DAVID BOWIE 'DAVID LIVE' 1974 FIRST PRESSING 2-LP ORANGE DYNAFLEX STERLING 'RL'

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DAVID BOWIE 'DAVID LIVE' 1974 FIRST PRESSING 2-LP ORANGE DYNAFLEX STERLING 'RL'
DAVID BOWIE "DAVID LIVE" "DAVID BOWIE AT THE TOWER PHILDELPHIA" LABEL: RCA VICTOR – CPL2-0771 ORANGE DYNAFLEX LABELS w/ WHITE 'RCA' and BLACK TEXT RELEASED: OCTOBER 29, 1974 EDITION: FIRST PRESSING  PRESSING PLANT: RCA INDIANAPOLIS ('I' IN MATRIX) RECORDED: JULY 8-12, 1974 TOWER THEATER PHILADELPHIA MIXING: ELECTRIC LADY STUDIOS NYC JULY 1974 MASTERING: ROBERT LUDWIG STERLING SOUND ('RL' IN DEADWAX)  PRODUCER: TONY VISCONTI MATRIX (SIDE A): CPL2- C̶P̶O̶2̶ - 0771-A-1 STERLING RL A1 I MATRIX (SIDE D): CPL2- C̶P̶O̶2̶ - 0771-D-1 STERLING RL A1 I
CONDITION: VINYL EX   JACKET & INSERTS VG++
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I've been going thru my massive vinyl record collection these past few weeks and pulling out some LPs that I thought that someone else would want for their collection. I've been collecting records for over 45 years and it's time to pass some of them on to the next generation of collectors.
This week on EBay I am offering up this 1974 First U.S. Pressing of David Bowie's first live album 'David Live" This is my original copy, purchased back in the mid 70's, shortly after it's release, that I've taken great care of for many years. See details on Condition below.
It's the original Gatefold with the original 2-sided inner sleeves with pictures of Bowie and credits.
This is the Orange Dynaflex version, with the original 'wrong' Tour dates. The Album was quickly reprinted with the 'correct' show dates and an "RE" printed in the front left corner. Fans and Tony Visconti himself still argue about the 'correct' dates of the show.
This is the rare, and best sounding, 'Sterling' stamped version, mastered by Robert Ludwig, complete with Bob Ludwig's "RL" in the matrix.
This album has been reprinted, re-released, and remastered over the years, but as a Bowie fan and Bowie vinyl collector, this is the copy you want; First Pressing, 'RL' mastering, orange Dynaflex label, no 'RE' correction, complete and fantastic condition.
If you like David Bowie and collect his records, this is a fantastic addition to your collection.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ No other figure in classic rock history has gone through as many varied transitions—personally, professionally and artistically—as David Bowie. Through his music, art, and fashion, Bowie constantly rebelled against societal expectations and norms. He was always in flux, bringing new ideas and new interpretations to his music. 
~~~~~~~~~~~~ This album was recorded Live in concert during Bowie’s 1974 'Diamond Dogs' Tour at the Tower Theater in the Upper Darby section of Philadelphia. It was recorded in July of that year, during Bowie's week-long residency at the Tower, on the initial leg of Bowie's Diamond Dogs Tour. Bowie and his band are in soulful, full funky swing. 
'David Live' was Bowie's first live album and he wanted to capture the show just as it was performed, with no post-production overdubs or polish.
According to the original album's liner notes: "This Live album was culled from performances on the 14 and 15 July 1974 at the Tower Theatre, Philadelphia. It is complete and exact. No studio overdubs or re-recording of voices, instruments or audience have been added with the exception of several backing vocals due to loss of theatre mike contact."
There have been multiple debates about which nights were actually recorded for this Live album. The original First Pressings, like this one had the wrong dates and was quickly reissued with corrected dates. Those records have a small 'RE' in the front left corner.
Over time, and with audience copies of the shows turning up in collector's hands, the dates still appear to be wrong. Tony Visconti now claims that the correct dates are July 11th & 12th 1974.
