David Bowie - Best of Bowie

Starring:David Bowie
Studio: Virgin Records Us
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com
Probably the most comprehensive anthology of any musical artist to date, the 47-track Best of Bowie traces the guises of David Bowie from the androgynous, glam-rock rebel of the 1970s to his more recent incarnation as the postmodern pop ironist of the '90s. The collection provides an added insight into wider developments in fashion, music, and the pop video. Most of the early material is taken from television music programs such as The Old Grey Whistle Test ("Oh! You Pretty Things," "Queen Bitch," and "Five Years"); however, as the demands of television and music promotion progress, Bowie ventures into more sophisticated stand-alone videos culminating in 1983's "Let's Dance."

Amazon.com

Probably the most comprehensive anthology of any musical artist to date, the 47-track Best of Bowie traces the guises of David Bowie from the androgynous, glam-rock rebel of the 1970s to his more recent incarnation as the postmodern pop ironist of the '90s. The collection provides an added insight into wider developments in fashion, music, and the pop video. Most of the early material is taken from television music programs such as The Old Grey Whistle Test ("Oh! You Pretty Things," "Queen Bitch," and "Five Years"); however, as the demands of television and music promotion progress, Bowie ventures into more sophisticated stand-alone videos culminating in 1983's "Let's Dance."

Best of Bowie's animated menus, and the opening menu sequence of both discs are excellent. Although there are no listed bonus features, the discs are swarming with extra "Easter egg" features such as alternative videos and vintage interviews (these can be accessed via the track-listing menu by selecting certain tracks and pressing the Right button). Background information about each video is displayed before the start of every promo, which is reproduced in the accompanying glossy booklet. The sound and picture quality is variable for early videos but improves (admittedly erratically) for later videos. Despite the mountains of material on both discs, there are a number of unexplainable absences such as "Changes", "Under Pressure," and "Sound and Vision." Watch out for the Best of Bowie, Vol. 2. --John Galilee

Customer Reviews:

Substantial, comprehensive retrospective.......2007-02-05

The way it should be! More than 4 hours of footage, Easter-egg bonus clips, and just look at that shine! Rather, notice how deeply the price is discounted right now, not the case when i bought it almost 5 years ago. But it's worth list, even :)
In future David Bowie DVD and or CD releases, some lobby card reproductions or the like would be welcomed. (Or a bit of a nicer looking booklet design that doesn't quite look so much like web-page print-outs). Minor point; with so many music DVDs coming in at just 90 minutes or less than, even for supposed 'career retrospectives.'
It's a satisfying contrast that "Best of Bowie" delivers enough footage that one is able watch it in stages, if desired, and always have plenty to revisit.
In my opinion; the 'Best of Bowie' DVDs belong in every home library of anyone interested in timeless pop-rock archival footage highlighting the contributions of an innovative trailblazer who mastered the fusion of music, film, art and 'fashion'.

Plus, there's no Tin Machine on it !!!

har... after all, there's innovative trailblazing, and then there's "enough already with that!"---
-with apologies to Tin Machine loyalists, should any be lurking and see this :)

great bowie.......2006-11-10

I have been a David Bowie fan from day one. This is a great dvd. love the earlier years to up to date. Takes me way back! Love it!

A lot missing.......2006-04-14

It's great to have a double Bowie DVD, although there are alot of tracks on Disc 2 which are largerly unknown internationally. It would have been good to make this DVD more definitive by including clips for:
Changes
Starman
Sound & Vision
Tonight

Love It, Love Him.......2006-01-28

There's something aboout Bowie, something about his androgeny, his out-thereness and most of all, HIS VOICE that makes me soar. I love his oddity and his inventiveness. This DVD is the perfect collection for a true Bowie lover like me. It's also a great introduction to the time in which he was up and coming. It captures his whole career and also highlights the evolution of the art of music video. I could just listen and watch all day, which is seriously dangerous for a hard worker like myself. A perfect weekend pleasure.

Easter Eggs.......2005-12-28

I'm having trouble with some of the Easter Eggs in here! Does anyone know how I can view the alternate mtv version of "Blue Jean" or the alternate versions of "Seven Years in Tibet", "Survive" and "Miracle Goodnight"?

Average customer rating:

Decent collection

VH1 Storytellers Classics
Starring: Jackson Browne , David Bowie , Ringo Starr , Rod Stewart , and Sheryl Crow
Director: Michael Simon , and Michael Chloe
Manufacturer: Sony
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Rock | Styles | Music

General | Music Video & Concerts | Genres | DVD | Video

( V ) | Titles | Features | DVD | Video
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ASIN: 0738921637
Release Date: 2001-06-19

Amazon.com

Recommended more for quality of live performance than for storytelling, VH1 Storytellers: Classics is a seven-song compilation from the popular VH1 series, bearing all the strengths and weaknesses inherent in the program. Some of the featured musicians are fine raconteurs, and the format of the show encourages them to share the genesis of their best-known songs. Pete Townshend explains that the title of "Baba O'Riley" was a combination of two people who inspired him when he wrote the song: Indian spiritual teacher Meher Baba and electronic musician Terry Riley (he added the "O'" for a touch of Irish flavor). David Bowie explains how "China Girl" arose from a collaboration with Iggy Pop after a moving experience in a Berlin punk club; and before launching into an outstanding performance, Steely Dan's Donald Fagen describes "Kid Charlemagne" as an allusion to the passing of the 1960s.

Other performers have little or nothing to say about the songs they perform (when asked, Rod Stewart shamefully can't recall who originally played mandolin on "Maggie May"), but virtually all of these performances are first-rate and fully deserving of their inclusion. Surprisingly--or perhaps not--Ringo Starr provides the highlight, recalling how his melancholy feeling of exclusion during the recording of the Beatles' White Album led him to take a holiday in Sardinia. It was there that he was inspired to write "Octopus's Garden," and his performance of that song--with his hand-picked band the All- Stars--is as purely delightful as the original recording. --Jeff Shannon

Customer Reviews:

Decent collection.......2001-08-09

Nothing to write home about, but a nice set of performances from the Storytellers series, with a few good moments. For the price (and potential length) of a VHS tape, this could've been a lot longer (it's only about 40 minutes).

Average customer rating:

A Dog's Tale
Starring: David Bowe , Finola Hughes , Gordon Jump , Anne Lockhart , and David Bowie
Director: Craig Clyde
Manufacturer: ENTERTAINMENT PROGRAMS INC.
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

General | Action & Adventure | Genres | DVD | Video

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ASIN: B00005N89F
Release Date: 2003-03-25

Average customer rating:

A Dog's Tale
Starring: David Bowe , Finola Hughes , Gordon Jump , Anne Lockhart , and David Bowie
Director: Craig Clyde
Manufacturer: Hanover House
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000A1IMAE
Release Date: 2005-11-28

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