Emma Hatem ‘27
Staff Writer
I made a New Year’s resolution to listen to more music. Not necessarily new music, but ‘new to me’ music. This led me to the “500 Best Albums of All Time” by Rolling Stone. We have 14 weeks until finals, and there is some incredible music to be reviewed. Here is my take on David Bowie’s Station to Station, (1976), Rolling Stone’s 52nd greatest album of all time and what some consider to be the “best transitional album in rock history,” (Highkin). A 1976 article by Teri Moris from Rolling Stone calls Bowie’s Station to Station “a much better album than we’d been led to believe Bowie was willing to make,” giving tribute to the album’s creativity and musicality that is believed to be lacking in his earlier works. The lyrics deliver a nearly “religious passion” which is contrasted by the “bloodless” backing vocals and cheap and “childish” sounding “soul” piano” (Moris). The lyrical genius is what originally earned the album respect. While lines in the album such as “the return of the thin white duke,” probably could have been left out (although this is symbolic of the era Bowie was about to enter), lines such as “Does my prayer fit in with your scheme of things,” “Its too late to be hateful” and “Run for the shadows in these golden years” really worked to send a message, and stand out compared to what is successful in the music industry today.
The sound of the album is an entirely different conversation , and I believe the musicality is truly unique to its time. Much of the album is instrumental, and introduces an electronic sound to Bowie’s catalogue. Prior to this album, Bowie’s genre was characterized as plastic soul. Station to Station marks his transition towards rock and roll and an electronic, experimental sound. The album introduces “devastating,” rock/funk/R&B combo ballads with its 10-minute (I hate to say that Taylor Swift wasn’t the first to do it) title track and “TVC15,” and a more funk leaning vibe in “Golden Years” and “Stay.” The live version of Station to Station, recorded in 1976 in New York and officially released for the first time in 2010, shows us a version even more upbeat, intensely funk, and a little more Ziggy Stardust.
While Station to Station can be characterized by a time when David Bowie called himself “The Thin White Duke” and survived off of peppers, milk, and cocaine, it can also be
characterized as the transition of an artist into lyrical genius and towards rock and roll. Station to Station is quite an exciting record for listeners and critics alike, and deserves to go down as one of the greatest albums of all time.
Featured image courtesy of Beats Per Minute
Copy edited by Charlotte Collins ’26
Sources:
https://beatsperminute.com/album-review-david-bowie-station-to-station-2010-special-edition/ https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-album-reviews/station-to-station-246668/ https://altrockchick.com/2019/08/29/david-bowie-station-to-station-classic-music-review/
https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-albums-of-all-time-1062063/talking-heads remain-in-light-4-1063194/
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