The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars

literally one of the greatest albums of all time

This is one of those albums where everything feels completely locked in. David Bowie fully disappears into the Ziggy Stardust character, but the album never comes across as just an exercise in image or theatrics. Underneath the glam rock surface are genuinely strong songs, and that’s what keeps the whole thing from feeling dated or gimmicky.

The run of tracks here is ridiculously strong. 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻 is the obvious highlight, but songs like 𝗠𝗼𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝗗𝗮𝘆𝗱𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗺 and 𝗥𝗼𝗰𝗸 ’𝗻’ 𝗥𝗼𝗹𝗹 𝗦𝘂𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗱𝗲 give the album its emotional weight. Bowie sounds charismatic all the way through, while the band keeps everything sharp and energetic without overplaying. Even at its most dramatic, the album still feels controlled and focused.

What really stands out is how effortless it sounds. A lot of concept albums feel heavy or overexplained, but 𝘡𝘪𝘨𝘨𝘺 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘥𝘶𝘴𝘵 moves naturally from one moment to the next. It creates its own world without losing sight of the songs themselves. More than anything, it just feels cool in a way very few albums do.

Gorgeous stuff x

Simply a classic with so many hits that it' an easy 5.

Favorite Songs: Five Years ; Moonage daydream ; Starman ; Hang on to Yourself ; Ziggy Stardust ; Suffragette City ; Rock 'n' Roll Suicide

A beautiful, well constructed album from front to back. 5/5

The first Bowie album I ever heard. A rare album with absolutely no filler. So many highlights - I'll mention Moonage Daydream's lyrics and Soul Love's cool, laid-back tune as personal preferences. It doesn't get much better than this.

Not a single bad song on this album. Every single song is a masterpiece and I'm not even a David Bowie Fanboy.

One of these albums where I could never ever understand a 1 Star Rating.

I never cared much about Bowie before this list, but I’ve become quite a fan through this project. I talk about him in more reviews than I do any other musician, and it’s not even close. This is an era defining Bowie album, and who am I to argue with its influence?

My first exposure to Bowie was with Let’s Dance and Blue Jeans that I thought was poppy rubbish. At work one day I heard Starman on the radio and I swear my head swivelled right round on its axis and suddenly I was converted into a rabid fan. How good is this album? While his Glam Rock contemporaries were screaming Schools Out and Gudbye to Jane, he makes a concept album mimicking his life which starts out with an apocalyptic tale of having limited time to remember all the people. Well, I will always remember you David so thank you.
My only peeve is that this album deserves to be higher in the highest rated list. Like its 7th- shocking, what gives.

3.5

Мабуть єдиний альбом Боуі, який справді мені подобається.

This is a brilliant album!!

Ok so this is below par for Bowie in 70’s but it’s still got Starman and Sufferagette City.

I can't believe it's taken me this long to listen to Bowie, I mean wow

WOOOOOO!!!!! Obviously I’ve heard this before. I own this on vinyl. All this to say I'm glad to get an album of such obvious quality today. So the album itself! Starting off with one of the best a-sides ever, including such classics as "Moonage Daydream," "Five Years," and most obviously, "Starman," and finishing with maybe the best closer ever in "Rock n Roll Suicide." Ridiculously consistent and well-produced as well, I mean... y'all have seen the score. One thing I did want to really understand for myself though is the story that the album goes through, so that I could truly understand the entire work. So, what seems to happen is, Ziggy Stardust comes to Earth as a messenger, after people find out that Earth is "really dying." So Ziggy becomes accustomed to Earth, and Earth responds with adoration and fame. The first disc ends with "It Ain't Easy," which as a cover, demonstrates the comfort Ziggy has attained on Earth, and in his newfound fame. Side B opens with proof of Ziggy's fame, and then goes on to demonstrate the way that fame is now increasingly important to him, and the Spiders urge Ziggy to, uhh, y'know, "hang onto himself." In response, Ziggy pretty much fires all of them and lashes out against them. This represents Ziggy's fall, and as the final song comes in, both Ziggy and the world are completely doomed: Ziggy's ego was too much to genuinely help him or those around him, and then I'm pretty sure the world ends. Which yeah that's what I'm talking about!! This album is incredible. I didn't realize how incredible it really was until today, but it deserves all the praise it gets.
10/10

Perhaps this album is slightly overrated. But... it's also David Bowie.

Top 3 Bowie. Een album met enkel highlights.

5
Feel like I've been resisting listening to Bowie for so long because he couldn't possibly live up to the hype. He does though

Starts amazing and ends amazing. Maybe it’s sacrilege to say, but I just don’t dig the middle. Or at least not as much. And it’s not the strongest concept of all time. 3.5 but I’ll round up as 3 is way too mean.

The RISE with no falls of Ziggy Stardust and the GOATS from Mars

I think this may be a case of "born too late." I was born in the early mid seventies, by the time I started listening to music in any real sense we were already to the Go-Go's - I think my first Bowie song was Let's Dance. Maybe there is an element of 'had to be there' to all the Gushing Bowie Reviews.

I appreciate the mastery and the ability to reinvent and all of that but these just don't hit me the way that they seem to hit most folks.

ZS is a great song of course, and I enjoyed a lot of the album but I can't see my way to saying it is a 'great' album.

3.8