By Orren Merton

Bowie At The Beeb--Limited Edition is a 3 CD set that includes the "Bowie At The Beeb" double CD that compiles Bowie's BBC recordings from 1968-1972, and a bonus CD of a BBC radio show from June 7th, 2000 of mostly modern songs. I love historical records of the artists that move me. Sometimes I was too young to be there, sometimes I just want to relive a key moment. But sometimes, they can be so altered and modernized, that the historical element is compromised, yet it obviously doesn't work as a "new" album. So imagine my joy at reading the back of the "Bowie At The Beeb" double

CD and finding the disclaimer: "...some of the tracks included...do not represent the usual fidelity of studio recordings." Yes! I'm going to get to hear the recordings in as close to their original form as feasible, even though I wasn't born for some of these recordings. Even though disk 3 is modern, by being included in this package, it also becomes a sort of historical record, even though it's current history. But nonetheless, the albums have more to offer than just their place in rock's past.

The first disc of Bowie at the Beeb is mostly pop songs from 1968-1970. Bowie is young and hungry but mostly trying to find his voice, going from pop to blues to acoustic folk. They are interesting for their creativity, and they do heat up towards the end of the disc when he first links up with Mick Ronson, earstwhile Spider from Mars and one of the most talented and creative blues-rock guitarists of the era.

Disc Two, however, is when the spark turns into a technicolor explosion of rocks promise and power. The 1972 recordings of the Ziggy Stardust material is delivered with such passion it literally sends chills down your spine. This is before he was a superstar, but knew this was his shot, and by sheer force of will he was going to win over the radio audience. The edge, the rawness, the sci-fi pretension, the melody, all blasts through the CD player, even today. It may not have the polish of a contemporary studio record, but his 1971-1972 material, including two Velvet Underground covers, sounds as fresh and urgent as it did back then. Ziggy is actually recorded twice, at different years and points in his career, and serves as a wonderful look into how the band evolved as they rose in popularity.

The final CD, recorded recently, does have all the modern polish that you could want. David Bowie is now a successful elder statesman of rock music, and as such assembles a crack band of ultra-professional past co-conspirators (although without my personal favorite Bowie axeman, Reeve Gabrels) to join him for this outing. The hunger is gone, but punchy versions of his more recent tracks remind us that he is still twice as talented and creative as musicians half his age.

There's nothing new in this compilation, but if you are a completist, or hear not just the roots of glam rock in the early 70s, but what rock and roll *should* sound like, this collection is worth it to you. So many artists after Ziggy played guitar have taken that style and image and AQAA with it, this is a great reminder of the power of the original.