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Listen To David Bowie's Secret Greatest Live Album, From Long Island In 1976
By
Ben Yakas
Published Jan 19, 2013
Modified Jan 20, 2013
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By
Ben Yakas
Published Jan 19, 2013
Modified Jan 20, 2013
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The joy felt over the fantastic surprise news that David Bowie was coming out of semi-retirement to release a new album, The Next Day, was only slightly deflated by the follow-up news that he likely wouldn't be touring at all. Having seen him at MSG on his Reality tour in 2003—in what may turn out to be his final tour ever—this reporter can attest that even with his health problems then, Bowie was giving it his all in his performances. In terms of live albums, Bowie's catalogue is surprisingly thin—but there is one little-known live release that towers above the rest. Below, listen to Bowie live at Nassau Coliseum in Long Island in 1976, one of the only documents of the epic Station To Station tour.
This recording (see the tracklist at the bottom) was only released as a bonus disc on the re-release of Station To Station, Bowie's seminal 1976 album that pointed toward his hallowed Berlin Trilogy (Low, Heroes, Lodger). Unfortunately, there are almost no video clips of the actual tour (Bowie was reportedly heavy into cocaine during this period, and based on interviews, doesn't seem to remember it very well), but you can see some rehearsal footage below.
You'll be hard-pressed to find a better document of a Bowie concert than this one. Ziggy Stardust: The Motion Picture is essential for fans because of the film (Live Santa Monica '72 has a superior performance from that era). Stage has some excellent performances, but the recordings were taken from various shows. David Live, from the Diamond Dogs tour, was a mess; Glass Spider isn't as bad as you'd think, but it's still a live tour behind his worst album (in general, Bowie's '80s performance were not his best). We have yet to find anyone who has subjected themselves to Tin Machine Live: Oy Vey Baby.
But while Bowie won't be touring again most likely, there IS a chance he might perform one or two standalone shows, per his producer Tony Visconti: "He says that he will only play if he feels like it, but no tour. Like, if wanted to do the odd show in New York or, I don't know, London, he would if he felt like it."
0:00 Station to Station
11:52 Suffragette City
15:23 Fame
19:20 Word On A Wing
25:31 Stay
32:57 Waiting For The Man
39:16 Queen Bitch
42:29 Life On Mars?
44:41 Five Years
49:46 Panic In Detroit
55:48 Changes
59:58 TVC15
1:04:57 Diamond Dogs
1:11:35 Rebel Rebel
1:15:41 The Jean Genie
Tagged
david bowie
live
long island
Music
nassau coliseum
rock
original
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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