“Reality” Songs Ranked

“Reality” is … fine. I’ve never really been a huge fan of this album, and to be honest my opinion barely changed with a couple of re-listens.

There are definitely some great ones on here, don’t get me wrong, but there are just too many bland fillers for my liking. How would I rank this mixed bag of songs?

You can check out some of my other Bowie lists below:

OK

11 – Never Get Old

I don’t really care for this one – it’s kinda rocky and energetic I guess, but it doesn’t seem too creative and unique by Bowie’s standards.

In all fairness to “Reality”, none of the songs are outright bad – there’s just too many boring fillers for it to ever be an album I can truly get behind.

10 – Pablo Picasso

There are enough interesting sounds to instantly put this above “Never Get Old”, but this still isn’t really that memorable. There are some decent riffs here and there, but they never come together to make a good song.

9 – She’ll Drive the Big Car

I like the grooves and melodies here, but similarly to a lot of the tracks on “Reality”, I forget about this one as soon as I’ve stopped listening.

8 – Fall Dog Bombs the Moon

Definitely one of the more … unique titles to a Bowie song.

There’s some nice guitar work here, and that’s enough to rank it slightly above the others in “OK”.

7 – Try Some, Buy Some

Straight away, this sounds like a much more interesting and unique song from its first few seconds.

There are some gorgeous instrumentation and chord changes, and this definitely seems like the kind of track that might creep up the list as time goes on.

Good

6 – The Loneliest Guy

There’s a dark undertone to this track that I love – maybe I’m more inclined to like moodier songs than happy-go-lucky ones, and specifically it’s the piano work here that makes it stand out.

That being said, this isn’t the most stand-out track of the bunch, and it only just made its way into the “Good” tier.

5 – Reality

This title track is relatively weak as Bowie title tracks go, but it’s still alright in its own merits.

I love the intense energy and guitar riffs that hit you like a ton of bricks straight away, and this is easily one of the most engaging vocal performances on the album.

4 – Looking for Water

A nice, groovy rocker that picks up the pace a little. This one has a very catchy chorus, and it’s definitely my favourite out of the “filler” tracks.

But that’s the problem with “Reality” – I feel like all but three of the tracks are meaningless fluff just meant to fill in the runtime, and that’s why I will probably never truly like this album. Still, pretty solid as fillers go.

Great

3 – New Killer Star

The top three songs on “Reality” are leagues above the others, and “New Killer Star” does an excellent job of opening the album.

Boasting an infectious energy and possible the catchiest melodies of the bunch, this opening track is always a stand-out.

Amazing

2 – Days

I’m not sure if anyone else loves this track as I do, but up until I was finalising my rankings this was all the way up in first place – that’s how much I adore this track.

The melodies and lyrics are gorgeous, and the acoustic guitar work has a sort of reminiscent feel to Bowie’s early works. I also like how most 4-bar phrases are grouped into batches of sevens, almost like a reference to seven days of the week (this may have been unintentional, but I thought it was a fun fact).

1 – Bring Me the Disco King

I had a hard time choosing a number one spot – “Days” has a very commercial appeal and will almost certainly be most people’s favourite out of the two, but the melancholic, jazzy approach of “Bring Me the Disco King” is what sets it apart.

The piano work here is possibly my favourite out of any Bowie track – and that’s saying something. This track was apparently 30 years in the making, and it shows – each melody and harmony is meticulously crafted, and the almost eight-minute runtime always goes by in a flash. One of the most unique, sincere tracks in Bowie’s discography, and I love it.

Aaaand that’s my list. This was the last Bowie album of the decade (sadly, a sudden heart-attack on tour meant we had to wait a while for the Thin White Duke’s next outing), so until we reach the 2010’s you should check out some of my latest blog posts: