When EMI/Virgin got Bowie's back catalog in 1997, they released two best-ofs covering the material they had — The Best Of . . . 1969/1974 and The Best Of . . . 1974/1979. They had some hits, some Rykodisc rarities, and some oddly chosen album tracks here and there (i.e. "Can You Hear Me" and "The Secret Life of Arabia" on 1974/1979).

A third of these, covering 1980–7, was planned but never released. But let's say it was — what would you have put on it?

My tracklist would go:
1. Let's Dance —single edit
2. Fashion
3. Cat People [Putting Out Fire] —1982 soundtrack album version
4. When The Wind Blows
5. Modern Love
6. Scary Monsters [and super creeps]
7. Time Will Crawl
8. Absolute Beginners
9. This Is Not America
10. Teenage Wildlife
11. China Girl
12. Loving the Alien —single edit
13. As the World Falls Down
14. Blue Jean
15. Criminal World
16. Under Pressure
17. Space Oddity —1979 rerecording
18. Ashes To Ashes

Don’t think about Young Americans as a makeout album

Here is my take on the subject. which leads to Sysiyo's earlier thread too.

I fly to the nearest bar

Good lord. Was my grammar and general use of the language really that bad four years ago? (Actually it was bad enough on Pablo's thread and that's from last year).

Anyway... it's been such a long time since I last did this I might as well give it a try.

1. Cat People (single edit of soundtrack version) - A good opener, and the edit is IMO more effective than the full version.
2. Let's Dance (single edit) - Bowie's probably biggest hit. If there would have been enough space I would have preferred to use the full version.
3. Blue Jean
4. Underground (single edit)
5. Time Will Crawl (dance crew mix) - The Dance Crew Mix is arguably superior to the album take, and certainly fits in better with the more commercial material here.
6. Ashes To Ashes
7. Ballad of The Adventurers
8. Absolute Beginners (single edit) - Again, I find the edit more effective than the full take.
9. China Girl (single edit) - To tell the truth, I could live without this one. Almost replaced this with Alabama Song, but as that actually dates from 1978 (although released later) I decided to leave it off this compilation. It should have been on the 1974/79 one.
10. This Not America
11. Under Pressure
12. Never Let Me Down (single edit)
13. Loving The Alien (dub mix) - IMO superior to the album version. This is actually called the extended dub mix, the extension being two seconds of silence in the end.
14. As The World Falls Down (single edit) - Never released as a single, but an edit was prepared for possible single release (it is the one used in the video for this song, so perhaps 'video edit' would be the proper term)
15. Fashion (single edit)
16. Modern Love (single edit)
17. Dancing In The Street
18. Scream Like A Baby - Something else off Scary Monsters than just the hits.
19. When The Wind Blows - Possibly the best closer ever (the instrumental might be even better, IMO).

This might not quite fit on one CD, I didn't look up the precise running times.

KArt | Project Michelangelo | LiveJournal

I'd probably choose something very similar to yours seeing it omits 'Dancing in the Street' and includes 'Teenage Wildlife' and 'Criminal World'.

The following is not my preferred album but rather what I expect it would have been:

1. Ashes To Ashes
2. Fashion
3. Scary Monsters [and Super Creeps]
4. Under Pressure
5. Cat People [Putting Out Fire] —1982 soundtrack version
6. Let's Dance
7. Modern Love
8. China Girl
9. Blue Jean
10. Loving the Alien
11. This Is Not America
12. Absolute Beginners
13. Dancing in the Streets
14. As the World Falls Down
15. When The Wind Blows
16. Day in Day Out
17. Time Will Crawl
18. Never Let Me Down

'Till there was rock you only had God

There is such album out there, it's called Scary Monsters. I suppose you could throw in the prime cuts from Let's Dance and few non album tracks but let's face it, making a Bowie collection of the 80's stuff is like banging your head on the wall.
I might just as well make a compilation "The very best of Prince 1995-2003".

Rejection is one thing
but rejection from a fool is cruel

In reply to:

---

A third of these, covering 1980–7, was planned but never released

---

Looking at the tracks I can perhaps see why this never came about, some good songs on there but none to equal the two former CDs.

Although like Sys I would have liked the Alabama Song included on the former CD.

China Girl please enuff is enuff.

In reply to:

---

12.Zeroes -

---

Yes that I do like.



London Bye Ta-Ta...

