DAVID BOWIE; VH1 STORYTELLERS (EMI CD/DVD)

At the very end of the Nineties, David Bowie released one of his best album in years, Hours.

Unfortunately by that time fewer and fewer people were listening to him. He'd started the decade with the two Tin Machine albums in which he tried to bury himself within a band format (about as successfully as McCartney did with Wings) and although he returned under his own name for the excellent Black Tie White Noise album of '93 which topped the UK charts, neither 1.Outside (a concept album with old chum Brian Eno, which may have been the first of a never completed trilogy) or the electronica-influenced Earthling which followed were as successful, saleswise or creatively.

Perhaps that was why he chose to go on the VH1 Storytellers show where he charmed with anecdotes and reminisences (Marc Bolan, Stevie Marriott and Iggy Pop were all mentioned) and to play some Hours songs along with a few re-jigged favourites.

Typical of Bowie however, he also dropped in Word on a Wing and treated his early material with respect while changing it to suit the more intimate mood of the venue and its small live audience.

That show (with some bonus tracks) makes up the DVD here, the CD is simply the same again which doesn't really stand up in the absence of his enjoyably tooth grin (nice new choppers at the time), faux self-effacement and floppy bangs.

Not an essential Bowie release, but certainly not without interest although you'd like to have much more music and storytelling, the show (without the bonus bits) seems very short at 45 minutes.