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MAGNIFICENT OUTRAGE.  The phrase is emblazoned on the slipcase of David Bowie's new box set Divine Symmetry (An Alternative Journey Through 'Hunky Dory').  It was derived from an ad - reprinted as the first image in the 100-page tome housing the set's four CDs and one Blu-ray Disc - which noted, "That's what they're saying about David Bowie."  Happily, no one would accuse this latest Bowie archival dig of being an outrage, though magnificent comes closer.

Much like its 2019 predecessor Conversation Piece shed considerable light on the 1968-1969 David Bowie/Space Oddity album era, this alternative journey offers an in-depth chronicle of the manifold creative impulses that led Bowie to craft the original 1971 Hunky Dory album.  Hunky Dory returned Bowie to folk-influenced territory after the hard rock, heavy-guitar assault of The Man Who Sold the World.  He was confident enough to inject the theatrical-cabaret-music hall mélange of his 1967 debut album, too, gleefully reshaping past pop idioms into a contemporary art-rock mode.  A true transitional album, Hunky Dory at once introduced a "new" Bowie on the ascendant while also serving as the culmination of the many musical personas he'd created in just three albums over a few short years.

The period of Divine Symmetry was one of change and constant movement.  Bowie's 1971 saw him earn an RCA recording contract, meet like-minded artists such as Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, and Andy Warhol, become a father, visit America for the first time, and form the group that would become the Spiders from Mars: guitarist Mick Ronson, drummer Woody Woodmansey, and bassist Trevor Bolder.  The gift of a grand piano would transform his sound, too, opening him up musically beyond the confines of writing on guitar.

Even as Bowie was finding his own, distinctive voice, he was writing prolifically.  After signing in October 1970 with the Chrysalis Music publishing firm, he was determined to write - whether for his own voice or for others.  Hence, one of his new "piano" songs, "Oh! You Pretty Things," was gifted to Peter Noone of Herman's Hermits, with Bowie tickling the ivories while the once and future Herman sang.  The liner notes of Divine Symmetry inform us that within fourteen months of signing with Chrysalis, Bowie had recorded roughly three albums' worth of original songs: Hunky Dory, most of Ziggy Stardust, and enough unreleased material for a third record.  While Bowie would continue to demo his songs at home, the Chrysalis affiliation allowed him to professionally record at London's Radio Luxembourg Studios.  Disc One of the box set comprises these polished recordings as well as home demos and even a pair recorded on the road in San Francisco, California.  Bowie largely eschewed the notion of the "confessional" songwriter, instead imagining characters and eschewing convention.

Many of these demos never made it to the final recording stage.  The dark, wounded "Tired of My Life" has a folk-meets-the-early-Bee-Gees flavor with a striking, soaring section of multi-tracked vocals.  Clearly the artist had a long memory; he would recycle some of the lyrics almost a decade later, on Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps)' "It's No Game (Parts One and Two)."  It's surprising that he left "King of the City" fully on the shelf, as it's a strong (and frankly, commercial) composition with pointed lyrics and melody shifting in intensity even as it occasionally recalls "Space Oddity."

"How Lucky You Are (Miss Peculiar)," one of those early tunes written by Bowie on piano, finds him experimenting with song styles and forms.  This one is a Weimar-era cabaret waltz (think: Kurt Weill's The Threepenny Opera) with dashes of jazz and Jacques Brel-esque chanson in its tale of obsession.  (Bowie submitted it to Tom Jones for his consideration but he declined to record it.)  Brel and Mort Shuman's "Amsterdam" is here in a demo predating the subsequent Ziggy Stardust outtake which ended up as a B-side.  A grandly mannered Bowie speak-sings the second and third verses in a departure from his later, more familiar recording.

Bowie didn't abandon all of these songs, though.  Peter Noone cut "Right On Mother" based on the stately piano-and-vocal demo included here, with Bowie again on piano.  Bowie returned to the moody "Shadow Man" during the Ziggy sessions and then almost 30 years later for Toy. The proto-glam "Looking for a Friend," heard here in a November or December 1970 Radio Luxembourg demo, was attempted a couple more times: once with Bowie's short-lived band The Arnold Corns and again during the Ziggy sessions.  (All remained unreleased.)

The San Francisco recording of "Quicksand" (made on February 10 or 11, 1971 at the same casual hotel room performance that yielded an enjoyable acoustic run through Lou Reed's "Waiting for the Man," his only known solo take of the song) is the first known demo of a song that would eventually appear on Hunky Dory.  (Both hotel room recordings have rough audio but are included for their historical significance.)   A later studio demo of "Quicksand" is heard alongside embryonic versions of other Hunky Dory cuts: a more, well, Dylan-esque "Song for Bob Dylan;" a considerably more subdued "Queen Bitch;" the sweet "Kooks" inspired by the birth of son Duncan; and the majestic "Life on Mars?" in piano-vocal form.  Eventual Hunky Dory opener "Changes" is culled from an acetate in poor condition.  Though only so much could be done to improve the sound, it still is a marvel to hear Bowie, at his piano, presenting the song in near-complete form (with his multitracked chorus vocals).  Both "Life on Mars?" and "Changes" demonstrated his ever-increasing deftness at traditional, built-to-last pop songcraft.  The ironically jaunty B-side of the acetate, "Bombers," found Bowie back in theatrical mode, but it didn't make the cut for the album.

