I'm Only Dancing (the Soul Tour '74) t.) (Rsd 2020)

At long last. A good sounding recording from the third leg of the 74 tour. The soul tour indeed!No less than seven songs unreleased in any form at the time, some of which stayed unreleased for years.The sound isn’t as good as on David Live or Cracked Actor, but it’s soundboard and way better than the bootlegs.It’s absolutely fascinating to listen to these three live albums and experience the incredible change in music in the course of the tour, from mostly rock to mostly soul.Do get it. You need all three.

An good quality essential recording where Bowie morphs from Diamond Dog to Young American.Excellent service, product arrived ahead of schedule.Very Pleased.

Thanks very much just what I needed god on it was pretty fast getting here take care

Not the very best sound quality but a vital piece of Bowie's live career. He he seemed to have suddenly "found soul" and moved largely away from his rock and roll past. The songs themselves either directly precurse the following year's Young Americans album or take a distinctly funk-soul inflection to his earlier songs- something already in (Soul) train at the beginning of the tour. His voice is gravelly and wasted but this suits the approach and the only real gripe I have is his occasional lapse in mid Atlantic drawl. The price for this package seems to vary; I got it for £5.52 inc. delivery which is an absolute bargain. Pretty much essential for Bowie fans wanting a comprehensive collection of the Dame's live work. He never sounded like this again.

Great product, quick delivery and good quality packaging

David Bowie's 1974 tour was remarkable in various ways. It began in June as the Diamond Dogs tour with a massive and complicated set of "Hunger City". The album David Live was taken from the July performances, with plenty of Diamond Dogs material including an epic Sweet Thing, as well as reworked versions of classics like Changes and The Jean Genie. It was already a long way from the Ziggy and the Spiders from Mars sound; but as the tour progressed the sound evolved. By the last section of the tour, from October to December, both Hunger City and the focus on Diamond Dogs had gone, several songs from the Young Americans album arrived, Dennis Davis took on the drumming, and the concerts were the ultimate in Bowie's take on white soul, hence the informal name of the "soul tour".I have long been fascinated by this moment in Bowie's career but the recordings I sought out from the Soul Tour were of poor quality. I feared similar when I put this on for the first time; but the quality is excellent, maybe not the audio polish of David Live but really very good.Bowie's vocals are a little hoarse after months of touring, but the vibe is fantastic, propelled by great drumming from Davis, and far more funky and soulful than either David Live or Cracked Actor (from the middle part of the tour). It's just a terrifically enjoyable listen, songs like Changes and Sorrow have a totally new character, and the the Young Americans material takes centre stage, including songs which weren't on the album but are of that time, like John I'm Only Dancing (Again) and It's Gonna Be Me.The Soul Tour was brief and never repeated. There was no 1975 tour, and in 1976 Bowie moved on again, to the rock-funk of Station to Station. That makes this release all the more special.If you are wondering then, do we really need a third live album from 1974, following David Live and Cracked Actor - yes, we absolutely do. Now this remarkable progression is properly documented, plus it's a really good listen.It's a shame that this has at the time of writing only been released as a Record Store Day special, but past form suggests it will probably reappear in some form or other.The CD incidentally is not brickwalled and sounds similar to the vinyl. The CD card sleeve is a reduction of the album sleeve which means the text is tiny and hard to read. No matter, it is the music that counts.

OMG this is far better than I had anticipated. I’m not an audiophile by any measure but I think the quality of this recording is great. It’s a superb soundboard release which is miles above the quality of bootlegs available of this leg of the 74 tour.Known as the soul tour this was the tail end of Bowie’s diamond dogs USA stint when he had fully absorbed his ‘plastic soul’ leanings and just in advance of his ‘Young Americans’ album.He showcased a number of songs from that release but also arranged many of his standards to have a soul /funk feel. And boy does it work.Bowie sounds hoarse but this really suits the music and was probably resultant from his diet of milk, peppers and cocaine of the time. The band are seriously hot and the backing vocals gorgeous.A truly fantastic release for Bowie heads. I hope we get more releases like this from the vaults. Well worth the queuing on RSD.

This is an important release as it captures the transition from the Diamond Dogs era to the Young Americans era. Some people criticise it because it is not Bowie's best vocal performance - his voice sounds quite raw in places. However, he makes up for this with enthusiasm and energy - you get the impression that he's quite excited to be playing the new songs well ahead of their release in 1975. With the encores it's a really interesting, varied setlist.Now for the downside. I have had two sealed vinyl copies now and both had visible marks in different places on side 3 track 2 leading to a series of audible clicks and crackles. Both copies also have some warping. On anything other than a limited edition RSD release I would have returned a heavyweight vinyl record with these issues. No point with an RSD release as you won't get replacement only a refund and will have to source one at a higher price (as I did for my second one, still without getting a good copy). Not good quality control from Parlophone.