i planned on listening to bowie eventually, but i didn’t think i would end up liking this song so much. in case you don’t know, david bowie, born 1947, was one of the most important british songwriters in rock history thanks to his flamboyant, trangressive stage persona, his ambitious and eclectic approach to music, and massive influence on pop culture. long story short, he was awesome.
“Let’s Dance” was one of his most successful radio hits, on his 1983 album also titled let’s dance. now, the name suggests an insanely catchy 80s pop song. and it is an insanely catchy 80s pop song. but it’s also heavily blues/funk-inspired, the album version is nearly eight minutes long, and relies on a set of complex, interlocking instruments. i’m focusing on the album version rather than the single, which is simpler and only about four minutes long.
bowie combines an infectiously catchy chorus with quirky, extended saxophone and guitar solos. now, the most interesting part about this guitar solo is that it was performed by stevie ray vaughan- now considered one of the greatest guitarists of all time- while he was still completely unknown to the music industry.
when critics say greatest guitarist, some of that lends itself to his technical skill. now, before i offer my opinion on this song, let me establish my general philosophy about guitar work and instrumental work as a while. i think skill and proficiency with the guitar is meant to bring out creative ideas, and not the other way around. if complex guitar soloing doesn’t serve the song in any meaningful way, i don’t see the point. for that reason, i’m not very inclined towards metal and other progressive rock genres. the instrumentals have always come off as somewhat flashy to me.
why am i saying this? well, vaughan’s soloing, along with the other instrumental work, is definitely a little flashy. bowie’s vocals are slightly dramatic, the whole song oozes with swagger. but for a song about losing your inhibitions to enjoy yourself: well, it works! and even then, each piece still shows some restraint, giving the other instruments plenty of room to show off. not to mention, the backing instrumentation (drums, bass, vocals) provide a steady, catchy beat for the fancy, jazz-like improvisation to fall back on. which, all in all, makes the song easy to listen to without ever getting boring.
