduling production budget and resources, and supervising the recording, Audio mixing and audio mastering processes....
, recording engineer
Audio engineering

Audio engineering is a part of audio science dealing with the recording and reproduction of sound through mechanical and electronic means. The field draws on many disciplines, including electrical engineering, acoustics, psychoacoustics, and music....
, mixing engineer
Audio mixing (recorded music)

Audio mixing is the process by which a multitude of recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics and panoramic position are commonly being manipulated and effects such as reverb might be added....
David Bowie – producer
Dr. Toby Mountain – remastering engineer (for Rykodisc release)
Jonathan Wyner – assistant remastering engineer (for Rykodisc release)
Peter Mew
Peter Mew

Peter Mew is a British music audio engineer at the famous Abbey Road Studios where he is now senior mastering engineer. He came to Abbey road in 1965 as a tape operator and has nice worked with many famous artists at the studio....
– remastering engineer (for EMI release)
Nigel Reeve – assistant remastering engineer (for EMI release)

Compact disc releases

Ziggy Stardust was first released in on compact disc

Compact Disc

A Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store Data , originally developed for storing digital audio. The CD, available on the market since October 1982, remains the standard physical medium for sale of commercial Sound recording and reproduction to the present day....
by RCA

RCA

RCA Corporation, founded as Radio Corporation of America, was an electronics company in existence from 1919 to 1986. Today, the RCA is owned by the France conglomerate Thomson SA through RCA Trademark Management S.A., a company owned by Thomson....
. The digital master recording

Master recording

A master recording is an original recording, from which copies may be made.When recording on to magnetic or digital tape, the original tape is known as the master tape....
was made from the equalised

Equalization

Equalization, equalisation or EQ is the process of using passive or active electronic elements or digital algorithms for the purpose of altering the frequency response characteristics of a system....
master tapes used for the LP

Gramophone record

A gramophone record is an analog signal sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed modulated spiral groove usually starting near the periphery and ending near the centre of the disc....
release.

1990 Rykodisc/EMI

Dr. Toby Mountain at Northeastern Digital Recording|Northeastern Digital, Southborough, Massachusetts

Southborough, Massachusetts

Southborough is a town in Worcester County, Massachusetts, Massachusetts, United States. It incorporates the smaller villages of Cordaville, Massachusetts, Fayville, and Southville....
, remastered Ziggy from the original master tapes for Rykodisc

Rykodisc

Rykodisc Records is an United States record label, owned by Warner Music Group....
, who released it with five bonus tracks.

1999 EMI/Virgin

The album was remastered by Peter Mew

Peter Mew

Peter Mew is a British music audio engineer at the famous Abbey Road Studios where he is now senior mastering engineer. He came to Abbey road in 1965 as a tape operator and has nice worked with many famous artists at the studio....
at Abbey Road Studios

Abbey Road Studios

Abbey Road Studios, established in November 1931 by EMI in London, England, is a recording studio located at number 3 Abbey Road , in St John's Wood in the City of Westminster....
without bonus material, with the same track listing as the 1984 CD release.

2002 EMI/Virgin

In 2002, a 2-disc version was released by EMI/Virgin. The first in a series of 30th Anniversary 2CD Editions, this release included a newly-remastered version as its first CD. The second disc contains twelve tracks, most of which had been previously released on CD as bonus tracks of the 1990-92 reissues. "Sweet Head" is the same version as on the 1990 reissue, but with extended studio banter in the beginning. The new mix of "Moonage Daydream" was originally done for a 1998 Dunlop

Dunlop Tyres

Dunlop Tyres is a British company owned 75% by Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company and 25% by Sumitomo Rubber Industries, which sells Dunlop branded road tyres in succession to the Dunlop Rubber Company....
television commercial.

The remaster on this edition reverses the left and right stereo channels on the first disc and many of the songs have been edited. Among other things, the three-note bridge between "Ziggy Stardust" and "Suffragette City," and the count-in to "Hang on to Yourself" are missing.

At the same time, an SACD

Super Audio CD

Super Audio CD is a read-only optical disc audio storage format that can provide higher accuracy as well as surround sound compared to the Red Book ....
version which includes both stereo and 5.1 mixes (both with 96KHz/24 bit resolution) was released.

Bonus CD (2002 EMI/Virgin)

All tracks written by David Bowie except as noted.

