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happy birthday David Bowie, whose new album is streaming

by Andrew Sacher

The Next Day

Happy birthday David Bowie! The Thin White Duke turns 69 today, and it’s also the release day for his great new album ‘★’ (pronounced “Blackstar”). It follows 2013’s The Next Day, which is a good album but mostly just recalls his Berlin Trilogy era (down to the Heroes-based artwork). Blackstar doesn’t sound like much else Bowie has ever done. It’s one of his most experimental albums and highly jazz-influenced, yet still very much a rock record. It’s pretty amazing that he’s making good music at all 50 years into his career, let alone music this essential. Listen to the new album via Spotify below.

Meanwhile if you’re in NYC, you can see longtime Bowie collaborator (and Blackstar contributor) Tony Visconti and early-’70s-era Bowie drummer Woody Woodmansey perform 1970’s The Man Who Sold the World “and other popular tunes” tonight (1/8) at Highline Ballroom as Holy Holy. Tony’s son Morgan Visconti & Jessica Lea Morgan open the show. Tickets are still available.

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