David Bowie's Albums From Worst To Best

Hunky Dory (1971)

It came into focus with a sigh and a sea change. On the surface, the leaden guitars of The Man Who Sold the World scurried out of sight to let a playful piano take center stage (played by one Rick Wakeman, who would later wear a sweet cape onstage with Yes). Meanwhile, Bowie reached deep inside (or between his legs, maybe) to pull back his own velvet curtain, finally letting his songs embrace and embody his own brand of sexuality. With songs fixating on androgyny, Nietzsche, and hero worship (see “Andy Warhol,” “Song for Bob Dylan,” and the Lou Reed tribute “Queen Bitch”), everything came together just so, and the audience wasn’t far behind. “Changes” was a bona fide hit, solidifying his success and setting the stage for subsequent albums and singles. The most staggering development, however, was Bowie himself. Bursting with confidence, his vocal delivery went above and beyond anything he’d done, and the boldness of the arrangements paired with melodies, hooks, choruses, and brilliantly oblique lyrics to make a hell of a record. Practically every track is a highlight, but “Life on Mars” remains one of the best songs he’d ever write, stellar and stunning any way you look at it.