VH1 Storytellers
Live album by
David Bowie
Released6 July 2009 (2009-07-06)
Recorded23 August 1999 (1999-08-23)
VenueManhattan Center (New York City)
GenreRock
Length44:37
LabelEMI
David Bowie chronology
iSelect
(2008) 		VH1 Storytellers
(2009) 		A Reality Tour
(2010)
David Bowie live albums chronology
Live Santa Monica '72
(2008) 		VH1 Storytellers
(2009) 		A Reality Tour
(2010)
VH1 Storytellers
Video by
David Bowie
Released2009
Recorded1999
Length64:09
LabelEMI
David Bowie chronology
A Reality Tour
(2004) 		VH1 Storytellers
(2009) 		Glastonbury 2000
(2018)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
The A.V. Club(B)[2]
Pitchfork Media(4.5/10)[3]
PopMatters(4/10)[4]

VH1 Storytellers is a live album by the English singer-songwriter David Bowie. It was released on 6 July 2009 and features a 23 August 1999[5] performance on Storytellers, a VH1 program.

Background and recording

See also: Hours (David Bowie album) § Promotion

VH1 Storytellers is the last performance with collaborator and guitarist Reeves Gabrels, whom Bowie had met in 1987 and worked with since, including in the band Tin Machine. Gabrels quit the band 4 days after the show was recorded, leaving Bowie to scramble to find a lead guitarist for his upcoming Hours Tour.[6]

Packaging and releases

The package contained an audio CD and a DVD of footage, with the DVD including four bonus tracks not heard on the CD. The set list comprises songs that spanned Bowie's career until that point, from the 1960s until his then soon-to-be released album Hours (1999). VH1 Storytellers was released on vinyl on 11 October 2019; the double album included the four bonus recordings.[7]

Track listing

All tracks written by David Bowie except where noted.

CD & DVD
No.TitleLength
1."Life on Mars? (Truncated)"4:22
2."Rebel Rebel (Truncated)"3:15
3."Thursday's Child" (Bowie, Reeves Gabrels)6:43
4."Can't Help Thinking About Me"6:31
5."China Girl" (Bowie, Iggy Pop)6:48
6."Seven" (Bowie, Gabrels)5:01
7."Drive-In Saturday"5:22
8."Word on a Wing"6:35
iTunes, DVD and 2019 vinyl bonus performances
No.TitleLength
9."Survive" (Bowie, Gabrels)4:01
10."I Can't Read" (Bowie, Gabrels)5:25
11."Always Crashing in the Same Car"3:13
12."If I'm Dreaming My Life" (Bowie, Gabrels)6:53

Personnel

Charts

Chart (2009) Peak
position
UK Albums (OCC)[8] 114
Chart (2019) Peak
position
Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[9] 27

References

  1. ^ VH1 Storytellers at AllMusic
  2. ^ Phipps, Keith (14 July 2009), David Bowie: VH1 Storytellers (2009) | Music | Music Review, The A.V. Club, retrieved 13 March 2012
  3. ^ David Bowie: VH1 Storytellers | Album Reviews, Pitchfork, 15 July 2009, retrieved 13 March 2012
  4. ^ Carson, Craig, David Bowie: VH1 Storytellers < PopMatters, Popmatters.com, retrieved 13 March 2012
  5. ^ "David Bowie Concert Setlist at The Grand Ballroom at Manhattan Center, New York on August 23, 1999 - setlist.fm", setlist.fm
  6. ^ O'Leary, Chris (2019). Ashes to Ashes The Songs of David Bowie 1976-2016. Repeater Books. ISBN 9781912248308.
  7. ^ VH1 Storytellers set due on vinyl in October, 20 August 2019
  8. ^ Zywietz, Tobias. "Chart Log UK: Darren B – David Brynne". Zobbel. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
  9. ^ "Album Top 40 slágerlista – 2019. 42. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved 29 November 2021.
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