Whatever the correct dates are, The 'Diamond Dogs' tour was Bowie's most lavish tour to date. Featuring an elaborate set of towers and buildings meant to represent "Hunger City", the post-apocalyptic setting for Diamond Dogs, surrounded by massive props of giant bejeweled hands and cherry pickers, choreographed dance numbers, and a large backing band of studio professionals directed by Michael Kamen.
'David Live' is loaded with Diamond Dogs material, but that's the album he was promoting on the tour. He covers his classic earlier material as well, but twists and bends then into entirely new creatures. 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 'David Live' catches Bowie in transition from the "Ziggy Stardust" glam-rock era of his career to the 'plastic soul' of Young Americans.
I think it's a fantastic live album from the Diamond Dogs tour and a perfect example of his new direction and new style. It's 'different' than what came before it, but what Bowie album wasn't? 
For this tour, Bowie had pretty much abandoned the persona of Ziggy Stardust once and for all. He still plays some of his 'Glam' anthems, but tries to reinterpret them with a soul flavor, indicating the new direction he was choosing to pursue.
This album shows the true David Bowie, the artist, the performer, the experimenter, trying out his new visions and his new interpretations of his material. Many of the songs on this album feature new arrangements, and are reworked to create a seamless mood as Bowie transitions thru songs from different eras of his career. 
The whole show has a funkier, soulful feel and is a great document of this transitional period in Bowie's career.
According to later interviews and early tape boxes, the original working title for this live album was "Wham Bam! Thank You Mam!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ When released in the Fall of 1974, 'David Live' received primarily negative reviews from fans and music critics. It was strange and 'different' and alienated many fans.
In Creem magazine, Lester Bangs famously called it "dismal flatulence", but in retrospect, it's gotten better reviews, better acceptance and many fans now think it's terrific.
At the time, fans wanted more 'Ziggy' type material but Bowie was moving in new directions. This album had many Bowie classics on it, but they were performed in a new style, more soulful and R&B influenced, which turned off fans in 1974.
People at the time didn't like, or understand, the addition of horns but they add great texture, soul and feel to many of the tracks. 
Now, looking back, it's great to hear Bowie's re-interpretation of his own material, done in his new emerging 'Philly Soul' style. It shows how Bowie was constantly evolving and reinterpreting his music, just like he always did.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The band Bowie put together on this tour wasn't 'The Spiders From Mars', but he was still able to put together a group of top notch musicians.
David Bowie assembled the largest band he ever played with for this tour. The large band was directed by Michael Kamen, who helped arrange many of the songs, and also played Oboe and some keyboards.
The core band consisted of:
David Bowie – vocals Earl Slick – guitar Herbie Flowers – bass Tony Newman – drums Mike Garson – piano, Mellotron Warren Peace – backing vocals David Sanborn – alto saxophone, flute Pablo Rosario – percussion Richard Grando – baritone saxophone, flute
Bowie and the band are raw and powerful and create a wonderful performance. The playing is great, full and energetic, and you really feel like you're there in the audience listening to the show.
In retrospect, Bowie fans lament that Mick Ronson was gone, being replaced by Earl Slick, but Slick's guitar work on this recording is fantastic and holds up well. Earl Slick had to learn the songs in Bowie's back catalog on short notice, and does a fine job replicating the original, but adding his own touch.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ People say that Bowie's voice on this Live recording is not some of his best. That's true, but his voice was never his best asset. Bowie's voice is honest, authentic, emotional and was left gloriously unsweetened by overdubs on this original release. 
Yes, David's voice is a little rough, but Bowie never had a smooth, golden voice. His 'All White' diet of Milk and Cocaine is clearly present and fans still debate wether this hindered or enhanced his performance on this record. His vocal style is certainly different. 
Some fans say that Bowie's voice on this album is fantastic and perfect for the material. I think Bowie's vocals on his passionate, R&B version of "Rock'n'Roll Suicide" are perfect. My favorite version of this classic Bowie song.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The track listing on this album is fantastic, everything you would want from 'Diamond Dogs' era David Bowie. It has a nice mix of his "hits" but also has some great 'deep' cuts.
