The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (2012 Remaster)

A classic album from a very exciting time in David Bowie's career, this one to complete my CD collection of 1970's Bowie to me the best era.

quickly and reliably

Probably Bowie's finest work...no need to say much more

Disc one has ‘Ziggy’, of which it has all been written. However, I’ll say it again. This is, without doubt, the most important and influential album of the 1970s. From ‘Five Years’ through to ‘Rock’n’Roll Suicide’ we are treated to spontaneous, edgy, exciting, virtuosic ‘pop/rock’ the likes of which had never been heard before. Bowie never sounded better than when he was backed by (only) the three ‘Spiders’. The 2003 remastering is clear and concise. The comprehensive liner notes, in booklet form, along with the photographs (some that were not familiar) are well worth having. This double CD release is a well thought out and meaningful package. Disc two, however, is what makes this actual release an essential purchase. To have the ‘B’ sides ‘Amsterdam’ (1971) and ‘Round and Round’ (1972) available on CD is a real boon. ‘Amsterdam’, in particular, has David Bowie on top form, vocally and he ‘stacks’ his 12-string guitars to a crescendo in this emotional rendition in the ‘chanson’ by Jacques Brel. ‘The Supermen’ (1971 recording with ‘The Spiders’) is a revelation. Just listen to Mick Ronson’s guitar, especially on the second chorus. This serves to illustrate how and why this period (1971-2) is Bowie’s most creative (arguably) and most interesting. On ‘Velvet Goldmine’, ‘Sweet Head’ and ‘Holy Holy’ (the later version, as opposed to the 1970 ‘Blue Mink’ version) Bowie’s optimism and ‘swagger’ are so evident. These recordings are the last that Bowie made before the stardom that was inevitable. Ziggy was a monster, indeed! Oh, such wonderful music. Thank you, Messrs. Jones, Ronson, Bolder and Woodmansey. It just doesn’t get any better than this.

I have various issues of this iconic album on c.d. and vinyl, including the sought after UK first pressing pre-mainman vinyl, but this Blu-ray audio disc issue which features several different mixes is hands down the best you will ever hear it.You will need a Blu-ray player compatible with Blu-ray audio discs..I feed digital audio output from my Sony player into a decent quality DAC and then into my HiFi amplifier. Recommended.

Excellent album, great physical condition.

When something is bombarded with praise it raises expectations so high that it is impossible for that something to live up to it. This is the problem with Ziggy Stardust. Nevertheless it does have a great cohesion as an album and boasts some of Bowie's greatest tracks, such as the classic 'Starman,' which let's face it is worth the price of the album on it's own. We also have other greats like Sufferagette City, Rock and Roll Suicide and the blissful, 'Five Years' which opens the album and certainly lives up to the hype. Unfortunately, the moment 'Soul Love' began I felt a twinge of disappointment in my gut. Unfortunately also is the fact that 'Soul Love' isn't alone in being a weaker track, as we also have 'It Ain't Easy,' and 'Hang On To Yourself' that latter track sounds like a carbon copy of 'Queen Bitch' from Bowie's previous album and it's that lack of originality that brings it down. In fact that is something that also lets the entire album down. Ziggy Stardust is not in this writers eyes the ultimate Glam Rock album, for that try T-Rex or Roxy Music, the original pioneers of the genre. Ziggy Stardust excels in commercializing the Glam Rock sound but it does little in the way of experimentation, something Roxy Music certainly excelled at in their early days. Overall then this is without doubt a solid album and well worth a purchase. However, it is a little over-hyped by many which has sadly tarnished its legacy somewhat, although nothing will tarnish the legacy of songs like 'Starman,' 'Five Years,' the two Stardust tracks and the closing 'Rock and Roll Suicide.'

What can I say. If you thought the previously available 5.1 mix of the Ziggy album was fantastic ( I thought it was and I still do ) then when you listen to this in Dolby Atmos Spatial Audio it’s going to blow your socks off! Honestly this is something really special. If you want to have an idea of what it felt like to be in the studio with Bowie and the Spiders when this album was recorded, back in the early 70s remember, then this will give you a pretty good idea. I think Bowie himself if he was still with us would also be suitably impressed. If you’re a Bowie fan or even someone just wanting to hear how a Dolby Atmos Spatial Audio album should be done ( Kudos to Ken Scott and Emre Ramazanoglu 👍🏻 ) Then you would be extremely foolish to miss out on this. As a side note, if your audio equipment is unable to process Dolby Atmos then it folds down into a 5.1 mix that is different to the previously available one. Also included is a 2024 stereo remix of the album, a hi- res version of the original album 1972 mix and the 2012 remaster of the original 1972 album. Which of these different versions you prefer or think is worthwhile is subjective depending on what your preference parameters are. Me I like the 2024 stereo mix but I will always be a sucker for the original 1972 album mix that I have actually grown up with. Worth a mention is there is a constantly rolling and constantly changing full screen saver of the albums Ziggy photos taken in Heddon Street. This is great and saves you having to knock your TV screen off in order to prevent shadowing / damage etc. Via the Atmos version though Ziggy Stardust really will live forever that in a way is quite scary from a realism point of view.

Llego muy bien, Amazon ha mejorado mucho los envíos de los discos pero solo compro los que son vendidos por Amazon México o Amazon Estados Unidos. Sobre el disco no hay mucho que decir, obra fundamental en todo amante d ela musica.

After fifty years or so this is still my favourite Bowie album and the new High Res Surround Atmos mix is simply phenomenal.

David au top. Superbe album. low est aussi indispensable,en fait toute la discographie de Bowie est vitale.... A découvrir et écouter sans aucune modération.

Perfeito!