~
This has started out to be a good year for me as far as music goes because of presents I got for Christmas (
link below); this CD by
David Bowie, – ★
(Blackstar), given to me by my brother, Ken, was one of them.
This article is not about
David Bowie, who died two years ago today, nor the music on this album; there is PLENTY of information about both already out there (
links below). As with my article about the
Hawkwind album (
link below), it is about the album itself, which was designed by
Jonathan Barnbrook (
links below).
Barnbrook also designed the sleeves for
Reality and
The Next Day, both by Bowie. He has done covers for
John Foxx,
Tuxedomoon and
Cult with No Name.
The
Blackstar album is an
extraordinary
study in black on black; hard to read and almost impossible to
photograph as is the booklet, with amazing and beautiful but spooky
photos by Jimmy King and
Johan Renck, that accompany it. The photos perfectly reflect the bizarre and unnerving lyrics and
foreboding of the music.
The videos for the songs, – ★
(Blackstar) and
Lazarus are REALLY bizarre, unnerving and even creepy (
links below); they reflect the illness Bowie was suffering. They are not easy to watch.
The Booklet
There have been other albums designed totally in black,
Prince (
link below), Murray Roman (
link below),
Metallica (
link below) and
Spın̈al Tap are a few that come to mind.
Tony Visconti, who co-produced
Blackstar with Bowie, described the album as Bowie's
swan song and a "parting gift" for his fans before his death on January 10, 2016, two days after the album was released.
Tracklist:
1 - ★ (Blackstar) - 9:57
2 - 'Tis A Pity She Was A Whore - 4:52
3 - Lazarus - 4:22
4 - Sue (Or In A Season Of Crime) - 4:40
5 - Girl Loves Me - 4:51
6 - Dollar Days - 4:44
7 - I Can't Give Everything Away - 5:47
Companies, etc.
Licensed To – Columbia Records
Distributed By – Columbia Records
Phonographic Copyright (p) – ISO Records
Copyright (c) – ISO Records
Published By – Nipple Music
Published By – MSF Music
Recorded At – The Magic Shop
Recorded At – Human Worldwide Studios
Mixed At – Electric Lady Studios
Mastered At – Sterling Sound
Pressed By – Sony DADC
Credits:
Arranged By [String Arrangement] – David Bowie (tracks: 1)
Backing Vocals – Erin Tonkon (tracks: 2)
Bass – Tim Lefebvre
Design – Barnbrook
Drums, Percussion – Mark Guiliana
Engineer – Erin Tonkon, Kabir Hermon, Kevin Killen, Tony Visconti
Guitar – Ben Monder
Guitar [Fender] – David Bowie (tracks: 3)
Mastered By – Joe LaPorta
Mixed By – Tom Elmhirst
Music By – Bob Bharma* (tracks: 4), Maria Schneider (tracks: 4), Paul Bateman (7) (tracks: 4)
Percussion – James Murphy (tracks: 4, 5)
Photography By – Jimmy King (6), Johan Renck, NASA (10)
Piano, Organ [Wurlitzer], Keyboards – Jason Lindner
Producer, Mixed By – David Bowie, Tony Visconti
Saxophone, Flute, Woodwind – Donny McCaslin
Strings – Tony Visconti (tracks: 1)
Vocals, Acoustic Guitar – David Bowie
Words By, Music By – David Bowie
Written-By – David Bowie
Notes:
Album title and track 1 title generally referred to as "Blackstar" but printed as "★"
Issued in a digipack.
Barcode and Other Identifiers
Barcode (Text): 8 88751 73862 1
Barcode (Scanned): 888751738621
Mastering SID Code: IFPI L327
Mould SID Code (Variants 1, 2): IFPI 50BS
Mould SID Code (Variant 3): IFPI 50BE
Mould SID Code (Variant 4): IFPI 50BT
Mould SID Code (Variant 5): IFPI 50BP
Matrix / Runout (Variants 1, 5): DIDX-1078317 1
Matrix / Runout (Variant 2): DIDX-1078317 2
Matrix / Runout (Variant 3): DIDX-1078317 1 A08
Matrix / Runout (Variant 4): DIDX-1078317 1 A05
David Bowie – ★ (Blackstar)
Label: Columbia – 88875173862, ISO Records – 88875173862
Format: CD, Album
Country: US
Released: 08 Jan 2016
Genre: Rock
Style: Art Rock
