It's New to Me: The Deram Anthology 1966-1968 by David Bowie (1997)

WWI-era poster illustration titled "Your King and Country Need You" by Lawson Wood, 1914

My interest in David Bowie is focused squarely on his Hunky Dory/Ziggy Stardust period, with my attention waning if I stray to far into his early and later work. But my curiosity got the best of me when I ran across a copy of The Deram Anthology 1966-1968, a 27-track collection of Bowie's early releases. It contained all the tracks from Bowie's self-titled debut LP from 1967, as well as singles and other recordings from that period. The best-known track from this collection is obviously Bowie's "The Laughing Gnome", originally released as a single in 1967 and then reissued in 1973 as a curio to capitalize on the success of Ziggy Stardust. "The Laughing Gnome" is an odd novelty, with Bowie singing a duet with himself as a fanciful gnome (with sped-up Chipmunk vocals) - the lyric is replete with terrible puns, and the whole song is so SO twee. Personally, I find it borderline unlistenable.

The rest of the songs on The Deram Anthology 1966-1968 are generally more palatable, but there is a creepy sense of Victorian whimsy that heavily flavors the music in an unpleasant way. I'll admit, though, that I have trouble pinning down my exact issue with the songs (I have a high tolerance for both "tweeness" and "whimsy"). The references to "Anthony Newley" and "music hall" styles that are typically used to describe Bowie's early work mean nothing to me - I just know that these songs are meticulously-arranged folk-pop with a somewhat weird feel to them. Straightforward songs like "When I Live My Dream", "The London Boys", and "Love Me Till Tuesday" showcase Bowie's obvious (embryonic) talent for skewed pop, and the generous tracklist means that you can pick and choose and still come up with at least a dozen decent tunes here.

I generally like the tracks from the David Bowie LP best, but there are some rarities included in The Deram Anthology 1966-1968 that are just as good. One of my favorites is a 1967-era outtake called "In the Heat of the Morning". It has a more psych-pop sound than most of the songs on this collection, especially the twiddly organ lead on the intro. It also features a nice string arrangement and handclaps on the chorus, which are always a welcome addition.

"In the Heat of the Morning" by David Bowie