(10-track LP, with late 70�s panache scrawled all over)
What�s good for a splitting headache? Some say a sharp axe but I say David Bowie: Legend. Why he isn�t a Sir is beyond the best of us. Here though he�s a lad insane and an utter genius as always. 10 tracks of insightful lyrics, hummable harmonies and unforgettable melodies, kicked off with �Watch That Man� that precedes the downright weird title track that�s undertowed by a stirringly original piano tickle. �Drive-In Saturday,� while being one of his classic songs is also one of his most depressing, but the triple-header of the hard �Panic In Detroit,� well-observed �Cracked Actor� and the sweeping �Time� novelty lead into The Prettiest Star�s charming slow-burn in good spirits. The mysterious �Lady Grinning Soul� plays-out and sounds to have been a sure-fire inspiration to the frantic piano flurries that Muse�s Matt Bellamy bellows. He too is a lad insane, but at least both are sure damn imaginative. (STEVE RUDD)