If It's Tuesday, It Must Be Street Date: 1/26/10

DAVID BOWIE- A REALITY TOUR (2 CD)

I've made no secret of my love for Bowie's most recent output.

"Earthling," "Hours," "Heathen" and "Reality" released in 1997, 1999, 2002, and 2003 respectively, offer songs that stand up to anything Bowie has put out in his long career. I'm convinced most people have never even listened to these records, yet still manage to dismiss them as unworthy. On this live set, which is essentially the audio portion of the DVD of the same name, Bowie and his band run through songs from these records, as well as some chestnuts and rarities, over two nights in Dublin. I saw 3 shows on this 2004 tour, and loved them all.

Here's my one complaint---you knew I had to have one---this set features 33 songs culled from the two nights in Dublin, 30 of which appeared on the DVD I mentioned earlier. The three "bonus" tracks are tacked on at the end of Disc Two. Wouldn't it have been nice to have sequenced them in their original running order of the set? Am I being an asshole? On top of that, two more additional tracks, which would then represent every song played on those two nights in Dublin, are iTunes exclusives. This is extremely frustrating for the people who still shell out money for CDs. At a time when CD sales are down 688%, this seems like a missed opportunity for the loyal Bowie fans. I mean, who else is buying this set? (Maybe I am being an asshole, but that's what I would have done.)


TRACK LIST:
# "Concert Introduction" – 2:42
# "Rebel Rebel" (from Diamond Dogs) – 3:25
# "New Killer Star" (from Reality) – 4:55
# "Reality" (from Reality) – 4:21
# "Fame" (from Young Americans) – 4:11
# "Cactus" (from Heathen) – 2:34
# "Sister Midnight" (originally from The Idiot by Iggy Pop) – 4:37
# "Afraid" (from Heathen) – 3:26
# "All the Young Dudes" (from Ziggy Stardust – The Motion Picture) – 3:25
# "Be My Wife" (from Low) – 3:12
# "The Loneliest Guy" (from Reality) – 4:00
# "The Man Who Sold the World" (from The Man Who Sold the World) – 4:04
# "Fantastic Voyage" (from Lodger) – 3:06
# "Hallo Spaceboy" (from Outside) – 5:27
# "Sunday" (from Heathen) – 5:49
# "Under Pressure" (a single by Bowie and Queen from the Queen's Hot Space) – 4:17
# "Life on Mars?" (from Hunky Dory) – 4:47
# "Battle for Britain" (from Earthling) – 4:40
# "Ashes to Ashes" (from Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)) – 5:29
# "The Motel" (from Outside) – 6:00
# "Loving the Alien" (from Tonight) – 5:16
# "Never Get Old" (from Reality) – 4:18
# "Changes" (from Hunky Dory) – 3:48
# "I'm Afraid of Americans" (from Earthling) – 5:19
# ""Heroes"" (from "Heroes") – 7:25
# "Bring Me the Disco King" (from Reality) – 8:03
# "Slip Away" (from Heathen) – 6:23
# "Heathen (The Rays)" (from Heathen) – 6:01
# "Five Years" (from The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars) – 4:40
# "Hang on to Yourself" (from The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars) – 2:59
# "Ziggy Stardust" (from The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars) – 4:40

CD BONUS TRACKS
Fall Dog Bombs The Moon
Breaking Glass
China Girl

ITUNES BONUS TRACKS
5:15-The Angels Have Gone
Days






CHARLOTTE GAINSBOURG- IRM

"January 26th, 2010 marks the Because Music / Elektra release of Charlotte Gainsbourg's third studio album titled IRM. The title is derived from M.R.I, (Editor's Note: NO IT ISN'T) which reflects the medical procedure Charlotte had to go through after suffering a head injury in a water skiing accident in 2007. The album is Charlotte's most personal to date, and is produced by acclaimed Grammy nominated artist/multi-instrumentalist Beck. What started as a brief recording session between Charlotte Gainsbourg and Beck ended up to be the body of work that is IRM. Over the course of a year and a half of writing and recording together, Beck's role grew to encompass all aspects of the creative process. He worked seamlessly with Charlotte co writing the lyrics and produced and mixed the recording. (This is the first time he has ever been so involved in another artist's work.)"

Considering naming my first album "Ypocsonoloc."







PATTY GRIFFIN- DOWNTOWN CHURCH

Produced by the great Buddy Miller, Patty Griffin, with great success, tries her hand at Gospel. Saw Miss Griffin do a couple of these tunes last year and they sounded great. Guests include Emmylou Harris, Julie Miller, Jim Lauderdale, Raul Malo and Buddy himself.






MAGNETIC FIELDS- REALISM

I don't get them, and I gave up trying. They (he, Stephen Merritt) are (is) often compared to so many other bands I admire, Kraftwerk, Roxy Music, David Bowie, yet I just don't hear it. What I hear is the same thing I hear when I try to listen to Guided By Voices--a lot of low-fi quirky noodling, with ideas that mostly sound unfinished. I can't say anything about "Realism," because I haven't heard it. So I am just hear to tell you, it's out.






CORINNE BAILEY RAE- THE SEA

Rae's debut was one of the smartest and strongest releases during a time when everyone seemed to be churning out weak and trendy retro soul records. Then in 2008, Rae lost her husband, musician Jason Rae to a drug overdose, and she disappeared. "The Sea" is her emotional return, with a set of songs that have a Jeff Buckley intensity, but still highlight her delicate yet powerful voice and don't stray too far from the hip and radio friendly grooves of her debut.






FRANK SINATRA- STRANGERS IN THE NIGHT (DELUXE)

Frank's classic from 1966 is back in print, newly remastered, and now includes 3 bonus tracks, 2 random live tracks from a 1985 show in Japan, and an alternate version of "Yes Sir, That's My Baby."


And that my friends, is IT, for January 26th.