Today one of my all-time favorite artists enter this list for the first time, since it’s start in January 2020. The Man Who Sold The World is the 3rd studio album by David Bowie and was released in the US today, 50 years ago. That’s why I list this album as a US release, despite the fact that David Bowie was a British musician. The album was released in the UK 5 months later on April 10, 1971.

The Man Who Sold The World was recorded from 17 April to 22 May 1970 at the Trident and Advision studios in  London. There tend to be some confusion on the releases prior to the album, because of the US release “Man Of Words / Man Of Music” in 1969. But it was actually a copy of the second album, self-titled as David Bowie in the UK release, like the debut. Released with another cover-art. The same album was repressed in 1972, this time with the title Space Oddity. So actually Space Oddity was released after The Man Who Sold The World, but recorded the year before. Very confusing….

The constantly changing cover-arts was one of David Bowie’s many characteristics. And The Man Who Sold The World is no exception, for example these 2 variants, my own copy the lowest one:

Some of these variants are very expensive. Some of them with different kind of misprint. At the moment a few of them are sold from Discogs, prices from 100’s of euros up to 2.400 euro. Look for these matrix variations if you have a copy of the top picture:

• Matrix / Runout (Runout side A, stamped): 6338041 1Y//1▽ 420 1 1 4
• Matrix / Runout (Runout side B, stamped): 6338041 2Y//1▽ 420 1 1 1
• Matrix / Runout (Label side A): 6338 041 1
• Matrix / Runout (Label side B): 6338 041 2

The multi artist and incredible talented composer, David Robert Jones, needs no more introduction I guess. There is so much information and inspiration to find from his work, as musician, actor and painter. What a loss it was when he died 10 January 2016. Normally I don’t add personal stuff like the following, but just to explain why Bowie’s death had so much greater impact on me, compared to the death of other great musicians. For me he keeps me in a kind of connection to my mother, listening his songs and looking at and feeling the physical albums. It’s a bit odd, I know. But they were about the same age, they died with only a month between, my mother first and both from cancer. And I often made jokes with my mother, while she was still alive, that they probably were siblings. They had exactly the same eye colors, the difference on the same eyes. Personally I have only seen those two individuals with that specific combination of colors.

I guess that’s also why his music means more and more to me as years go by. The Man Who Sold The World is no exception, it’s an fantastic well composed and dramatic album. The next Bowie release, coming up next year, is one of my absolute favorite Bowie album – Hunky Dory

David Bowie – vocals, guitars, stylophone, organ, saxophone
Mick Ronson – guitars, backing vocals
Tony Visconti – bass guitar, piano, guitar, recorder, backing vocals
Mick Woodmansey – drums, percussion
Ralph Mace – synthesiser