David Bowie discography
The discography of English singer-songwriter David Bowie consists of 27 studio albums, 11 live albums, 51 compilation albums, nine extended plays, 128 singles, and four soundtracks. Bowie also released 14 video albums and 72 music videos.
Bowie's debut release was the 1964 single "Liza Jane" by Davie Jones & the King Bees. He released two more singles in 1965 under the names of The Manish Boys and Davy Jones & the Lower Third. His first release using the name David Bowie was the 1966 single "Can't Help Thinking About Me", which was released with The Lower Third. Bowie's next single, "Do Anything You Say", also released in 1966, was the first release by simply David Bowie. Bowie released four more singles and his debut album, David Bowie, but the first success in the United Kingdom was with the 1969 single "Space Oddity". The single reached number five on the UK Singles Chart after it was released five days before the Apollo 11 moon mission. In 1975 the single was re-released: it became the first Bowie's number one single on the UK Singles Chart.
Bowie released three more albums – David Bowie, The Man Who Sold the World and Hunky Dory – before he eventually made it on to the UK Albums Chart with The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, which peaked at number five. Following the success of Ziggy Stardust, sales of Hunky Dory improved and it eventually peaked at number three in the UK in 1973. RCA re-released the 1969 David Bowie under the title Space Oddity and The Man Who Sold the World, which reached numbers 17 and 26 in the UK respectively.
Bowie released nine more studio albums with RCA, all of which reached the top five of the UK Albums Chart, of which Aladdin Sane, Pin Ups, Diamond Dogs and Scary Monsters reached the number one position. His 1975 RCA album "Young Americans" included his first #1 US single "Fame", which was co-written by John Lennon — who also performed on the album — and Carlos Alomar. He then released three solo studio albums with EMI – Let's Dance, whose title track became his first single to reach number one in both the United Kingdom and the United States, Tonight and Never Let Me Down. Let's Dance and Tonight reached number one on the UK Albums Chart, while Never Let Me Down reached number six. The success of Let's Dance revitalized Bowie's back catalogue: throughout the summer of 1983, he had multiple albums on the UK Albums Chart. This peaked on 16 July that year, with ten entries – a figure bettered only by Elvis Presley.
In 1989, Bowie created the rock group Tin Machine, who released a self-titled album with EMI. Although Tin Machine reached number three on the UK Albums Chart, it did not sell well and Bowie and EMI did not renew their contract. Tin Machine II followed in 1991 on London Records and, only reaching number 23 in the UK, was Bowie's worst-charting album since the 1973 re-release of The Man Who Sold the World. Continuing as a solo artist, Bowie's next album, Black Tie White Noise, reached the number one position on the UK Albums Chart. Bowie released a further seven studio albums, all of which have reached the top ten in the UK. Released after a ten-year hiatus, The Next Day was Bowie's first UK chart-topping album since Black Tie White Noise. Bowie released his final album, Blackstar on 8 January 2016, his 69th birthday and two days before his death on 10 January. The album debuted at number one in the UK and became Bowie's first album to reach number one on the Billboard 200 in the US.
