Record Collector
May 1993.
By Mark Paytress
MARK PAYTRESS WATCHES THE MARKETING OF BOWIE'S LATEST ALBUM
AND EVENTUALLY GETS TO HEAR THE RECORD
...."Black Tie White Noise" has been carefully
shrouded in the kind of open secrecy that conspires to bring governments
down. Except on this occation, all the (mis?) information has filtered through
from Bowie's own camp.
....It was a well-orchestrated
campaign designed to overcome the crtical fatigue which has greeted Bowie's
career move since, well the start of the 80s. "It's the best thing
he's done since "Station To Station"
"; "the best since 'Lodger'
"; "probably on a par with 'Scary
Monsters' ". As the release date drew near, the sliding scale of
comparisons grew more omnious. Was it going to be just another album to
follow "Never Let Me Down"?
....Once the advance
guard had done its work, Bowie himself had to be inserted into the picture.
After recording an eight-hour interview for Radio 1, currently being broadcast
as part of the six-episode 'David Bowie Story', he granted a breif interview
with top-selling U.K. rock magazine 'Q'. But something was missing. Bowie
had resurrected his past, in words and in pictures (the 'Q' piece), but
he'd yet to make himself relevant to those at the utting edge of today's
music.
....Enter Steve Sutherland,
now editor of the 'NME', who suggested that Bowie get together with Suede
front man Brett Anderson for a tête-a-tête that positiooned
the Thin White One as a credible Wise Old Man who could not only understand
the current Thin White Insatiable One but was one of the few rock figures
who could still reduce Anderson to the status of awe-struck fan. Bowie had
indeed been here before: previously, he'd popped up as punk's great progenitor,
and later, in 1980, as the first New Romantic.
....To top it all,
the LP was kept under wraps from the press until days before its release.
Why? Wouldn't it match up to the superlatives bandied around by the publicity
machine - that Bowie is "the ultimate chameleon . . . an influential
force unafraid to be influenced"? Lou
Reed, Neil Young and Bob Dylan have all bounced back from decades of
crtical apathy with well-recieved albums over the past five years, touting
sets that successfully encapsulated their past strenghts into a vaguely
contemporary setting. Bowie, no mean judge of current trends, called in
old pal Mick Ronson, dug out his, gave
his mid-70s albums from "Young Americans"
and "Station To Station" a
cursory listen, and set about constructing his own 'comeback'.
....The result is
a finely polished set of songs destined to billow out of open-fronted cafe's
on a lazy, sunny Sunday afternoon. But unlike the best of Bowie, "Black Tie White Noise" is not going
to have you flat on your back conjuring up imaginary landscapes ("Station To Station", "Low"), acting out pop fantasies in the bedroom
(the "Heroes" and "Drive-In Saturday" 45s), tearing your
hair out of angst ("Rock 'N' Roll
Suicide") or - saddest of all - believing you're listening to one
of the world's finest songwriters ("Life
On Mars?).
....In fact, so secondary
is the notion of songwriting to Bowie's overall game-plan that "Black Tie White Noise" is at its most
successful when he's interpreting Morrisey interpreting Bowie on "I Know It's Gonna Happen Someday".
Sacreligiously thought it may be to Mozzer people, the song provides the
album's only real hint of excess, its big ballad arrangement at once amusing
and stirring.
....That's a pity,
because the album kicks off with a reasoable fusion of baggy beats and Philly
embellishment on "The Wedding", an instrumental slice of "plastic
soul" composed for his marriage to Iman. Bowie blows some eastern scales
on his sax, and the overall effect is as promising as one would hope from
the man who's best known today for the vulgar camaraderie of "Dancing In The Street" or falling to
his knees at big charity events.
....As an adoring
instrument, Bowie's sax is instantly preferable to the apperantly exotic
trumpet of Lester Bowie, which - well-crafted
or not - is ultimately reminiscent of rip-off eateries where you've unintentionally
bought a sandwich and a beer and got a little change out of a tenner. Lester
may be a fine player, but his presence here isn't quite the right reference
point if Bowie wants to jettison his sharp-suited, 80s survivor image.
...."Black Tie
White Cordless Phone" is really a more befitting title for this half-baked
attempt at regaining critical favour and stimulating the last embers of
credibility. One long-time fan who'd been oblivious to the heavy press campaign,
told me, "It uppstes me if I think it's the same person. Like Bob Dylan,
you sort of imagine that he's died."
....Perhaps that's
a mite unfair, but there's no getting round the sense that Bowie's music
has to be shaped by his social standing. Long ago, he only wanted to be
somebody, then he wanted to be brilliant; today, he simply wants to be back.
That's enough to prompt him to make an LP which hints at past glories (the
mid-70s) keyboard sound is in evidence), which proves he's aware of Primal
Scream's dance-rock crossover, and which indicates a dissatisfaction with
years of bad press.
....It's not enough.
Like most of his contemporaries, music just isn't impotant enough to him
any more, which is a great shame. If it was, he certainly wouldn't have
couched a song like "Miracle Goodnight"
in a backing that sounds like Mrak King-meets-Trio (of"Da-Da-Da"
fame).
....If Bowie really
is back in business, then "Black Tie
White Noise" must only be regarded as the very first stage, ratehr
like the moment when a junk food addict takes the decision to kick the habit.
It's not enough to welcome Bowie back when there are only words (and not
even his) to tell us he's in good shape. The proof is in the musical pudding,
and "Black Tie White Noise",
Bowie's exquisitely-prepared souffle' has failed to rise to the occasion. |