Hear A Previously Unreleased Version Of David Bowie's 'The Man Who Sold The World'

Happy birthday to the man of many names.

David Bowie would have turned 73 today. To celebrate, Parlophone is releasing a six-song EP entitled Is It Any Wonder?, which will feature some previously unreleased recordings from the departed legend.

The songs of Is It Any Wonder? are expected to be doled out over the course of the next six weeks, but today we can dig into a new version of "The Man Who Sold The World," which was recorded in New York, just ahead of Bowie's 50th birthday concert at Madison Square Garden in 1997. The whole session, named ChangesNowBowie, was recorded for broadcast on the BBC to celebrate the Starman's 50th. (Probably not coincidentally, the 1970 album of the same name turns 50 this year.)

With a sitar replacing the main guitar line and without the cacophony of eclectic percussion, this "ChangesNowBowie" version leans more into the somber, solitary and searching narrative of the tune.

Compare it to the original, and stay tuned for more material over the next few weeks. [Copyright 2020 NPR]