David Bowie
Album: Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
Label: EMI
Tracks: 37
Website: http://www.davidbowie.com

On the face of it, the 40th anniversary edition of Bowie's 1972 landmark album doesn't offer much more than the superb 30th anniversary set of a decade ago, but this time it's all about the quality of the format. Of course, there's a straightforward re-mastered version of the album out on CD that sounds beefier than ever, audibly benefitting from a digital shake up, but the real interest lies over in the vinyl racks.

For the new 180g vinyl edition of the 2012 re-master comes with an audio-only DVD of the 2003 stereo mixes of original album as well as the fairly complete set of out-takes, b-sides and previously unreleased mixes of Velvet Goldmine, The Supermen, Sweet Head and an instrumental Moonage Daydream.

The original is, of course, a stone soul classic and if you don't know it by now the chances are you never will. The sound of pop music shedding its skin and emerging in a new incarnation, it still serves as the perfect distillation of Bowie's songwriting - running that peculiarly British passion for a muted melancholia and a weird kind of restrained pretension that had previously served the likes of Ray Davies, Lennon/McCartney and George Melly so well. Put simply, the record redrew the boundaries of pop and rock, leaving its mark on at least three generations of British songwriters - you don't have to scratch the surface too deeply to detect its influence on punk (Buzzcocks), indie (The Smiths) and Britpop (Blur).

Of course the true mark of greatness is that its power is undiminished by the passing of its time and no matter how familiar the songs are, there's something fresh about every listen.

What will make or break this latest incarnation is the extent to which fans will embrace the sumptuous vinyl/DVD packaging and the new hi-res audio mixes.

Nick Churchill
www.thegranvillechambers.co.uk