Studio albums
Original releases
Re-releases
The first reissue of Bowie's albums came in November 1972 in the wake of the success of The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. RCA then reissued David Bowie aka Man of Words / Man of Music as Space Oddity; and The Man Who Sold the World. These two rereleases also had new Ziggy Stardust style cover art, images of Bowie taken during the 1972 period. Just as its contract with Bowie was ending, RCA re-issued all of his albums on CD in 1984. By 1989 the rights had reverted to Bowie. Rykodisc outbid Rhino for the rights to the RCA catalog and re-issued all of these albums as part of their "Sound + Vision" series. In 1997 Bowie licensed the albums to EMI. In 2013 the rights were acquired by the Warner Music Group. The rights of Bowie's first album, David Bowie, remain with Deram, and so have not featured in the series reissues, but have seen reissues of their own a number of times. The list below covers the most significant reissues since the original albums were released:| Album | Date | Formats | Significant Re-releases – Details |
| David Bowie | 2010 | CD | Deluxe Edition Released in a deluxe edition by Deram in the UK and Universal Music world-wide. This features both stereo and mono mixes of the album, together with previously unreleased stereo mixes of songs not originally included and, for the first time as an official release, Bowie's first BBC radio session. There are also all the singles, and remix and reworked versions of songs. |
| David Bowie | 1972 | LP | RCA Reissue The first reissue of a Bowie album, released in the wake of the success of The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars in November 1972. For this reissue, the album – originally titled David Bowie in the UK and Man of Words / Man of Music slightly later in the USA – was retitled Space Oddity. It was also given a new cover: a Ziggy Stardust era extreme close up of Bowie's face. The track listing is the same as the American edition, that is, omitting the 40 second jam "Don't Sit Down" that appeared on the UK version after "Unwashed and Somewhat Slightly Dazed". |
| David Bowie | 1990 | LP / CD | Rykodisc reissue Has the RCA Reissue cover. Bonus tracks from the singles included as extras. The LP was clear vinyl, with the bonus tracks on side 3. |
| David Bowie | 1999 | LP / CD | EMI remaster The cover was adapted from the original artwork but retained the title Space Oddity. It now included 'Don't Sit Down' as per the original UK release. Rykodisc reissue bonus tracks were not included. |
| David Bowie | 2009 | LP / CD | 40th Anniversary Edition The original album title was restored to join the original artwork of the 1999 EMI remaster. Further remastered sound closer to the original album sound and with extensive bonus disc, including the Rykodisc reissue bonus tracks, demos and a BBC radio session. |
| David Bowie | 2015 | LP / CD | Five Years box set Edition See box sets section of discography. |
| The Man Who Sold the World | 1972 | LP | RCA Reissue The second reissue of a Bowie album, released in the wake of the success of The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars in November 1972 alongside the renamed David Bowie as Space Oddity. The original American version of the album had a cartoon of a man with a gun, while the UK version featured Bowie lounging in a dress and the German version Bowie's head with wings. For this reissue the album was also, like David Bowie / Space Oddity given a new cover: a Ziggy Stardust era image in black of Bowie kicking out his leg. |
| The Man Who Sold the World | 1990 | LP / CD | Rykodisc reissue Restored the 'dress cover', and included the front covers of the other three editions. Included bonus tracks from the singles and other studio recordings. |
| The Man Who Sold the World | 1999 | LP / CD | EMI remaster 24-bit digitally remastered sound but without the Rykodisc reissue extras. |
| The Man Who Sold the World | 2015 | LP / CD | Five Years box set Edition See box sets section of discography. |
| Hunky Dory | 1990 | LP / CD | Rykodisc reissue Included alternate mixes, demos and unreleased material as bonus tracks. |
| Hunky Dory | 1999 | LP / CD | EMI remaster 24-bit digitally remastered sound but without the Rykodisc reissue extras. |
| Hunky Dory | 2015 | LP / CD | Five Years box set Edition See box sets section of discography. |
| The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars | 1990 | LP / CD | Rykodisc reissue Included demos and unreleased material as bonus tracks. |
