On this day, 30 years ago, David Bowie's Station To Station was released.

As for TVC15, I find it a bit plodding, not that interesting musically compared with all the other tracks, the lyrics are something of a shaggy dog story. A stab at humour that's sort of out of place with the rest of the album. I don't really hate the track, I just think it's the least good on the album.

really ? never heard "stage" (i only have the live in philadelphia - whihch i don't like much).

Yeah, this is his best album – Rob Sheffield said it was the album on which "Major Tom learned how to dance," albeit in a hyperkinetic, stumbling herky-jerk motion practised before a mirror; that's all I can do to evoke "TVC15," which has the best piano Roy Bittan will ever play and is the most charming thing Bowie ever wrote.

about "Wild is the Wind," no I don't think it's too dramatic. with Bowie it always sounds like there's a lot of restraint, maybe it's just his vocal style, I don't know, but he can pull off songs that would otherwise be too much too much..

The 33 1/3 book on 'Low' has some good stuff on STS - how STS and Low are both schizophrenic albums, STS being the delusional histrionic side of it and Low being the withdrawn, autistic side of it.

Low is great but I think STS sounds fresher and more original now. A lot of post-punk took Low as something of a cue, which retroactively made Low sound less original. But not too many people took STS as a cue for anything. So its cocaine fusion of funk, west coast hi fi definition and English rock remains fresh.

He's right you know

http://web16.twitpic.com/img/123799436-b5905fce834608795b3432080d825d58.4c2da388-full.jpg

released on sept 20th.

wtf is on all those cds !

like the fact its reverted back to the b&w cover.

never liked it when they added colour for the ryko edition.

The Deluxe Edition of Station To Station (above) is an album sized box with lift off lid housed in a foam-packed box, 325 x 325 x 50mm and contains the following...

~ CD 1: 2010 transfer of Station To Station from the original stereo analogue master

~ CD 2: Station To Station 1985 CD master

~ CD 3: Station To Station single edits five track EP containing Golden Years, TVC15, Stay, Word On A Wing and Station To Station

~ CDs 4 & 5: Live Nassau Coliseum '76

1. Station To Station (11.53)
2. Suffragette City (3.31)
3. Fame (4.02)
4. Word On A Wing (6.06)
5. Stay (7.25)
6. Waiting For The Man (6.20)
7. Queen Bitch (3.12)

Nassau Coliseum concert continued...
1. Life On Mars? (2.13)
2. Five Years (5.03)
3. Panic In Detroit (6.03)
4. Changes (4.11)
5. TVC15 (4.58)
6. Diamond Dogs (6.38)
7. Rebel Rebel (4.07)
8. The Jean Genie (7.28)

~ DVD containing the following...

Station To Station (original analogue master, 96kHz/24bit LPCM stereo)
Station To Station (new Harry Maslin 5.1 surround sound mix in DTS 96/24 and Dolby Digital)
Station To Station (original analogue master, LPCM stereo)
Station To Station (new Harry Maslin stereo mix, 48kHz/24bit LPCM stereo)

~ 12" heavyweight vinyl of Station To Station from the original stereo analogue master in replica sleeve

~ 2 x 12" heavyweight vinyl of Live Nassau Coliseum '76 in gatefold sleeve

Aside from all of this marvellous audio content, here's what else you get in the Deluxe Edition box...

24-page booklet with sleevenotes by Cameron Crowe and chronology by Kevin Cann and also including...

~ Previously unpublished Steve Shapiro photo
~ Geoff MacCormack photos
~ Andrew Kent live Nassau photos

Both the 16 and 24-page booklets will be illustrated with record sleeves and extensive memorabilia from the BowieNet archives.

Finally, the deluxe box also contains facsimile copies of two very collectable folders with most of the original content reproduced...

Replica David Bowie On Stage 1976 press kit folder containing the following...

~ Replica Nassau ticket from night of the show
~ Replica backstage pass
~ Replica A4 biog
~ Replica band line-up
~ 3 x 10x8" press shots

~ Replica 1976 Fan Club Folder containing the following...

