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The album opens on a fade-in of a simple drum beat. This simple drum beat marks, not just the opening of Bowie's 1972 release The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, but it also marks the inception of his magnum opus. This opening track is entitled Five Years - and there is no more dismal a note to open an album on than a song about the end of humanity. Bowie takes the persona of a man in a shopping mall who, and all the mall's customers, that "Earth was really dying" and that they had "five years left to cry in". He then writes about his and others reactions of this horrific news - but he continues the first-person narrative which makes it even more hard-hitting when

he mentions the woman who wanted to take her rage out on "some tiny children" and she would have "killed them" if not restrained. The first three minutes of the song is moderately calm; however in the last minute and a half of the track, Bowie stops singing the refrain and begins to shout it with a fistful of heart-ache and the music becomes more menacing, twisted and disturbing (I see some influence from The Beatles' A Day In The Life during the last minute of this track); the last minute and a half of the track mimics the narrator's feelings and then the music calms down almost instantly, and returns to the drum beat, which fades-out. The energy of the music in this song can easily be analysed to fit the mood of the narrator himself, as it starts of incredibly calm and, throughout the song, starts to get more aggressive and harrowing until, eventually, it calms back down (as the narrator has come to terms with the appending doom)..

Soul Love is the second track on the album. Its meaning is much more personal than the opener. The three verses show different forms of love - the first is more love lost and respect for one giving their life; the second verse shows a new couple who are infatuated with each other; and the third focuses on a priest who's 'love for God' is the passion in this verse. The chorus', however, are not as uplifting. The whole song, like the opener, is shown from Ziggy's perspective and what he sees on his journeys, and he sees all this 'love' in the world - but the chorus' shows his "love for love" and his romanticism and how he would give anything for love. The music is a lot mellower than Five Years, and has beautiful backing vocals, performed by Bowie himself; it also shows Bowie's skills as a saxophonist and the saxophone solo is pure sublime.

"I'm an alligator" has to be one of the most ambiguous lyrics in history, however it works. Despite the fact that the Ziggy Stardust album is a concept album, this song is not obviously connected to Ziggy. There are a few possible interpretations of this song: 1) that it is showing Ziggy's mind whilst he is stoned, 2) that it is an extra-terrestrial life form coming to Earth to help homo-sapiens and prevent the Five Years, or 3) that it is a metaphor for him transforming into this massive rock star. Moonage Daydream is one of the most obscure tracks on the album, because it isn't as obvious what its place is in the story of Ziggy, however that does not matter - it is one of Bowie's most underrated tracks; the music is abstract for a song of the time as it blends rock with futuristic and bizarre guitar effects and lyrics with a hint of psychedelic all held together by Bowie's powerful vocals and an acoustic guitar.

The next track is one of the more popular Bowie tracks on the album; it is a concert stable and a song that no Bowie compilation will be complete without - Starman. Following the extraterrestrial theme featured in Moonage Daydream, however, Starman is not told from Ziggy's point-of-view - but, instead, the song is told through a teenager who has found a message from the 'starman' via a radio. What they hear on the radio is not the starman itself, but Ziggy - as he is the messenger. This song can also be seen metaphorically; Ziggy's message aspires the youths to rebel, which can be seen that Ziggy, as many rock stars, is controversial in parent's eyes - therefore, their children listen to his music (and this can be proved with the controversy around The Beatles). That keyboard synth which leads into the chorus is probably one of the most infamous moments in Bowie's acclaimed career.

Side A concludes with a fantastic cover of Ron Davies' It Ain't Easy. Originally recorded for Bowie's previous album, Hunky Dory, it was omitted but, however, kept for Ziggy Stardust. This is one of the key moments in the album's plot - as it starts to show Ziggy decline: the chorus perfectly shows this: "it ain't easy trying to Heaven when you're going down"; the phase of the "Rise" of Ziggy is over and he begins his "Fall". It is common belief that Lady Stardust is written about Marc Bolan (of T-Rex). It is definitely written about glam rock star - another person that this song could have been written about is Lou Reed of The Velvet Underground, who is, also, a close friend and inspiration to Bowie. The song opens on a piano melody backed with a bass guitar, which soon evolves into a typical Bowie track; and his vocals, as ever, are beautiful and passionate. A beautiful album track which is one of the most personal tracks on the album, as it continues Ziggy's search for love and acceptance.

Star follows straight after Lady Stardust and its theme is almost contrast - as Ziggy has no cares in the world as he is a rock & roll "star", but he searches for acceptance in Lady Stardust. This song marks the inception of Ziggy's narcissistic mentality, which will ultimately lead to his downfall. This is definitely the weakest track on the album - however it is still a gem, and is not out of place on the album, as its plot tells a very crucial part of Ziggy's story. Ziggy is a tortured soul, and it is proven in Hang Onto Yourself. It is about Ziggy having nobody else except himself, which links back to Soul Love. It is, almost, Ziggy's plea for help. The music is ironic - as it masks the dismal lyrics with a melody that makes one want to start to dance; which is a very clever technique that several musicians use to make their songs even more sophisticated - and Bowie has perfected that with this track.

Next up is the eponymous track, and one of the most respected and recognisable tracks on the album. Ziggy Stardust is a career-story about Ziggy himself, however it is sung in the third-person. It shows him in his prime and it states "he took it all too far" and he was "making love to his ego" - showing that the success went to his head, which happens with all too many musicians; but then goes on to justify the narcissism by the fact "he could play guitar". The riff in this song is probably Bowie's most infamous lines, with the exception of Rebel, Rebel. This is the album's most notorious and successful track, and is, without doubt, one of Bowie's masterpieces. Suffragette City is about a typical rock and roll lifestyle - as it is most likely about a prostitute or a brothel; if this is true, then it makes the title most ironic, as the 'suffragettes' are prostitutes. The plot of this song is only to continue the theme that Ziggy is a lonely soul who is, also, a typical rock star. The distorted guitars and synth effects in the background are what make this song - and Bowie's vocals are, as ever, on top-notch. Suffragette City is yet another Bowie essential which is featured on this album.

The album concludes with Rock & Roll Suicide - it's plot is rather self-explanatory. It is spoken from the third-person looking in on Ziggy. The calm music shows that Ziggy's death was inevitable and that it was merely a matter of time before he died (most likely of a drug overdose). As with the previous two tracks, it is truly sublime and is definitely another Bowie classic. Bowie starts to shout the lyrics towards the end of the track, much similar to the end of Five Years, which gives the album a cyclical feel. The key tracks on the album include:

• Five Years
• Moonage Daydream
• Starman
• Ziggy Stardust
• Suffragette City
• Rock & Roll Suicide

Overall YRadio Score

74%

Release Date: 1972

Reviewed by: Cal Fraser

YRadio Rating System

• 0.5 Star = 0% - 10%
• 1 Star = 11% - 20%
• 1.5 Star = 21% - 30%
• 2 Star = 31% - 40%
• 2.5 Star = 41% - 50%
• 3 Star = 51% - 60%
• 3.5 Star = 61% - 70%
• 4 Star = 71% - 80%
• 4.5 Star = 81% - 90%
• 5 Star = 91% - 100%