Welcome to the Blackout (live London ’78)

A snippet from the Isolar II World Tour recorded some months after the live album.

The sound quality is amazing, with the overall feel of the album sometimes even surpassing the studio versions of some of these songs, mainly because David gave all of these songs a new and polished pop feel, particularly the Berlin part of the set, which on the studio albums is a whole different atmospheric beast.

The first part, sides A, B, and C, is mostly the Berlin albums, with only Jean Genie and Fame not being from that period, while the rest is a mish-mash of "greatest hits" (if you ask me, that would mean a catalog of half of his discography). It's a beautiful display of musicianship, with awesome instrument playing, Bowie being the showman he always was, regularly interacting with the crowd who was absolutely enjoying the set (just listen to Sound and Vision to hear what I mean).

Sides D, E, and F are those greatest hits. Beautifully played, with the band flowing seamlessly into each song as if they were recorded like a prog album. I'd like to point out how Bowie took his hits, recorded only a few years prior (which in Bowie years is half a century, with all the reinventing he's done in his life) and gave new life to them, giving them a coat of futuristic sound with all those synths, and the overall vibe he was going for on the Berlin trilogy albums. It even has a Doors cover, with its style paying homage to The Doors, but making it sound unique and Bowie-esque.

While it might be hard to digest all at once (a triple LP album, going for almost 2 hours) listening to these songs at different points, and on their own, doesn't make them feel disjointed and out of place, as is with some live albums.

Call it whatever you want, I'll call it an all-in-all, job well done on all fronts.