Date:    Sat, 29 Aug 1998 00:39:10 -0500
From:    JAY R ROSE 
Subject: 4/4/98 Bowie *REVIEW*

THE STATS:

04/04/98 Providence Civic Center- Providence, RI.

SET II: BOAF > 2001> Brother, Ghost-> Lizards, **David Bowie**

E: Harry Hood

0:00 HI-HAT SEGMENT- This rather dull HHS mainly consists of errant
ramblings from Mike, nothing provocative or appealing.

1:22 COMPOSED- After a brief HHS the composed segment begins. Due to the
unimaginative and drab HHS this doesn^Òt set the table well for the rest of
the song. A strong HHS segment is key in setting the mood for a good Bowie,
but isn^Òt always necessary for a compelling version. This segment is played
neatly as always, at a normal pace, with little or no reverb on the vocals.

5:01 THE JAM- The jam starts off as usual with *THE CHORD* heralding the
beginning of the JAM. Things get under way as usual with a very soft and
quiet sounding space groove, very similar to the JUNTA version. Trey adds
some smooth bassy runs and guitar lines, while Mike establishes himself with
Fishman as a powerful rhythm section. Page adds his little piano
accompaniments and a traditional JUNTA-like build begins. At 7:50 the jam
has proceeded in predictable fashion with more variations on the
introductory theme. At 9:30 it is the same, ^Óbusiness as usual^Ô, but just a
little louder and faster. Mike and Fishman sound somewhat inspired while
Page and Trey seem to be sleepwalking. At 11:15 there is a rather artificial
tension release by Trey. There was no real tension being built, just fluff.
After another deconstructing musical tension segment, Trey again releases
with slightly more aplomb at 12:20, but by no means, interesting. This jam
has all the elements of your typical Bowie, meandering noodling by Trey,
solid playing from Fishman and Mike, and the usual piano colorings from
Page. The problem is that I have heard all this on countless other versions,
many of which are far better due to inspired playing. There is absolutely
nothing wrong with the aforementioned musical traits. There just has to be
some purpose or meaning behind it, which this version lacks.  Finally at
12:41 the outro progression is underway and ready to give way to the^Å

12:59 THE TRILL- The trill was not overly gratifying due to the standard
nature of this performance. Trey sloppily experiments with some effects as
he runs through each trill progression, while Mike continues to play some
very inspired bass, as he does throughout.

TOTAL TIME: 14:58

SUMMARY: Definitely an anti-climatic way to end an otherwise strong set.
This version seems to be ^Óplayed by the numbers^Ô, with no real fire or
motivation, other than the solid bass work by Mike. It sticks very closely
to the JUNTA album version, never really truly exploring any new ground. The
^Ógoing through the motions^Ô predictability make this a lackluster version,
having much more in common with earlier renditions. This version isn^Òt
horrible, just slightly below average due to the sloppy and uninspired
playing. I think that fatigue from the previous numbers may have taken its
toll on this Bowie. Don^Òt seek this set out for the Bowie alone!

SUBJECTIVE AND MEANINGLESS 1-10 NUMERICAL RATING: 4.0

1=appalling
5=average
10=extraordinary