Toy (David Bowie album)

Toy is an unreleased album by English musician David Bowie, recorded for release in 2001, and leaked onto the Internet in 2011. Although Bowie had begun recording the album intending to feature new versions of some of his earliest pieces as well as three new songs, its sessions led him to Heathen (2002) and it was never released officially.[1]

Toy
Studio album (unreleased) by
David Bowie
Released2011
Recorded2000–2001[1]
GenreRock
Length62:07
ProducerMark Plati[2]
David Bowie chronology
A Reality Tour
(2010)		 Toy
(2011)		 The Next Day
(2013)

Recording and production

Bowie recorded the album Toy for release in 2001[3] or 2002.[4] It was meant to feature some new songs and new versions of some of his lesser-known songs from the 1960s. Toy remains officially unreleased. In 2001, on his own site, Bowie participated on a virtual chat with fans and when one of them asked about the release of Toy, he replied: "I'm finding EMI/Virgin seem to have a lot of scheduling conflicts this year, which has put an awful lot on the back burner. Toy is finished and ready to go, and I will make an announcement as soon as I get a very real date. Meantime, I'm already started writing and recording for another album (untitled at the moment). So far I have to say it's back to experimental. But knowing me, it doesn't mean that's how it'll turn out. I shall be writing and recording throughout the summer, but daddyfying is really my priority at the moment."[2] Tony Visconti would later say that Bowie was 'hurt terribly' by the label's refusal to release Toy and as a result, Bowie left Virgin/EMI and announced in March 2002 that he had signed an agreement with Columbia Records to launch the new album Heathen via his own ISO label instead. Several of the Toy tracks were then released as single B-sides and Bowie announced his intention to "continue to release tracks as specials for CD singles so that not too much time goes on before they are available. Then, along with all the other tracks, gather them all up an release them as an album." [5]

Alternative versions

"Liza Jane" was Bowie's debut single, released under the name Davie Jones with the King Bees. "You've Got a Habit of Leaving" was his third single, credited to Davy Jones but recorded with his then band the Lower Third.[6] The original version of "Silly Boy Blue" appeared on Bowie's eponymous debut album, and several other versions of these songs were released during Bowie's early career including "I Dig Everything", "Baby Loves That Way", as collected on Early On (1964–1966), and "In the Heat of the Morning," and "The London Boys", as collected on The Deram Anthology 1966–1968. A version of "Conversation Piece" was recorded and released in 1970. "Shadow Man" was allegedly recorded during the sessions for Ziggy Stardust.

"Uncle Floyd" (retitled "Slip Away") and "Afraid" were later released on Heathen, "Baby Loves That Way", "Shadow Man", and "You've Got a Habit of Leaving" were released as B-sides to Heathen's singles,[3] and "Conversation Piece" was included on the limited-edition bonus disc of Heathen in 2002.

The songs "Let Me Sleep Beside You", "Your Turn to Drive" and "Shadow Man" are included on the 3-CD Deluxe edition of Bowie's 2014 compilation album Nothing Has Changed, which also includes the original versions of "In the Heat of the Morning", "Silly Boy Blue", "You've Got a Habit of Leaving" and "Liza Jane".[7]

Track listing

This is the track listing of the version of the album leaked in 2011,[8][9] which is rumored to be different from the originally intended version.[4]

All songs written by David Bowie, except "Liza Jane" which is credited to Leslie Conn.

No.TitleOriginal version onLength
1."Uncle Floyd"Previously unreleased6:15
2."Afraid"Previously unreleased3:29
3."Baby Loves That Way"B-side of "You've Got a Habit of Leaving", Early On (1964-1966)4:38
4."I Dig Everything"Single from 1966, Early On (1964-1966)4:52
5."Conversation Piece"B-Side of "The Prettiest Star", Five Years (1969-1973)3:53
6."Let Me Sleep Beside You"The Deram Anthology 1966–19683:14
7."Toy (Your Turn to Drive)" (Also known as "Your Turn to Drive")Previously unreleased4:46
8."Hole in the Ground"Previously unreleased3:30
9."Shadow Man"Previously unreleased; originally recorded in 1971 during the sessions for Ziggy Stardust4:41
10."In the Heat of the Morning"The Deram Anthology 1966–19683:52
11."You've Got a Habit of Leaving"Single from 1965, Early On (1964-1966)4:49
12."Silly Boy Blue"David Bowie (1967)5:33
13."Liza Jane"Single from 1964, Early On (1964-1966)4:48
14."The London Boys"B-side of "Rubber Band", The Deram Anthology 1966–19683:47
Other releases of Toy songs
  • Heathen - "Uncle Floyd" (Renamed "Slip Away"), "Afraid"
  • Heathen (Bonus Disc) - "Baby Loves That Way", "Conversation Piece", "Shadow Man", "You've Got a Habit of Leaving"
  • Nothing Has Changed (Deluxe Edition) - "Let Me Sleep Beside You", "Toy (Your Turn to Drive)", "Shadow Man"

Personnel
Musicians
  • Buckley, David (2005) [First published 1999]. Strange Fascination – David Bowie: The Definitive Story. London: Virgin. ISBN 978-0-7535-1002-5.
  • Pegg, Nicolas (2002). The Complete David Bowie. Reynolds and Hearn. ISBN 1-903111-40-4.

References
  1. Buckley (2005): pp. 488–89
  2. BowieNet Live Chat Transcription – 4/6/01 with David Bowie. Consulted on 8 September 2011.
  3. Matthew Perpetua (22 March 2011). "Unreleased David Bowie LP 'Toy' Leaks Online | Rolling Stone Music". Rollingstone.com. Retrieved 5 April 2011.
  4. Michaels, Sean (23 March 2011). "David Bowie's unreleased album Toy leaks online | Music | guardian.co.uk". London: Guardian. Retrieved 5 April 2011.
  5. Pegg (2002): p. 310
  6. Goddard, Simon (2013). Ziggyology: A Brief History of Ziggy Stardust. London: Ebury Publishing. p. 112. ISBN 9780091948887. Retrieved 15 November 2014.
  7. "David Bowie NOTHING HAS CHANGED The Definitive Collection Featuring The Brand New Single 'Sue (or In A Season Of Crime)' Released November 18th On Columbia Records/Legacy Recordings". 9 September 2014. Retrieved 9 September 2014.
  8. Discogs - Toy - the Lost Album - images, Godfatherecords (G.R. 649)
  9. Discogs - Toy - the Lost Album - images, ISO Records (COL 502001 1)
  10. Discogs - the Looking Glass Studios - (profile, contact info, discography)
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