"Moonage Daydream
Moonage Daydream

"Moonage Daydream" is a song written by David Bowie in 1971 in music and first released as a single under the name Arnold Corns. A rerecorded version was released in 1972 in music on the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars....
" (Arnold Corns
Arnold Corns

Arnold Corns was a band formed by David Bowie in 1971 in music. The name was inspired by the Pink Floyd song "Arnold Layne".This was one of Bowie?s side projects and something of a Dry Run for The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars....
version) – 3:53
"Hang on to Yourself
Hang on to Yourself

"Hang Onto Yourself" is a song written by David Bowie in 1971 and released as a single under the name Arnold Corns. A re-recorded version was released on the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars....
" (Arnold Corns version) – 2:55
"Lady Stardust" (demo) – 3:34
"Ziggy Stardust" (demo) – 3:38
"John, I'm Only Dancing" – 2:49
"Velvet Goldmine" – 3:14
"Holy Holy
Holy Holy

"Holy Holy" is a song by David Bowie, originally released as a single in 1971. It was recorded shortly after the completion of The Man Who Sold the World, in the perceived absence of a clear single from that album....
" (1972 re-recording) – 2:26
"Amsterdam" (Jacques Brel
Jacques Brel

Jacques Romain Georges Brel was a Belgium singer-songwriter. The quality and style of his lyrics are highly regarded by many leading critics of popular music....
, Mort Shuman
Mort Shuman

Mort Shuman was an United States singer, pianist and songwriter, best known as co-writer of many 1960s rock and roll hit record, including "Viva Las Vegas "....
) – 3:25
"The Supermen
The Supermen

"The Supermen" is a song written by David Bowie in 1970 and released as the closing track on the album The Man Who Sold the World. It was one of a number of pieces on the album inspired by the works of literary figures such as Friedrich Nietzsche and H....
" (alternate version, recorded for the Glastonbury Fayre
Glastonbury Fayre

Glastonbury Fayre is a 1972 documentary film directed by Peter Neal of the 1971 Glastonbury Festival which was held on 20 June-24 June 1971....
in 1971, originally released on Glastonbury Fayre Revelations - A Musical Anthology, 1972 and on CD on 1990's Rykodisc
Rykodisc

Rykodisc Records is an United States record label, owned by Warner Music Group....
/EMI
EMI

The EMI Group is a United Kingdom music company comprising the major record label EMI Music ? which operates several labels and is based in Kensington in London, England, United Kingdom ? and EMI Music Publishing, based in New York City....
Hunky Dory
Hunky Dory

Hunky Dory is the fourth album by English people singer-songwriter David Bowie, released by RCA Records in 1971 . It was Bowie's first release through RCA, which would be his label for the next decade....
) – 2:41
"Round and Round
Around and Around

"Around and Around" is a rock song written by Chuck Berry.The Rolling Stones covered the song on their second US album 12 X 5 in 1964. It was also included on the 1977 live album Love You Live, as part of the El Mocambo club gig in Toronto....
" (Berry) – 2:44
"Sweet Head" – 4:53
"Moonage Daydream" (new mix) – 4:47

Personnel
(only on tracks where it differs from album)
David Bowie – vocals on 1 2, guitar on 1 2 4, piano on 1 2 3
Freddi Burretti – vocals on 1 2
Peter De Somogyl – bass on 1 2
Mark Carr Pritchard – guitar on 1 2
Tim Broadbent – drums on 1 2
Lindsay Scott – violin on 5

Charts

Album
Year Chart Peak
Position
1972 UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart

The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled by The Official UK Charts Company and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website ; the full Top 200 is published exclusively in ChartsPlus....
5
1973 Billboard Pop Albums
Billboard 200

The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling Albums and extended play in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine....
75

Singles
Year Single Chart Peak
Position
1972 "Starman" UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart

The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official UK Charts Company on behalf of the British record industry. The chart week runs from Sunday to Saturday, with the chart being printed in Music Week magazine , ChartsPlus , and published online on various sites ....
10
1972 "Starman" Billboard Pop Singles
Billboard Hot 100

The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard Single popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on airplay and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday; while the airplay tracking-week runs from Wednesday to Tuesday....
65

External links

by David Bowie
David Bowie

David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and Arrangement. Active in five decades of rock music and frequently reinventing his music and image, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s....
& Mick Rock
Mick Rock

Mick Rock is a photographer best known for his iconic shots of 1970s glam rock icons such as Queen , David Bowie, Mick Ronson, Lou Reed, Kevin Ayers, Iggy Pop and The Stooges, The Sex Pistols, The Ramones and Blondie ....