Many of the songs take on an American R&B-fueled edge.
You get the obvious hits like 'Aladdin Sane', 'Rebel Rebel', 'Suffragette City',  but also some deeper cuts, like the 'Sweet Thing' medley, 'Rock 'n' Roll With Me', 'The Width Of A Circle', all of which are exceptional performances in their own right. The vocals and the instrumentals in 'Width Of A Circle' are simply brilliant. "Sweet Thing" is full of emotional punch.
I think his version of "Rock 'n' Roll Suicide" is his finest performance of the song to date and contains one of the best displays of Bowie's voice.
The version of ‘Aladdin Sane’ on this album is is just fantastic. It's soulful, funky and the horn section really adds a nice kick. Mike Garson reproduces that great piano solo. I prefer it over the album version. 'Jean Genie’ also undergoes a radical re-arrangement and sounds better for it.
This record contains Bowie's first ever release of "All the Young Dudes", a song originally given to Mott the Hoople, and it's a great soulful reworking of the classic song.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~ The classic cover photo of Bowie shows him as the emaciated, skeletal, coked-out, cracked actor he was at the time. The pose itself is incredible, with his stance, hand position, and looking off to the side. It’s like a statue.
Bowie himself has said “My god, it looks like I’ve just stepped out of the grave.” 
Overall, this is a great performance by Bowie. Fans should really check this album out for some unusual and interesting live performances.
After this album, Bowie would go on to great commercial success with "Young Americans" and "Station to Station". 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ CONDITION: I tried to show good hi-resolution photos of the cover, labels and vinyl in my pictures. I purchased this copy back in the mid 70's, 50 years ago, and have taken great care of it since.
VINYL: The vinyl looks excellent. Clean and bright. Maybe a tiny hairline, but No serious scuffs, palpable scratches, or dings. It looks fantastic across all 4 sides and I'm sure you'll be very happy with it.
The Deadwax has the Sterling stamp and mastering engineer Bob Ludwig's initials. The plating marks are 'A1'. See the full Matrix above.
I tried to show some close-up pictures of the vinyl to show how good it looks. I'm sure you'll be happy with it. I haven't messed with it or cleaned it, other than my trusty 'DiscWasher' brush, in 50 years, since Nixon was in ofice. It could use a good deep cleaning to make it even bettter looking and better sounding. 
LABELS: This is pressed with the 'classic' early Orange RCA Dynaflex labels, not the much more common tan ones. 
The labels are clean and bright. No marks or damage. The spindle holes are still sharp and clean, suggesting minimal playing and my careful handling over the years.
JACKET: As you can see from my pictures, this still looks very nice for a 50 year old OG copy. 
This thick, all black jacket is notorious for showing ringwear, dirt, scuffs and damage, but this copy is still quite nice. Some mild ringwear, but that seems to be on EVERY copy of this record.
There's some very minor shelf wear but the artwork is bold and bright, the corners are sharp, and the original gloss is still present.
The inner gatefold is clean and crisp. The spine is straight. A nice survivor.
Overall, I'll call the whole record EX-, but the vinyl is very clean.
This record has been sleeved and stored properly for years, and is still quite nice for an original pressing. You can see from my pictures it's still quite nice and acceptable. This copy is all original, and a real gem. I'm sure you'll love it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~ ** NOTE: I'm selling this rare 'Collector' record "AS IS" and "NO RETURN". It's rare and as described and I'm sure you'll be very happy with it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ I’m recently retired and downsizing and letting go some gems and rarities from nearly 45 years of vinyl record collecting. Check out the many other fantastic 45s and 33s coming soon to my page!
All records have been carefully evaluated and graded by me. I visually inspect all records under bright light, personally gently clean them with a soft cloth and then, if unsure, play them on a modern high-end turntable to get a true picture of condition. Please look at all the high-resolution pictures I added. They are all my own and are of the actual record being sold. The pictures are part of the description and can show small details, label variations, and condition better than I can put into words. 
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THANK YOU for looking and reading if you got this far.  -- JOHN