David Bowie was a remarkable chanteur, even in his earliest days—the period critics now tend to ignore or deride. For a small coterie of Bowie fans in the early Sixties, his records were fresh, amusing and often moving, and in sharp contrast to the more brutal aspects of the evolving heavy-metal movement. His first album for Decca, "Rubber Band," was a prized possession to be mulled over with a mixture of amusement and fascination.

David was already writing and performing songs that cut across the current conventions. Today some of them may sound twee, with rather heavy-handed orchestral backings, and child-like lyrics.

Setting aside the Bowie legend that now looms so large, one is impressed by his burgeoning skill as a writer, his insistence on experiment….

[One] can hear he put a tremendous amount of effort into crafting songs and arrangements. The wry sense of humour, the...