~ Replica fan club membership card
~ Fan club certificate
~ 2 small collector cards
~ 2 A4 photo cards
~ Replica 4-page biography
~ 2 badges
~ 6 panel folded Steve Shapiro photo poster of Bowie kneeling

Love this album but man there is too much shit in the world.

yeah I'm not really understanding the difference between cds 1 & 2 on this thing.

also there is a plainer deluxe edition:

~ CD 1: 2010 transfer of Station To Station from the original stereo analogue master in mini replica sleeve

1. Station To Station (10.11)
2. Golden Years (4.02)
3. Word On A Wing (6.01)
4. TVC15 (5.31)
5. Stay (6.12)
6. Wild Is The Wind (6.02)

~ CDs 2 & 3: Live Nassau Coliseum '76 (Recorded live at the Nassau Coliseum, Uniondale, NY, USA. March 23rd, 1976) in gatefold CD wallet

1. Station To Station (11.53)
2. Suffragette City (3.31)
3. Fame (4.02)
4. Word On A Wing (6.06)
5. Stay (7.25)
6. Waiting For The Man (6.20)
7. Queen Bitch (3.12)

Nassau Coliseum concert continued...
1. Life On Mars? (2.13)
2. Five Years (5.03)
3. Panic In Detroit (6.03)
4. Changes (4.11)
5. TVC15 (4.58)
6. Diamond Dogs (6.38)
7. Rebel Rebel (4.07)
8. The Jean Genie (7.28)

~ 16-page booklet with sleevenotes by Cameron Crowe and chronology by Kevin Cann

~ Three period photocards of Bowie in various settings

The digital download will feature the same audio content as above but with the added bonus of an unedited alternative mix of Panic In Detroit that clocks in at 13:09.

There shd probably be a thread on the meaning and use of "replica" mementos as well but at the moment all I've got is "sad bastards with more money than sense".

as gorgeous as it all looks, i think i am happy with my orig vinyl + insert, and Ryko cd.

The digital download will feature the same audio content as above but with the added bonus of an unedited alternative mix of Panic In Detroit that clocks in at 13:09. no Cameron Crowe booklet.

knick knack paddy whack I still got the biggest sack, basically

re. the replicas

It's that Nassau show I want to hear so I'm glad there's finally a formal release.

Station to Station >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> the glam trilogy

It's pretty stellar, "Golden Years" remains an extremely strange top ten hit by any measure.

And I'm amazed and gratified that it remains Bowie's highest charting US album.

It's hard for me to even think what the 'worst' song on that album could be. "Stay"? And that's hardly bad, more like him doing hero arena funk rock and then going 'well I don't need to do that again.'

certainly I think you'd have to go some ways to arguing he ever turned in a better vocal performance from stem to stern - the vocal tunes on Low can compete, but just barely

oh I agree, and I don't accept Bowie's cavils about "chickening out" on the vocal mixes (all that double-tracking, for ex). The title track for example is the last word on frosty elegance; I can't think of another artist who could essay it so successfully. (Don't say Scott Walker -- I can't stand Scott Walker. Bowie sounds like Prince next to Scott Walker)

"Wild is the Wind" is the only one that's hard on the ears.

yeah but when he did that one on the BBC (opened the set with it iirc) he knocked it out of the park imo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RT__JxncHEs

Terrific version of "Stay" at that show too.

I love "Wild Is The Wind"---it's over-the-top emoting so hollow that it rattles. I wish New Romantics would have just played covers that they could have made empty & gorgeous, instead of writing silly empty lyrics: following Bowie as an interpreter rather than as a singer-songwriter.

Special Edition out tomorrow! Anyone else as strangely excited as me? I listened to the album this weekend in anticipation. Yes, I know that's sad.

I had no clue and strangely blasted this first thing yesterday morning. If not his best record possibly his best sounding one.

so psyched for the Nassau show--if it's anything like that version of Stay on the rykodisc reissue it will be amazing

^^^^^ every time I've burned it for friends they're like, "Wow, this is BOWIE?!"

The reissue should've included that amazing StoS tour rehearsal film that's been floating around as a boot for years.

i also listened to this earlier today. would prob be my OPO bowie. loved the coverage of it in the low 33+1/3

Got this in the weekend. The plain deluxe version, that is. The Nassau recording is terrific, band is tight (drumsolo in Panic in Detroit is edited down), sound is clear (great piano). The version of "Waiting for the Man" is a curious one, never heard it done in this way, his older versions of this were always much more rocking too. It's sophisticated & funky (coke instead of heroin, I suppose). I agree with Capt. Jay Vee that this reissue should've included film material, the stark & minimal stage setting and (esp) lighting - would've loved a DVD! (was initially hoping that the DVD in the monolithic boxset would be video but sadly no).

MainMan apparently have an awesome video archive, unfortunately the people who deal with Bowie's back catalogue aren't allowed any access to it.

I can take or leave most of S2S but Stay is one of my favourite songs of all time.

I wish there was a way to get a vinyl copy of the full Nassau set separately from this set (especially now that it's off the market and commands a ludicrous pricetag); all the bootlegs I see on Discogs seem to be missing the Lou Reed cover, "Queen Bitch," "Life On Mars" (a song I've adored as long as I've been aware of Bowie's work), or, most distressing of all, "Five Years," one of my five or six favorite songs in Bowie's entire catalogue). who am I kidding, though; I'm sure I'll end up picking up a boot and hope for an eventual separate release.

