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Cracked Actor (Live Los Angeles '74)

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Cracked Actor
(Live Los Angeles '74)
Live album by
Released22 April 2017 (2017-04-22)
Recorded5 September 1974
VenueUniversal Amphitheatre, Universal City, Los Angeles, California
Genre
Length97:04
LabelParlophone
ProducerDavid Bowie
Bowie chronology
Live Nassau Coliseum '76
(2017)
Cracked Actor
(Live Los Angeles '74)

(2017)
A New Career in a New Town (1977–1982)
(2017)

Cracked Actor (Live Los Angeles '74) is a live album by English singer-songwriter David Bowie. It was released posthumously as a Record Store Day release on 22 April 2017 through Parlophone record label. Produced by Bowie and mixed by Tony Visconti,[1] it was recorded on the Diamond Dogs Tour in September 1974, some material from which appeared in the BBC documentary Cracked Actor.[2]

The full show spans across five sides of vinyl, with the sixth featuring an etching of Bowie. The album differs from the first Bowie live album, David Live, recorded on the same tour.[3] It features a different and more R&B-oriented lineup,[2] including long time collaborators Earl Slick and Carlos Alomar,[1] as well as backing singer Luther Vandross. The setlist also includes material recorded for The Gouster, an album which later would turn into Young Americans.[3]

The album received a wider release on CD through the same label on 16 June 2017.[4]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Pitchfork8.0/10[5]

Pitchfork critic Chris Randle wrote: "Hearing drums here distinct from murk, you can tell how complex the rhythm of '1984' was, its groove swerving in circles to welcome every new element. Bowie spent the mid-‘70s obsessed with power, wielding it through deeper and deeper timbre, until his seductions seemed purged of emotion: a ballad sung by a vampire. Cracked Actor shows he was already using his phrasing to command attention."[5]

Track listing

All songs are written by David Bowie, except where noted.

  1. "Introduction" – 1:47
  2. "1984" – 2:55
  3. "Rebel Rebel" – 2:31
  4. "Moonage Daydream – 5:17
  5. "Sweet Thing / Candidate / Sweet Thing (Reprise)" – 7:41
  6. "Changes" – 3:47
  7. "Suffragette City" – 3:49
  8. "Aladdin Sane" – 5:01
  9. "All the Young Dudes" – 4:09
  10. "Cracked Actor" – 3:20
  11. "Rock 'n' Roll with Me" (Bowie, Warren Peace) – 4:54
  12. "Knock On Wood" (Steve Cropper, Eddie Floyd) – 3:16
  13. "It's Gonna Be Me" – 7:11
  14. "Space Oddity" – 5:23
  15. "Future Legend/Diamond Dogs" – 6:58
  16. "Big Brother/Chant Of The Ever-Circling Skeletal Family" – 4:05
  17. "Time" – 5:44
  18. "The Jean Genie" – 5:45
  19. "Rock 'n' Roll Suicide" – 5:10
  20. "John, I'm Only Dancing (Again)" – 8:41

Personnel

  • David Bowie – vocals
  • Earl Slick – guitar
  • Carlos Alomar – rhythm guitar
  • Mike Garson – piano, mellotron
  • David Sanborn – alto saxophone, flute
  • Richard Grando – baritone saxophone, flute
  • Doug Rauch – bass
  • Greg Errico – drums
  • Pablo Rosario – percussion
  • Gui Andrisano – backing vocals
  • Warren Peace – backing vocals
  • Ava Cherry – backing vocals
  • Robin Clark – backing vocals
  • Anthony Hinton – backing vocals
  • Diane Sumler – backing vocals
  • Luther Vandross – backing vocals

Charts

Chart (2017) Peak
position
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[6] 73
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[7] 50
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[8] 83
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[9] 49
French Albums (SNEP)[10] 191
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[11] 88
Irish Albums (IRMA)[12] 19
Italian Albums (FIMI)[13] 51
Scottish Albums (OCC)[14] 11
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[15] 95
UK Albums (OCC)[16] 20

References

  1. ^ a b Woj, Rob (11 May 2017). "David Bowie's Special Rsd Release Of Cracked Actor To Be Re-issued". Gigwise. Archived from the original on 15 May 2017. Retrieved 10 July 2017.
  2. ^ a b Cush, Andy (10 March 2017). "David Bowie Live Album, Rare EP to Be Released on Record Store Day". Spin. Archived from the original on 24 June 2017. Retrieved 10 July 2017.
  3. ^ a b "Bowie vaults open as two unreleased albums hit shops for Record Store Day". The Guardian. 10 March 2017. Archived from the original on 24 May 2017. Retrieved 10 June 2017.
  4. ^ "New releases round-up". DavidBowie.com. 16 June 2017. Archived from the original on 22 July 2017. Retrieved 13 July 2017.
  5. ^ a b Randle, Chris (29 June 2017). "David Bowie – Cracked Actor (Live Los Angeles '74)". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 11 July 2017. Retrieved 10 July 2017.
  6. ^ "Austriancharts.at – David Bowie – Cracked Actor - Live Los Angeles '74" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  7. ^ "Ultratop.be – David Bowie – Cracked Actor - Live Los Angeles '74" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  8. ^ "Ultratop.be – David Bowie – Cracked Actor - Live Los Angeles '74" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  9. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – David Bowie – Cracked Actor - Live Los Angeles '74" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  10. ^ "Lescharts.com – David Bowie – Cracked Actor - Live Los Angeles '74". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  11. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – David Bowie – Cracked Actor - Live Los Angeles '74" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  12. ^ "Irish-charts.com – Discography David Bowie". Hung Medien. Retrieved 18 January 2018.
  13. ^ "Italiancharts.com – David Bowie – Cracked Actor - Live Los Angeles '74". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  14. ^ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 18 January 2018.
  15. ^ "Spanishcharts.com – David Bowie – Cracked Actor - Live Los Angeles '74". Hung Medien. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  16. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 18 January 2018.