Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Underrated Bowie album, 13 Aug 2006
Bowie collaborated with the innovative producer Brian Eno on his trilogy of 'Low', 'Heroes' and 'Lodger' (Eno later went on to produce David's 1995 album 'Outside').
I have always loved this little gem of a Bowie album and it's one that often gets overlooked by the critics and some fans. It may not be as ground breaking as 'Low' or 'Heroes' or even 'Scary Monsters' that followed a year later, but it is still chock full of tunes, plus in it's own way, it is experimental, influential and even ground breaking, what with it's blend of New Wave and World Music. Think about it, firstly it's the Eastern influences that may have inspired bands like The Clash and The Pogues, for example 'Straight To Hell' (The Clash) and 'Summer In Siam' (The Pogues), which are not too far removed from 'D.J.' and 'Yassassin' in origin. Also Bowie got in there first before Paul Simon's 'Graceland' with splicing African Music to Pop/Rock.
There are so many highlights to recommend here. My favourites are: 'Fantastic Voyage', 'Yassassin', 'Red Sails', 'D.J.', 'Look Back In Anger', 'Boys Keep Swinging' and 'Repetition'. There you go, that's 75% taken care of, and as for the other 25%, well that's also blooming marvellous. One to add to the record collection.
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10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
terribly underrated album, 30 Oct 2001
By A Customer
i told a friend of mine - a fellow musician and songwriter - that most bowie fans didn't like this album. i'd introduced him to bowie and this album some 6 months before. he replied; "but that's not real bowie fans". and i must agree. this is pure bowie. pure complex and daring lyrics as well as musically daring composition and innovative orchestrations.this is an absolutely brilliant album, but also one of bowie's most challenging. none of the songs are as catchy as any on ziggy or as soulesque as stationtostation, and that may be hard for some fans to swallow. but when you let this liberating album grow on you, it proves to be a revelation more complex than most. and isn't that what bowie's all about, more than "let's dance"? i still consider low to be the best berlin album, but this is surely one of the best albums of the 70s. incredibly demanding of it's listener, with no quick hook lines or flashy productions, this is post modernism at it's best. enjoy.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Artful lodger, 13 Mar 2007
I recall buying the single 'Boys Keep Swinging' and playing it for weeks. In the wake of its success, I was surprised that 'Lodger' seemed to pass everyone by, more so than just how conventional the b-side, 'Fantastic Journey', sounded. It isn't so difficult to understand now, though, why the album seems to have a reputation for being wedged in at the end of the 1970s. Unlike its two predecessors, 'Lodger' has a jarring disparity of styles. The exotic 'African Night Flight' and 'Yassassin' provide a stark contrast to the album's more straightforward moments. Though each track benefits from the usual care and attention, the sense of fragmentation gives 'Lodger' an unfinished air, as if Bowie hadn't decided how he wanted it to sound. Brian Eno was reputedly none too impressed with the finished item because some of the more daring material was axed in favour of the straighter stuff.
Even so, there are several great moments on 'Lodger', Adrian Belew's guitar-throttling solo on 'Boys Keep Swinging' only adds to the riotous feel of the song and the follow-up single, 'DJ', has Bowie's delicate offbeat magic behind it. Bowie's experimentation doesn't work as well as on previous albums, but 'Lodger' is certainly worth a spin.
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