DAVID BOWIE - STAGE (1978): NM 2LP + FULLY LAMINATED G/FOLD SLVE & FREE UK POST

	£		15
	$		20

PLEASE, READ THE FULL ITEM DESCRIPTION CAREFULLY AND ASK ANY QUESTIONS BEFORE DECIDING IF YOU WISH TO BID OR BUY.

DAVID BOWIE - STAGE (1978)

Near mint [sound & condition] original vinyl double album with fully-laminated gatefold sleeve and paper inner sleeves + FREE POST TO UK ADDRESSES

+++++++    IMPORTANT  MAILING  NOTICE    +++++++

 Please be aware that any item bought or won between Monday 19th December and Tuesday 27th December will not be mailed until Wednesday 28th December at the earliest.

This is primarily because of the industrial action by Post Office staff that is scheduled for the week commencing Monday the 19th and likely to add considerable further uncertainty to delivery times at this already busy time of year for post.

Double vinyl album, RCA (PL 02913), released in 1978, Stereo, manufactured in Italy. Matrix Nos: HKAY 32398 1S SM 1A 7, HKAY 32398 1S SM 1A 2, HKAY 32400 1S SM 7A 13 & HKAY 32398 1S SM 7B 6.

The release of a live album often simultaneously closes one chapter in an artist’s career and opens another. Such was the case with the 1978 release of Stage by David Bowie. Recorded over a handful of dates on a tour that took him around the globe, it came at the end of a now legendary sequence of studio albums that turned any notion of there being a “Bowie formula” on its head.

Only a few short years before, Bowie - in the Ziggy Stardust persona - was the centre of attention in the rock world but, in between the final Ziggy show in 1973 and the release of Stage in September of 1978, there had been many changes. The theatrical drama of Diamond Dogs and its associated tour cast him in an ever larger spotlight, while the white soul of Young Americans and Fame gave him his biggest success yet in the US.

Always the wandering spirit, Bowie took a slight left turn with Station To Station in 1976, and then, arguably, sped off the road with Low and Heroes - and this is where we find him caught live on Stage.
The touring band brought on board for the tour included some familiar Bowie associates such as Carlos Alomar [gtr], George Murray [bs] and Dennis Davis [dms] as well as some new faces, including the (then unknown) Adrian Belew [gtr] and Roger Powell [kbds], on loan from Todd Rundgren’s Utopia, as well as Simon House [vln] and Sean Mayes [pno/strng ens]. 

Released as a two-LP set featuring 17 tracks, the bulk of the material on Stage features highlights from Bowie’s more recent albums, but one entire side is devoted to no less than five songs - Hang On To Yourself, Ziggy Stardust, Five Years, Soul Love and Star -from his magnum opus (The Rise And Fall of) Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars. This might seem at odds with Bowie’s future gazing agenda, but the songs are given a new feel from the new musicians, and all work within the context of the newer sounds.
It is, however, the songs from Low and Heroes that shine the brightest here, and the takes of What In The World, Breaking Glass and Heroes especially are all delivered superbly, along with good to excellent versions of Station To Station, Fame, TVC15, Warszawa, Speed Of Life, Art Decade, Sense Of Doubt, Blackout and Beauty And The Beast also featured over the remaining three sides.

As a whole, Stage is far superior to his first “live” offering, 1974’s David Live, which suffered from a general sluggishness and lacklustre performance from pretty much everyone involved. In contrast, the band on Stage are - more often than not - giving it 100% and, perhaps by way of an acknowledgement of that, most of them would go with the singer into the studio with for the ‘Lodger’ sessions the following year.
Moreover, within a couple years, Belew would join forces with another Bowie associate, Robert Fripp, in a new version of King Crimson, and make one of KC’s finest albums in Discipline.

If there are any criticisms of this release, then one might say that it actually sounds “too good”, in the sense that it arguably lack s the ambiance and excitement often associated with live performances. And, on a more personal and picky level, the songs sound little if any different from their studio counterparts which are in any case excellent. Against that though, and with that second point in mind, it’s impressive how well his excellent band recreated the complex studio concoctions - from Low and Heroes in particular - especially as most of the instrumental tracks (from these albums) weren’t well suited for live playing.

Overall though, Stage is unquestionably an excellent live album comprising a well thought out set of songs and delivered with all the care and quality that one has come to associate with Bowie. Now sadly, and in all probability, playing to celestial audiences, David Bowie has taken his place on a monumental pedestal in the rock world, and albums like Stage do much to show the quality, creativity and professionalism that set him apart from - and above - so many of his contemporaries.
(Thanks to Dave Swanson for much of the above.)

This particular Italian-manufactured double-vinyl set comes with its original fully laminated gatefold sleeve, with the laminate itself in quite superb condition, allowing the whole sleeve - inside and out - to, quite literallly, glow/shine as if it were new, instead of getting on for forty years old.
Add to that, the equally shiny and unmarked vinyl (which plays with no obviously audible background or otherwise extraneous noise in either run-ins/outs or on/between the tracks) and the pristine beige labels, and this is a top-quality example of mid to late seventies vinyl that would grace any serious collector’s shelves. Buy, appreciate and enjoy.


Condition:
These vinyls have been well looked-after, having been played relatively few times and kept in a their original inner white paper sleeves - included here - and, as a result, all the playing surfaces still have a considerable shine and, when viewed in direct light, no obvious surface marks. Moreover, a pre-auction play-through also shows that, from the moment the needle enters the run-in groove on each side to the time it leaves the run-off, you hear a full-bodied and clear sound which is every bit as pleasing as their appearance, with no obvious extraneous sounds during the tracks and just minimal, if any, surface noise on the run-ins/run-offs and between the tracks.
Taking all this into account, these vinyls are graded at least “excellent (+)”, going on mint (-).

Also, as you might expect from an album that has been played so little, the beige RCA labels have no obvious signs of any wear to the spindle hole or marks around it, nor any writing, stains, labels or any other kind of blemish and, consequently, are rated “mint (-)”

The cover, which has also been kept in a sturdy plastic cover since purchase, is a fully-laminated gatefold which, sadly, has no credit for its excellent manufacture. At 38 years old, it shows just very few signs of its age: specifically there is minor wear/creasing (with slight associated laminate lift and a little feathering) to the lower, open edge corners, minimal laminate lift towards the top and bottom of the spine, the odd very, very light surface mark, and, in direct light, it’s just about possible to see just the vaguest hint of some ring-wear, but you need good eyes!
Otherwise though, it is in quite superb condition, with very bright, full colouring, nice sharp edges, a strong, well-shaped and easily-read spine, no seam splits, and very clean, mirror-like surfaces with no tears, no writing, no sticker-marks or other noticeable blemishes So, overall, this well looked-after sleeve is also graded “excellent (+)”

17 Tracks:
Side 1:           Hang On To Yourself; Ziggy Stardust; Five Years; Soul Love & Star.
Side 2:           Station To Station; Fame & TVC15.
Side 3:           Warszawa; Speed Of Life; Art Decade; Sense Of Doubt & Breaking Glass.
Side 4:           Heroes; What In The World, Blackout & Beauty And The Beast..

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