Chicago Tribune - 23 October 1974
A theatrical trim shows a better side of Bowie It was “Ch-ch-changes” David Bowie was signing about shortly after he took the stage Tuesday night at Arie Crown, and his have been of the rather heavy and hyped variety. Early on in his career, some of you may recall, he ran around dressed like Lauren Bacall, but that didn’t go over so hot. Then he took on the astral glitter trappings of a character called “Ziggy Stardust,” singing of blasting off for planets unknown, and that went over a little better. Now Bowie has changed again, with his current approach leaning heavily toward a late ‘40s and early ‘50s look accompanied by a soul sextet and a band that calls on rock, soul, and jazz. And of Bowie’s many incarnations, I like the current one best of all, tho some of his most frantic devotees from the “Ziggy” days probably wouldn’t agree. Tuesday night’s show, to be repeated Wednesday night, had a couple of things going for it – primarily the soul sextet of singers and fast-steppers led by Luther Vandross and buoyed up by the energy of a skinny black woman with a blond natural. They opened the show with an entertaining set, then returned again with Bowie. And without them, he wouldn’t have been all that much.	The show’s top ticket cost $10, which is pretty steep, and a price like that leads to expectations that would be pretty hard for any performer to live up to. Bowie tried, and his performance was more enjoyable to me than his past ones have been, even minus the glitter and theatrics he once brought with him. This time, with the expectation of one song on which he played guitar and a few more on which he played harmonica, it was all Bowie the singer – or crooner, since he’s taken to more ballads and a lot of getting down on his knees in bursts of emotion. Bowie’s set, which ran nearly 90 minutes, included some new songs he’s yet to release and some of his older staples – “Changes,” “1984,” “Diamond Dogs,” from his last album, and his “Rock and Roll Suicide.” The “new” Bowie has cut out a lot of the theatrical schlock and come out somewhat the better for it, and his choice of accompanists is a good one. But his appeal still remains somewhat of a puzzle. And judging from his postshow mutterings of the disappointed hordes who’d come expecting some real flash and gotten little, his new style may be a rock and roll suicide move indeed. LYNN VAN MATRE
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