| The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars | 1999 | LP / CD | EMI remaster 24-bit digitally remastered sound but without the Rykodisc reissue extras. |
| The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars | 2002 | CD | 30th Anniversary Edition This edition featured an extra disc with an extensive number of bonus tracks. However, some of the tracks on the original album were edited slightly, and the stereo channels had accidentally been reversed. This was the first in a series of 30th Anniversary 2CD Edition sets, the others being Aladdin Sane and Diamond Dogs. |
| The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars | 2012 | LP / CD / DVD | 40th Anniversary Edition The CD did not contain any bonus material but the DVD edition contains the album in 5.1 mixes and contains four bonus tracks. |
| The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars | 2015 | LP / CD | Five Years box set Edition See box sets section of discography. |
| Aladdin Sane | 1990 | LP / CD | Rykodisc reissue Remastered but contained no bonus tracks as per previous Rykodisc reissues for the RCA back catalogue. |
| Aladdin Sane | 1999 | LP / CD | EMI remaster 24-bit digitally remastered sound and as with all the EMI remasters, no bonus tracks. |
| Aladdin Sane | 2003 | CD | 30th Anniversary Edition The second in a series of 30th Anniversary 2CD Edition sets. This release includes a remastered version of the first disc and a second disc with bonus tracks, a few of which had been previously released on the 1989 collection Sound + Vision. |
| Aladdin Sane | 2013 | LP / CD / DD | 40th Anniversary Edition The CD did not contain any bonus material. |
| Aladdin Sane | 2015 | LP / CD / DD | Five Years box set Edition See box sets section of discography. |
| Pin Ups | 1990 | LP / CD | Rykodisc reissue Remastered with contemporary bonus tracks as per all previous Rykodisc reissues except Aladdin Sane. |
| Pin Ups | 1999 | LP / CD | EMI remaster 24-bit digitally remastered sound and as with all the EMI remasters, no bonus tracks. |
| Pin Ups | 2015 | LP / CD / DD | Five Years box set Edition See box sets section of discography. |
| Diamond Dogs | 1990 | LP / CD | Rykodisc reissue Remastered and with bonus tracks. The cover artwork – which features Bowie painted as half-man, half-dog with genitalia on show – was included on this rerelease, after having been airbrushed out by RCA for the original release. |
| Diamond Dogs | 1999 | LP / CD | EMI remaster 24-bit digitally remastered sound and as with all the EMI remasters, no bonus tracks. Uncensored cover artwork. |
| Diamond Dogs | 2004 | CD | 30th Anniversary Edition The third in a series of 30th Anniversary 2CD Edition sets. This release includes a remastered version of the first disc and a second disc of bonus tracks, some of which had been previously released on the Sound + Vision box set in 1989 or already as bonus tracks on the 1990–92 reissues. Uncensored cover artwork. |
| Diamond Dogs | 2016 | LP / CD / DD | Who Can I Be Now? box set Edition See box sets section of discography. |
| Young Americans | 1991 | LP / CD | Rykodisc reissue Remastered, with original versions of "Win", "Fascination" and "Right" replaced with alternate mixes. Also contained – as with nearly all Rykodisc reissues – the bonus tracks. |
| Young Americans | 1999 | LP / CD | EMI remaster 24-bit digitally remastered sound. Restored the original mixes of "Win", "Fascination" and "Right" after the Rykodisc reissue replaced them with alternate mixes. As with all the EMI remasters, no bonus tracks. |
| Young Americans | 2007 | CD / DVD | Special Edition Original mixes of all songs, as per the EMI remaster. Bonus tracks – same as 1991 Rykodisc reissue except a different mix of one of the songs. Included an accompanying DVD containing 5.1 surround sound mixes of the album and video footage from the Dick Cavett TV show. |
| Young Americans | 2016 | LP / CD / DD | Who Can I Be Now? box set Edition See box sets section of discography. |
| Station to Station | 1991 | LP / CD | Rykodisc reissue Remastered, with two live bonus tracks recorded on 23 March 1976 at Nassau Coliseum, Uniondale, New York which would go on to be part of the Live Nassau Coliseum '76 album. The album also had a slightly different cover. The original has a still from Nicolas Roeg's The Man Who Fell to Earth surrounded by a large white border. This re-release used a colour version of the cover art, the photograph occupying the entirety of the front cover apart from the title text at the top. |
