In 1972 David Bowie released his fifth studio album, “The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars,” and it was deemed one of his best records ever created. Emotional lyricism from “Five Years” to the loud, jaunty instrumentation in “It Ain’t Easy,” Bowie puts it all into this pièce de résistance. Ziggy Stardust was a character built as a form of social commentary on celebrity obsession. He was inspired by Iggy Pop and Vince Taylor (the ‘original Ziggy Stardust,’ famous in the UK). Ziggy Stardust is known as an omnisexual extraterrestrial rockstar sent to spread his message with his band, The Spiders from Mars.
The album was such a huge turn in his career because his previous album, “Hunky Dory” had a much less produced sound, but some equally as popular tracks (like “Changes,” “Oh! You Pretty Things” and “Life on Mars?”) “Ziggy Stardust” was also the predecessor to “Aladdin Sane,” which featured yet another Bowie character (inspired by Bowie’s half-brother).
