For his 1972 album, 'The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars', David Bowie created the alter ego that changed music forever and sent his career into orbit.
Bowie later recalled of the alter ego, "What I did with my Ziggy Stardust was package a totally credible, plastic rock & roll singer ? much better than the Monkees could ever fabricate,"
"I mean, my plastic rock & roller was much more plastic than anybody's. And that was what was needed at the time."
In fact, what Bowie concocted on the album was more than just a fresh, clever concept. Ziggy was a tight and cohesive song cycle that laid out a visionary direction for pop music, setting a new standard for rock & roll theatricality while delivering its lead character's synthetic ideal with campy sex appeal and raw power.
"Until that time," Bowie later said, "the attitude was 'What you see is what you get.' It seemed interesting to try to devise something different, like a musical where the artist onstage plays a part."