I tried to get the big box for not stupid price, the size of it did put me off a bit..

It would ebay for around £120 which is still too much. Popmarket had it as a sale-of-the-day for around £60 but they failed to send me one (they did refund me etc)..

So I settled for the 3cd minibox and I got a promo dvd of the big box's DVD, looks genuine.

Still looking for the 'singles edits' for cheap (or d/l of same)

This is probably the single album (other than the recent compilation and Blackstar) that I've listened to most since he died.

This is probably the single album (...) that I've listened to most since he died.

yeah, me too. "S2S" and... the "Absolute Beginners" EP (which was, surprisingly, the song that moved me the most - and which I listened to on repeat - although I hadn't heard it since its initial release, I think) !
oh and "Stage" too, following the dedicated thread. Such a great album, ass stated in that thread !

I wrote on the Station To Station vs Low thread:

try this (original US cassette release) track sequence:

A1 Word On A Wing
A2 Stay
A3 Wild Is The Wind
- - -
B1 Station To Station
B2 Golden Years
B3 TVC 15

I think it has a better flow and improves appreciation of "Word On A Wing" and especially "TVC 15". also emphasizes "Stay".

hum. "Word on a Wing" might be my favorite song on this album but I don't really see it as an opener.
"S2S" is perfect as a first song here (and would be great as the album closer too).
"Golden Years" could be an alternate opener.

official tracklist seems too front-loaded to me. and the side 2 tracklist has an awful flow that f's up the majesty of "Stay" and turns "TVC 15" into just a WTF?! "Wild Is The Wind" is my least fave track (dont hate it just meh) so a disappointing resolution. "TVC 15" as closer reminds of "Secret Life Of Arabia" - end on a tongue in cheek, less-serious note.

closest parallel I can think of for why I think "Station To Station" is perfect as B1 would be if Trans-Europe Express started with its title track, if that makes sense?

I agree that the sequencing is a problem. For too long, I thought of STS as one of the weaker '70s albums (basically the title track and 'Golden Years' and some filler) but everything clicked on my recent relisten. Subsequently hearing the Stage version of some the songs just strengthened their brilliance for me.

How cool is it that Bowie showed Un Chien Andalou before coming out on stage on this tour

people go on about how Station To Station sounds like krautrock, but side 2 sounds like it could have been written by Steppenwolf

yeah, I don't really hear the krautrock aspect in the album. except on some parts of the title track.

Yeah, this doens't sound like krautrock at all to me - I think I went into it initially years ago expecting / hoping for that, and actually it's a weird robo-r'n'b / funk thing. Which is kind of almost how you might describe some krautrock, but just cos two separate things can be described in similar ways doesn't mean they're similar to each other.

it looks like there is a version of the deluxe box purchasable on itunes which is just the remastered album plus the live show.

the sequencing is perfect. it's a broken album by a broken man

this weekend I thought I'd look up the deluxe edition mainly because I'd like to have a better vinyl copy of this and it has the nassau coliseum show on vinyl; but it's selling for like $600 everywhere now so fuck that, I'll stick with my ryko cd.

i assume this is all getting reissued again in a few years anyway

This album is perfection as it is. There is nothing I would change at all about this record. Nothing. Undoubtedly one of my all-time favourites and one of the few records I'd say was a 10/10.

Whoever dislikes "TVC 15" is a savage.

Alfred OTM.

traaaansmisssion

Just saw somewhere the other day that Roy Bittan of the E Street Band is on that.

And I see Alfred posted it on this very thread 10 years ago.

This decade dragged past me so slowly

The outro of 'Stay' could have been twice as long and I seriously wouldn't have minded. It's quite something how this album has such lengthy tracks but the album just breezes by.

One of the few things I dislike about "Stage" is that the version of "Stay" is far from being as funky as the "S2S" version. It's like Carlos is not doing the funky licks or something.

also this is so cool !

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sWArW3w1Zr0

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_3coZeukKrUc/SeadMHsQu2I/AAAAAAAAAds/d8TN8P31YPQ/s400/startTREK.jpg

> Still looking for the 'singles edits' for cheap (or d/l of same)
― Mark G, Monday, 25 January 2016 07:54 (3 days ago)

Since this isn't commercially available anymore (and assuming it doesn't violate any ILX policy) I can help with the d/l if you're interested.

ooh ooh.

PM me..

I think I did . . . but never used that function on here before so lemme know if you didn't get it.

sped-up/reversed "Golden Years" sounds like a mid-00s indie dance track: https://t.co/owekuVx33q

— Bowiesongs (@bowiesongs) August 22, 2021