David Bowie - Leon 4. Downside Up, Inside Out - Version 2016/2019
Goody Speed/Pitch-adjusted Remaster - Adam Bedstroke source - Arthur Productions longbox, additional source
Sources Info:
Label: Arthur Productions ?– A-2
Format:
4 × CD, Compilation, Limited Edition, Numbered, Unofficial Release
Country: Europe
Released: 2017
Genre: Rock
Style: Experimental
Discogs - https://www.discogs.com/David-Bowie-3-Upside-Down-Leon-Version-2016/release/10131240
Ripped by Neil Wilkes using EAC
Goody's additional lineage:
dBpoweramp (WAV) > Audition (Pitch Bender - various amounts; Disc I, Track 3 - joined gap at 00:14:33:47 - 00:14:33:56) >
TLH (FLAC Level 8; Align sector boundaries; .ffp) > foobar2000, Tag&Rename (tags)
Tracklist:
Disc 1.alt 'The Outtakes - Something Really Fishy'
1-1 Hello Leon 4:20
1-2 I Am With Name / Hide Me / We'll Creep Together (Part 1) 22:36
1-3 Hide Me / We'll Creep Together (Part 2) 1:53
1-4 I'd Rather Be Chrome 4:04
1-5 The First Time / I'd Rather Be Chrome 4:04
1-6 I Am With Name / We'll Creep Together (Part 3) 15:48
Bonus Tracks From An After-Concert Bowie Party In Wembley In 2003:
1-7 The Leak Soldiers 6:53
1-8 I'd Rather Be Chrome 5:36
Runtime: 65:13
Disc II.alt 'Leon Suites - The Album'
2-1 I Am With Name 22:49
2-2 Leon Takes Us Outside 22:08
2-3 The Enemy Is Fragile 28:29
Runtime: 73:26
Disc III.alt '2.Inside - The Reordered Album'
3-1 Leon Takes Us Outside, Pt. 1 7:03
3-2 The Enemy Is Fragile 28:29
3-3 I Am With Name 22:47
3-4 Leon Takes Us Outside, Pt. 2 15:06
Runtime: 73:25
Disc IV.alt '3.Upside - Another Album Assembly'
4-1-15 (untitled track splits) The Leon Suites
4-01 2:04
4-02 5:02
4-03 5:35 [I'D RATHER BE CHROME]
4-04 3:57
4-05 5:34
4-06 3:15
4-07 1:22
4-08 6:04
4-09 4:17
4-10 2:28
4-11 5:22
4-12 4:17
4-13 11:07
4-14 4:16
4-15 7:34
Runtime: 72:11
Credits:
Composed By, Lyrics By, Producer, Vocals – David Bowie
Bass, Instruments – Erdal Kizilçay
Drums, Percussion – Sterling Campbell
Guitar – Reeves Gabrels
Piano, Keyboards – Mike Garson
Producer – Eno
Notes - The source was a Limited Long-Box Edition of 350 Numbered Copies.
CD I.alt is composed of rough tracks compiled for the first time in 1994, plus two bonus tracks from 2003, then speed/pitch-adjusted by Goody, 2016/2019.
CD II.alt is composed of the rough mixed (1994), upgraded speed & pitch-adjusted edition 2016, with slight edits to the ends of tracks 1 & 2 to improve track transitions.
CD III.alt is composed of a new edit remix version #1, then speed/pitch-adjusted to match version #2 by Goody, 2016/2019.
CD IV.alt is composed of an alternate edit and splits (15 untitled tracks) remix version #1, then speed/pitch-adjusted by Goody, 2016/2019.
Goody's additional comments, taken from the notes to the 1st release of the remastered speed/pitch-adjusted edition:
Some quotes compiled and edited from comments gathered at bowiestation.com, with thanks to paperdragon:
paperdragon:
I talked to one of the musicians who is on this and got a more complete story. First, these aren't outtakes at all, and second, they weren't initially intended to be a Bowie album.
The idea was to form a sort of supergroup behind Bowie and Eno, and record an album as a one-off project for that group. This is essentially that album.
So what we have here is a fully-realized concept album for a group that never came into existence.
It was then presented to the record company, who as we all know rejected it as "uncommercial." After that, Bowie used parts of it as the basis for an entirely new project, which became 1. Outside. So, had this been released, 1. Outside would have never happened.
So, rather than this being outtakes from Outside, it's actually more true that Outside was based on outtakes from The Leon Suites, an album in it's own right.
There were five suites recorded for Leon. Two were deleted, with three receiving a final mix then being presented to the record company for release.
It's possible that some of the outtakes came from the two other suites, which themselves became outtakes.
And that's only talking about the Leon project.
When the record company passed on Leon, Bowie took parts of it and used them as the basis for 1. Outside. That project has it's own outtakes.
The confusion comes in because people fail to realize that we're talking about two separate projects, Leon and the later Outside. They tend to lump the outtakes from both together and call them all outtakes from Outside. Even this was called Outside outtakes, when in reality it's a finished album which, if released, would have meant that Outside would never have happened.
nickfa asked -
"do you happen to also know who is playing on this album?
i imagine it's the musicians on 1st Outside but maybe some others?"
David Bowie, Brian Eno, Reeves Gabrels, Mike Garson, Erdal Kizilçay & Sterling Campbell are the ones who got the writing credits for this so-called "Leon" tape which was recorded at Mountain Studio, Switzerland. Also these sessions were always known as Outside; the name Leon was a name given to just 1 tape which was part of the Nathan Adler series. Other tracks recorded in Switzerland were
"The Hearts Filthy Lesson"
"A Small Plot of Land"
The other tracks on 1. Outside were recorded in New York, where Carlos Alomar was added to the line up.
From all previous stuff I have read, 2 or 3 complete cd's were rejected by several record companies, as Bowie did not have a record contract at this time. Most of the info about these so-called "Leon" tapes comes from the musicians, but accounts vary.
These were not 'early' sessions. These were sessions to make this album, as 1. Outside was not yet thought of. Outside only happened because this album was rejected, leading Bowie to use bits and pieces as a foundation for a new project - Outside.
As far as what was rejected - this, the 3-suite version, was intended for release as a finished album. They also discussed releasing the 5-suite version as a double album.
All outside front Bowie images by Peter Donkersloot
Inside back image by Isabelle Pozzi
Back image self portrait by David Bowie (Jan 1994)