| Station to Station | 1999 | LP / CD | EMI remaster 24-bit digitally remastered sound. As with all the EMI remasters, no bonus tracks. This too had the colour cover first used in the 1991 Rykodisc reissue. |
| Station to Station | 2010 | LP / CD / DVD / DD | Special and Deluxe Editions The special edition included the entire 1976 Nassau Coliseum show on two CDs. The deluxe edition featured five CDs, one DVD and three 12" LPs in a sturdy box. As well as the Nassau Coliseum show, there were also two different transfers of the album, and single edits. This uses both the black and white and colour versions of the cover. |
| Station to Station | 2016 | LP / CD / DD | Who Can I Be Now? box set Edition See box sets section of discography. |
| Low | 1991 | LP / CD / Cassette | Rykodisc reissue Remastered, CD with three bonus tracks. |
| Low | 1999 | LP / CD | EMI remaster 24-bit digitally remastered sound. As with all the EMI remasters, no bonus tracks. |
| Low | 2017 | LP / CD / DD | A New Career in a New Town box set Edition See box sets section of discography. |
| "Heroes" | 1991 | LP / CD / Cassette | Rykodisc reissue Remastered, CD with two bonus tracks. |
| "Heroes" | 1999 | CD | EMI remaster 24-bit digitally remastered sound. As with all the EMI remasters, no bonus tracks. |
| "Heroes" | 2017 | LP / CD / DD | A New Career in a New Town box set Edition See box sets section of discography. |
Live albums
Original official releases
Re-releases (and pre-releases)
TV & Radio
Compilation albums
1970s compilations
1980s compilations
1990s compilations
2000s compilations
2010s compilations
Box sets
Soundtracks
Extended plays
Singles
1960s singles
1970s singles
1980s singles
1990s singles
2000s singles
2010s singles
Posthumous singles
Other appearances
Studio contributions
Live contributions
Guest appearances
Remixes and alternate versions
Music videos and films
This section gives an overview of music video singles, music video films and compilations, live music films and music documentaries. See the David Bowie filmography for Bowie's acting roles in films and TV series.Music video singles
This subsection and 'Posthumous music video singles' lists music videos that were prepared to accompany single releases. See the subsection titled 'Music video films' for projects where music videos were originally conceived as films ; and the subsection titles 'Music video compilations' for audio-visual releases that were compiled from video music singles for later release.Posthumous music video singles
A number of music video singles have been produced since Bowie's death, by directors who have been given permission by Bowie's estate and / or record company.| Year | Title | Director |
| 2016 | "I Can't Give Everything Away" | Jonathan Barnbrook |
| 2016 | "Life on Mars? " | Mick Rock |
| 2017 | "No Plan" | Tom Hingston |
| 2019 | "Space Oddity" | Tim Pope |
Music video films
This subsection of music videos lists audio-visual releases that were originally conceived as films, that is, a single video in a wider filmic setting or collection of music videos produced as a single project, or an amalgam of both.Live TV films
Live TV films are concerts staged specifically for TV broadcast.Live concert films
Live concert films are tour concerts filmed for TV broadcast, cinema release and / or the home video market.Music videos and films compilations
This subsection of music videos lists audio-visual releases that were compiled from video music singles and Live TV and concert performances and films.Music documentary films
| Year | Title | Collective title | Broadcast/Release | Director |
| 1975 | Cracked Actor | Original broadcast: 26 January 1975. Unreleased | Alan Yentob | |
| 1984 | Ricochet | Released on VHS 1984. Re-released on DVD 2006. | Gerry Troyna | |
| 1993 | Released on VHS 1993. Re-released on DVD 2003. | David Mallet | ||
| 2003 | Broadcast 4 November 2002. Released on DVD 2003. | Rick Hull | ||
| 2013 | David Bowie: Five Years | The Five Years Trilogy | Broadcast 25 May 2013. Unreleased | Francis Whately |
| 2017 | David Bowie: The Last Five Years | The Five Years Trilogy | Broadcast 7 January 2017. Unreleased | Francis Whately |
| 2019 | David Bowie: Finding Fame aka David Bowie: The First Five Years | The Five Years Trilogy | Broadcast 9 February 2019. Unreleased | Francis Whately |