Around the time the artist was recording these demos, he was also flirting with the idea of a Factory-inspired roadshow in which he and his friends would come together to present an evening of music and art, individually and collectively.  A taste of what a David Bowie and Friends show might have been like can be heard on CD 2's John Peel radio broadcast, recorded June 3, 1971 at the Paris Cinema Studio on Regent Street, London, and aired on June 20.  The Friends in question were singers George Underwood, Geoff MacCormack (a.k.a. Geoffrey Alexander), and Dana Gillespie as well as four musicians.  Guitarist Mark Pritchett was joined by future Spiders Mick Ronson (lead guitar), Trevor Bolder (bass), and Woody Woodmansey (drums) in the trio's first public performance with Bowie.  The Ronson-Bolder-Woodmansey triumvirate would all play on Hunky Dory.

With the release of Hunky Dory still some six months off, Bowie and Friends previewed the material being considered for the album.  John Peel served as the genial master of ceremonies.  The band brought a newfound muscularity to "Queen Bitch" and a rock edge to "Bombers" that kept it well-removed from twee territory.  "Looking for a Friend," too, gained requisite swagger.  Introducing "Kooks," Bowie noted the influence of Neil Young which is evident in its arrangement.

Bowie generously ceded the spotlight to his Friends throughout the performance.  Geoff McCormack handled the lead vocal of Chuck Berry's lively "Almost Grown."  George Underwood tackled "Song for Bob Dylan," snarling in the style of the song's subject as the verse melody gently evoked Dylan's "My Back Pages."  Dana Gillespie impressed with the song Bowie wrote (and later produced) for her, "Andy Warhol."  Bowie, Underwood, and MacCormack traded off verses on the finale, a rendition of Ron Davies' "It Ain't Easy," with Gillespie very audible on the choruses.  "It Ain't Easy" would be recorded for Hunky Dory but shelved until Ziggy Stardust.  The concert is presented twice - once in mono and once in stereo.  Only the mono presentation has the performances of "Bombers" and Chuck Berry's "Almost Grown."

A mere five days after this freewheeling concert, Bowie and the band entered Trident Studios to begin recording Hunky Dory.  On September 21, he returned to the BBC for a Sounds of the '70s broadcast with presenter Bob Harris.  This set opens CD 3 here.  (A handful of selections from the Peel and Harris shows were issued on Bowie at the Beeb, but this collection marks their first appearances in full.)  Echoing his early period as one-half of a duo with John "Hutch" Hutchinson, Bowie appeared in a stripped-down acoustic format with just the very sympathetic Mick Ronson by his side.  They performed six songs intended for Hunky Dory including the Brel/Shuman "Amsterdam" and Paul Williams and Biff Rose's "Fill Your Heart."  The spare, subtle approach focused more attention on the strength of the compositions such as "The Supermen," or "Eight Line Poem," with its tight interplay between Bowie and Ronson.  "Kooks" had shed its Neil Young sound (but still awaited the brass and strings of the final album version) and Bowie reclaimed "Andy Warhol" as his own.  The superstar artist was beginning to emerge.

CD 3 continues with a concert at Friars in Aylesbury on September 25, 1971; the bill at the 700-capacity proscenium house also featured the rock trio America.  After reprising his duo act with Ronson for the first few songs, Bowie welcomed the as-yet-unnamed Spiders and pianist Tom Parker.  "We want to entertain you.  We want you to enjoy the songs.  We want to make you happy, because we want to be happy doing them," an audibly nervous Bowie tells the audience.  His patter is endearing, whether talking up the "underrated" Biff Rose - in addition to "Fill Your Heart," he does the quirky "Buzz the Fuzz" in a variety of animated voices - or explaining that "Space Oddity" is "one of my own that we get over as soon as possible."  His introductions to each song are charmingly low-key and often self-effacing, but he's commanding and full-throated when singing.

Roughly a third of the set comprised outside material.  In addition to the two Rose songs, he offered "Amsterdam," "Waiting for the Man," and another Chuck Berry classic, "Round and Round."  He accompanied himself on piano on "Oh! You Pretty Things" before bringing out Tom Parker on "Changes."  Two of Hunky Dory's "people songs," "Song for Bob Dylan" and "Andy Warhol," both continued to grow and develop in these earthy versions.  The show very much gives the sense of the artist being on the cusp of something big - not quite there yet, but closer than he'd ever been before.

