The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars

It was fifty years ago today that David Bowie's album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars was released. While David Bowie's preceding album Hunky Dory reached no. 3 on the British album chart, many count The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars as his breakthrough album. Since its release it has ranked on various lists of the greatest albums of all time. In 1987 Rolling Stone ranked it at no. 6 on its list of "The 100 Best Albums of the Last Twenty Years." In 2003 Rolling Stone would rank it The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars at no. 35th in their list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time." Publications from Pitchfork to Q to Time to NME have ranked it among the best albums ever made. The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars would certainly have a lasting influence.

The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars is a concept album, if a somewhat loose one. In the reality of the album, a news network reports that Earth has only five more years left before it is destroyed by an apocalypse. It is in this milieu that that alien rock star Ziggy Stardust comes to Earth. Along with his  his backing band The Spiders from Mars, he delivers a message of hope that Earth will be saved by an alien Starman (hence the title of the song of the same name). He also becomes a superstar with a legion of fans. Unfortunately, Ziggy's ego gets the better of him and he ultimately finds himself driving away his bandmates and alienating his fans. In the end, his ego and fame cost him his life. The character of Ziggy Stardust was inspired by a number of different sources. including English rock and roll singer Vince Taylor, Iggy Pop, Lou Reed, Marc Bolan, and the Legendary Stardust Cowboy.

Recording on The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars began only a few months after recording sessions for David Bowie's previous album, Hunky Dory, had ended. The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars retained David Bowie's backing band from Hunky Dory, consisting of Mick Ronson on guitar, Trevor Bolder on bass, and  Mick Woodmansey on drums. Ken Scott, who had produced Hunky Dory with David Bowie, would also serve as the producer on The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. Like Hunky Dory, it was recorded at Trident Studios in London.

It would be after David Bowie's return from a promotional tour of the United States in February 1971 that he wrote a number of songs at Haddon Hall in London that would appear on both Hunky Dory and The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. David Bowie's cover of the Ron Davies song "It Ain't Easy," which would appear on The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars was recorded while they were still recording Hunky Dory, on July 9 1971. It would not be included on Hunky Dory, but would find its way onto The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. It was on November 8 1971 that recording officially began on the album. Recording continued until November 15 1971, when the band took a break for the holidays. They returned to the studio in January 1972 where the band worked on "Suffragette City"and ""Rock 'n' Roll Suicide." After RCA executive Dennis Katz complained that the album contained no songs that could be released as a single. It was then that the song "Starman" replaced  a cover of Chuck Berry's song "Around and Around," retitled "Round and Round" on the album. It was on February 4 1972 that the album was finished, with "Starman," "Rock 'n' Roll Suicide," and "Suffragette City" recorded on that day.

Even though The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars is a concept, most of the album's concept was not fleshed out until after it had been recorded. Indeed, as late as December 15 1971, the album still bore the title Round and Round. Given this, it should come as no surprise that some of the songs were written before work began on The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. "Moonage Daydream" was written during David Bowie's promotional tour of the United States in February 1971. "Hang On to Yourself" was also written in early 1971. Even "Ziggy Stardust" and "Lady Stardust" date back to early 1971. It is well known that "Suffragette City" was meant for another band entirely. David Bowie offered both "All the Young Dudes" and "Suffragette City" to Mott the Hoople. Mott the Hoople took "All the Young Dudes," but turned down "Suffragette City." "Suffragette City" was then recorded by David Bowie and the Spiders from Mars and became one of the highlights of the album.

The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars would take glam rock places it never had before. As Barney Hoskyns wrote in a 2021 retrospective about the album in The Independent,  as Ziggy Stardust, David Bowie, "...took glam rock to places that the Sweet only had nightmares about." The album ultimately covered such topics as drug use, sexuality, politics, the apocalypse, and the artifice of rock 'n' roll. And while The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars has often been counted as glam rock and even, in retrospect, proto-punk, the album embraced a wide array of musical styles. The styles used on the album range from 1950s rock 'n' roll, jazz, heavy metal, and proto-punk. David Bowie himself compared the album to the music of Iggy Pop. Influences on the album ranged from Little Richard to Eddie Cochran to Elton John to The Velvet Underground.

Upon its release The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars received several positive reviews from critics. The 1972 review of the album in Circus stated, "Someday in the far future when armed guides are leading interplanetary tourists through the ruins of Western society, perhaps they'll also be touting chrome statuettes of David Bowie - the young man from England who, if it may not be said that he saw it coming, at least was heard to cry 'Look out!'"Jack Lloyd wrote in The Philadelphia Inquirer, "David Bowie is one of the most creative, compelling writers around today." The review in Beat Instrumental Magazine ended with the line, "Definitely an album for every serious rock fan. A taste of things to come."

The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars proved to be successful on the charts. It peaked at no. 5 on the British album chart. In the United States it only went to no. 75 on the Billboard Top LPs and Tape chart, but then it must be considered that David Bowie's previous albums (including Hunky Dory, a hit in the UK) had failed to reach the Billboard chart in the United States.

The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars has had a lasting influence. As mentioned earlier, it is consistently ranked on lists of the greatest albums of all time. It would prove to have a impact on a wide array of artists, from Bauhaus to  The Cure to Chris Cornell of Soundgarden to Fall Out Boy. Fans might argue about which album is David Bowie's best, but The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars is definitely the one that put him on the map.