If the two previous albums were very good records, containing their share of federative anthems and delicate songs having allowed David Bowie to be recognized by the professional critics, they did not really find the way allowing them a recognition of the general public. "The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars", more commonly known as "Ziggy Stardust", will remedy this.
What does "Ziggy Stardust" have more than its predecessors to allow Bowie to finally reach notoriety? A concept, or at least a semblance of a concept, a very fashionable principle in this period favourable to progressive rock. Don't get us wrong, "Ziggy Stardust" has nothing progressive about it, Bowie refocusing on a polished rock but very conventional in its form: short tracks, even very short, alternating verses and choruses, without forgetting the little musical bridge. The pseudo-concept revolves around a star, Ziggy Stardust incarnated by David Bowie, and his band, The Spiders From Mars, made up of the now faithful Mick Ronson, Trevor Bolder and Mick Woodmansey, from their rise to their fall. Nevertheless, the lyrics of the songs are often vague, even abstruse, and it is difficult to follow the narrative, if it exists.
In fact, apart from a slight recurrence of the central character and references to rock, the concept lies more in the homogeneity of the tracks and in the incarnation of Ziggy Stardust by a David Bowie with a striking aesthetic: more androgynous than ever, with flaming orange hair spiked on his head (even if the cover shows him curiously blond) and costumes as tight as decadent, venomously handsome and as seductive for the male and female gender. As for the musical content, Bowie went back to the basics of rock, lining up songs with effective riffs and bewitching melodies.
This is of course where the album gets its strength. If all the tracks are not hits, there is however no weak moment. And if the whole seems very coherent, this does not exclude a great diversity. The music is direct, but its apparent simplicity is full of finesse and delicacy. The tunes are easy to remember, the rhythmic, very present, is very efficient (it was a bit forgotten on the previous album), Mick Ronson is everywhere, between the guitar parts, very lively, the piano and the violin/mellotron layers that cover many tracks. While Bowie becomes more confident on the saxophone, he excels once again on vocals, shattering several times as on the final of 'Five Years', a track all in crescendo, the romantic ballads that are 'Lady Stardust' and 'Ziggy Stardust' or the desperate and definitive 'Rock 'n' Roll Suicide'. Everything is said in the title.
But "Ziggy Stardust" is not only pathos. The album is very singing ('Soul Love', 'Starman'), full of "la la la", "oooh wah wah" and other self-parodic "cha na na na" ('Star'), full of energy ('Moonage Daydream', 'Hang On To Yourself', the devastating 'Suffragette City'). The balance between sweetness and adrenaline, causticity and melodrama, is perfect and the sound recording, excellent, pays tribute to the musicians. David Bowie had already shown on the previous albums some glimpses of his immense talent. Here, he exposes it in broad daylight and realizes a mythical album.