A Reality Tour

David Bowie

Release Date: 25th Jan, 2010
Label: Columbia
Genre: Pop

A belated release of Bowie’s live performance recorded at Dublin’s Point Theatre on the tour for his 2003 album ‘Reality’. Spanning most of his career, things kick off with a spirited ‘Rebel Rebel’, and from there take in all the classics, including ‘The Man Who Sold The World’, ‘Life On Mars?’, ‘Ashes to Ashes’, ‘Heroes’ and Queen’s ‘Under Pressure’. It’s a flawless performance from the musical chameleon, who has had almost as many (if not more) appearance changes in his forty year career than Madonna. From this evidence, it’s hard to believe this is a man in his sixties, and the crowd lap it up. Featuring many lesser known tracks, this isn’t perhaps an ideal start point for new Bowie fans, but established devotees will doubtless get their kicks from this faithful rendition of the live concert experience, which is also released as a DVD.

Reviewed by Pete Muscutt

About The Artist

David Bowie

Artist Homepage

David Bowie (born David Robert Jones on 8th January 1947 in Brixton, London, UK) is an English singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Active in five decades of popular music and frequently reinventing his music and image, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s. He has been cited as an influence by many musicians and is known for his distinctive voice and the intellectual depth of his work. As a multi-instrumentalist, he is famous for playing the guitar, piano, and saxophone, but also plays the harmonica, drums, cello, marimba, bass guitar, koto, and stylophone. He rose to fame with the 1969 single "Space Oddity" and the 1972 album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars. Subsequent albums have explored blue-eyed soul, electronica, and new wave, often pre-dating these genres' popularity or even the point at which they were defined as genres. Bowie is one of the most influential rock musicians from the 1970s to the present. He has sold an estimated 136 million albums in his career and has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In addition to his musical career, Bowie has had success as a painter, web-designer, sculptor, Broadway actor starring in The Elephant Man, and film actor starring in many films. Bowie is also credited as being a major inspiration behind the new romantic, futurist movement, and subsequent development of electronic/electronica music. Bowie frequently brings the worlds of high art, mime, and straight theatre to his stage acts. His most famous on-stage look was that of Ziggy Stardust; other personae include Halloween Jack, Aladdin Sane, and the Thin White Duke.

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12 Comments

nohables 02 Jan 2012

Loved it!
The_last_Ramone 13 Aug 2011

The best of his live albums. Bowie sounds (and looks on the DVD) so Happy, lots of speeches to the crowd, really well recorded, really long. Amazing.
worldfallsdown 19 Apr 2010

Amazing.
Luard 30 Mar 2010

Great live album! Bowie es dios.
Ennish 11 Mar 2010

I think I was about three tracks in on the first disc when I fell in love with this album. Even though the Berlin Era is my favorite point in time during Bowie's career, I much prefer this album over Stage. The audience cheering and little conversations Bowie has with the audience makes me feel like I'm in the audience, even more so than the DVD. Speaking of which, the sound quality on this CD is far superior to that of the DVD. Add a set list ranging from The Man Who Sold the World to Reality and you've got one great live show. If you're a Bowie fan, there should be no reason for you not to pick this up.
MagsB78 04 Mar 2010

Oh! I'm VERY jealous! I was on the phone to a girl on Ticketmaster to get tickets for these gigs in Dublin, when her computer crashed... by the time it came back on-line... the concerts had sold out! GUTTED! Thinking back, I don't think I would have appreciated it, I was only just getting in to Bowie at the time. Now is a whole different matter...! Great album!
Echoes917 19 Feb 2010

Such a great concert...I still remember how it started to rain when he started his set.
DominoDub 16 Feb 2010

Was at this Gig in Dublin ,,what a Night !
tynand 15 Feb 2010

sad that I missed what was probably Bowies last tour. THe tickets were just too expensive for me at the time as a student.
android9791 02 Feb 2010

i'm proud that this is my first new CD of 2010.