1. Cat People - 1982 Single Edit - It's superior, enough said.
2. Let's Dance - 4'08 Single Edit - The album version drags on far too long for a compilation, and old fans who remember the song will probably be more familiar with this version.
3. Time Will Crawl - It is easily the best single from Never Let Me Down, and is worthy of a place after Let's Dance
4. China Girl - 4'15 Single Edit - Again, the 4-minute version is much better suited to a compilation, and the album version doesn't have anything too different anyway.
5. Teenage Wildlife - It is just 100% David Bowie.
6. Under Pressure (with Queen) - A No.1 single, so no doubt about this one.
7. Fashion - A good single which I prefer to Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps). I have chosen to include the album version.
8. Never Let Me Down - It portrays the slightly better side of the album, and I think the person who said replace it with Glass Spider is a nutcase
9. Blue Jean - Well there had to be a Tonight track somewhere...
10.Magic Dance - It's a pretty good Labyrinth track and because the film was so successful it's only fair we include something from the soundtrack.
11.Day-In Day-Out - 4'11 Single Edit - Although fairly weak it was the most popular single from Never Let Me Down in terms of airplay and sales, and the trimmed down 4 minute edit isn't so bad.
12.Zeroes - A good album track from Never Let Me Down. I hated it at first but it can have lasting appeal after a few listens.
13.Because You're Young - Another great track from the benchmark album Scary Monsters.
14.Ashes To Ashes - The single version isn't as good and with the album version only being around 50 seconds longer I considered it ok to use it. I think it would be a good closer for an album like this, to end it on a high and well-known track.

____________________________________________

4 tracks from Scary Monsters... And Super Creeps

2 tracks from Let's Dance

1 track from Tonight

4 tracks from Never Let Me Down

3 other tracks.

__________________________________________
Thoughts Of A Potential Superman

Get out of my mind! All of you!!

In reply to:

---

The following is not my preferred album but rather what I expect it would have been:

---

I wouldn't be so certain. The two previous compilations included some very odd choices, the presence of less-known tracks wouldn't be impossible.

In reply to:

---

Magic Dance - It's a pretty good Labyrinth track and because the film was so successful it's only fair we include something from the soundtrack.

---

Yeah but Magic Dance of all the tracks you could have used? I mean, there's Underground, As The World Falls Down and even Within You and you chose Magic Dance over those?

(Good call on Because You're Young, though).

KArt | Project Michelangelo | LiveJournal

Just songs I love here, therefore you will find no Let's Dance, single edit or otherwise, because it's such a terrible song. So, this will probably end up being a pretty unrealistic compilation, with a few selections that only I seem to like.

1. Ashes to Ashes
2. China Girl
3. Absolute Beginners
4. Blue Jean
5. Teenage Wildlife
6. Within You
7. Without You
8. Never Let Me Down
9. Criminal World
10. It's No Game pt 1
11. As The World Falls Down
12. When the Wind Blows
13. Shining Star
14. Cat People (film version)
15. Ricochet
16. Scary Monsters
17. Modern Love
18. Under Pressure

No thought really went into the order or how long this bastard would actually be. A few Baal songs could make it, as well as any number of Never Let Me Down tracks... it's a consistently average album so the two representatives aren't nessecarily that much better than most of the rest of the album.

In reply to:

---

making a Bowie collection of the 80's stuff is like banging your head on the wall.

---

Not as bad as actually listening to it, though.


This post made with meat!

In reply to:

---

Yeah but Magic Dance of all the tracks you could have used? I mean, there's Underground, As The World Falls Down and even Within You and you chose Magic Dance over those?

---

I can assure you Underground came close but I am really digging Magic Dance at the moment. As for the others, I haven't actually heard Within You and I am not a fan of As The World Falls Down.

In reply to:

---

(Good call on Because You're Young, though).

---

__________________________________________
Thoughts Of A Potential Superman

Get out of my mind! All of you!!

In reply to:

---

Not as bad as actually listening to it, though.

---

There speaks someone who dares tell the truth!



London Bye Ta-Ta...

Actually, the only Bowie albums I've listened to in a long time is my collection of 12" mixes from 1983-86.

KArt | Project Michelangelo | LiveJournal

In reply to:

---

Actually, the only Bowie albums I've listened to in a long time is my collection of 12" mixes from 1983-86.

---

Yeah they are cool Sys I agree, It's a shame there isn't an album of those 12" mixes.

I tried yet again to listen to Lets Dance again the other day got as far as turn the holy pictures and couldn't take anymore.

Im currently listening very intensly to Young Americans, It wasn't until I discovered this site ( TW ) that I actually knew the true lyrics.



London Bye Ta-Ta...