The fourth disc of Divine Symmetry rounds up various studio tracks beginning with the CD premiere of the promotional album colloquially known as BOWPROMO.  Originally pressed in 1971 and reissued on vinyl for Record Store Day in 2017, the white-label album was pressed up by Gem Management and given to record label contacts in the hopes of securing record deals for Bowie and Dana Gillespie.  Seven Bowie tracks appeared on Side One, and five from Gillespie on Side Two.  The Bowie tracks were mixed at Trident in late July 1971, not long after the songs were recorded there, and those mixes would be refined for the final Hunky Dory master.  ("Bombers" would ultimately be dropped from the track listing.  It didn't resurface until 1990.)  Six of Bowie's seven songs on BOWPROMO are here; "It Ain't Easy" isn't included as the BOWPROMO mix is identical to that which later premiered on Ziggy Stardust.  Most of the tracks aren't radically different but all have subtle mix variations. "Eight Line Poem" is the exception as it has an entirely different vocal.  Both "Kooks" and "Quicksand" have been pitch- and tempo-corrected specifically for this release.

A clutch of odds and ends follows up the BOWPROMO tracks (which feature the immense contribution of Rick Wakeman on piano in his first appearance on Divine Symmetry).  The bluesy "Lightning Frightening" was first released in a mono edit on the 1990 Rykodisc reissue of Ziggy Stardust.  The April 1971 Trident recording was originally recorded for The Micky King All-Stars, a concept in the mold of The Arnold Corns.  The short-lived group was rounded out by singer King (heard on background vocals), bassist Herbie Flowers, drummer Barry Morgan, and guitarist Mark Pritchett.  "Amsterdam," a favorite during this period, appears in both an early mix and the released single version.  (The song was quite unlucky.  Recorded during the first Hunky Dory session, it was replaced late in the game by "The Bewlay Brothers."  It then made it to an early Ziggy Stardust master tape before getting cast aside again.  It ultimately appeared as the B-side of Pin-Ups' "Sorrow."  It wasn't altogether inappropriate, as Pin-Ups was an album of covers, of which "Amsterdam" was one.)

The mono single of "Changes" b/w "Andy Warhol" follows.  The final Bowie single in the U.K. to be cut in mono, it's confirmed here by producer Ken Scott to be a stereo fold-down.  Various recent and new mixes by Scott conclude the disc: the 2016 piano/strings/voice mix of "Life on Mars?" first issued on the Legacy collection and seven 2021 mixes of Hunky Dory material in album order including the outtake "Bombers," an early take of "Quicksand," "Changes" with a different sax solo, and a longer "Life on Mars?" with studio clatter and chatter.  None of these will replace the originals but all are valid on this "alternative journey" as the mixes highlight different aspects of the instrumentation and vocals with clarity.

Those looking to hear the original Hunky Dory will have to turn to the Blu-ray Audio disc to do so, in high resolution stereo as remastered in 2015.  The Bob Harris BBC broadcast is on the Blu-ray, too, along with twelve alternate versions of Hunky Dory tracks assembled in album sequence (all of which are on the CD) and, finally, a DTS-MA 5.1 surround mix of the 2016 version of "Life on Mars?"

Audio for Divine Symmetry has been mastered to a high standard by John Webber at AIR Studios, with the 2015 Hunky Dory having been handled by Ray Staff.  The set's producers are candid regarding the sound quality which is variable on some of the CD 1 demos as well as on CD 3's Friars Aylesbury concert.  The latter has been sourced primarily from a "less-than-perfect" quarter-inch mono soundboard tape with distortion, dropouts, and so on.  Missing sections (including the first part of "Changes") have been restored from even lesser-quality sources.  It's all listenable, but one shouldn't expect "release quality" on everything here.  The sound of the studio material is uniformly good, with subtlety and detail that's brought out even more on the Blu-ray.

The handsomely slipcased package is a wonder to behold.  A 100-page hardcover book is overflowing with striking color and black-and-white photography of the ever-photogenic artist as well as with memorabilia (including tape boxes, acetates, sheet music, advertisements, original press releases, picture sleeves, and handwritten lyrics) and copious text and annotation encompassing a timeline, track-by-track notes, essays, oral histories, commentary from Ken Scott, photographer Louanne Richards, and key personnel, original reviews and magazine articles, and more.  It's truly exhaustive, and sets a standard for this type of release.  A second, 60-page paperback book is a composite reprint of Bowie's notebooks from the era with lyrics, chords, proposed track listings, notes, and costume sketches all in his hand.    Each disc is adorned with an RCA-style label and housed in a paper sleeve with a unique photo of the long-tressed star on each.

HUNKY-DORREY?  HUNKY-DOREY, pondered Bowie in his notebook.  Whatever the spelling, this celebration, excavation, and alternative journey assembled as Divine Symmetry is, simply, hunky dory.  The countdown to a similar set for Ziggy Stardust is underway...

Divine Symmetry (An Alternative Journey Through 'Hunky Dory') is available now:

4CD/1BD: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
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