Vinyl Reports

While we’re saving our final determinations for what the best box sets of 2025 are for later in the year, the new mega-multi-LP collection from David Bowie, 6: I Can’t Give Everything Away: (2002 – 2016), is certainly a contender. In short, t’s an amazing study of the man, his music, and enduring vision. 6: I Can’t Give Everything Away: (2002 – 2016), which was released by Parlophone just last week on September 12, 2025, covers the final stages of Bowie’s career, from his June 2002 masterwork Heathen on through to his swan song, January 2016’s ★ (Blackstar).

I have been exploring (and exploring!) this massive box set — which weighs in at hefty 18lb, and features 16 (count ’em!) 180g LPs and two 12in EPs — and I am happy to report it’s a stunning and rewarding listening journey! Before I go deeper on into this hefty collection, it is worth recapping some useful summary from the official press materials issued about this collection: “David Bowie 6: I Can’t Give Everything Away: (2002 – 2016) is [. . .] named after the closing track on ★ (Blackstar), Bowie’s final studio album. The box sets include newly remastered versions (except ★ and No Plan), with input from Bowie’s co-producer Tony Visconti. Exclusive to the box set are Montreux Jazz Festival and Re:Call 6. The former was recorded on July 18, 2002, at the prestigious Montreux Jazz Festival, and among the 31 tracks features a full performance bar one song of one of Bowie’s most revered albums, [January 1977’s] Low. Re:Call 6 features 41 non-album / alternative versions / B-sides and soundtrack songs, including tracks never previously available on vinyl.

“The physical box set’s accompanying book [. . . runs] 84 pages in the vinyl set, features previously unseen notes, drawings, and handwritten lyrics from Bowie, and photos by Sukita (who took the set’s cover shot), Jimmy King, Frank W. Ockenfels 3, Markus Klinko, Mark ‘Blammo’ Adams, and more as well as memorabilia, technical notes about the albums from co-producer Tony Visconti, and design notes from Jonathan Barnbrook.”

Further details about this heavenly box set (including why it gets the “6” prefix in its name) can be found in AP editor Mike Mettler’s New Wax Wednesday report about it that posted here back on July 9, 2025. (Mike will also share his impressions about this collection in the Footnotes section following my portion of this review.)

While Bowie’s post-1980s career wasn’t necessarily a “something for everyone” scenario, it’s undeniable that the man was incredibly prolific and always future-looking, right up to the very end of his life. As the 21st century kicked in, Bowie’s approach felt refreshed and on target, as he delivered some of his strongest and most consistent music since his first creative peak in his ’70s and ’80s heyday.

Exploring the general DNA underlying this collection, we have learned directly from the good folks at Warner Music Group (the parent company of the Parlophone imprint) that these albums were remastered by John Weber at AIR Studios in London, who also cut the new vinyl lacquers. The vinyl discs were manufactured at Optimal in Germany. We have also been told that all the studio albums were from cut from either 24-bit/48kHz WAV files or from 24-bit/96kHz tape transfers. The live albums, not surprisingly, were recorded and mastered in the digital domain as well.

Now, before all the hardcore analog purists amongst us begin to roll their eyes, let’s look at the reality of the timeframe in which this music was made. These are 21st century recordings, after all, which is a period when most artists embraced at least some level of digital production aesthetic along the way. It is just the way it is/was. Fortunately, we’re talking about recordings made by the David Bowie, working primarily with the great producer/engineer/musician Tony Visconti. Accordingly, if there is one overriding connectivity link across all the albums in 6: I Can’t Give Everything Away: (2002 – 2016), and that is, sonically, they are a sweet listening treat. The music sounds real, warm, and inviting — even organic at points. I didn’t hear any harsh digital edges jumping out at me, so I was able to just kick back and enjoy the musical ride.

The SRP for this amazing box set is an admittedly hearty $449.99, but that is really quite reasonable when you consider you are getting sixteen 180g premium LPs pressed at Optimal, plus two EPs and a hardcover book. You can order 6: I Can’t Give Everything Away: (2002 – 2016) from Music Direct here, or via the MD link graphic that appears ahead of the quite lengthy tracklisting section at the end of this review.

As you contemplate the entry fee, consider the following. If you were to try to obtain original first pressings of albums in this collection such as Heathen and Reality, those two alone could potentially set you back at least $200-$300, once you add in shipping and/or tariffs and such — just check what the first editions are going for on Discogs! — as they were fairly limited production runs. Likewise, the limited-run 2016-17 vinyl for A Reality Tour is selling for hundreds as well these days. With all that in mind, this $450 price tag for this big box set doesn’t feel all that unreasonable — in fact, it feels very, very fair!

Each album in 6: I Can’t Give Everything Away: (2002 – 2016) comes housed in its own plastic-lined, audiophile-grade paper inner sleeve, in addition to the inner sleeves that graced original issues back in the day. And while I don’t have original vinyl copies of those aforementioned albums in hand myself, I would be willing to bet that the new editions in this box are as good if not better in terms of production values — which, across this set overall, are very high.

And, on that note, I’m now going to address the contents of 6: I Can’t Give Everything Away: (2002 – 2016) in a logical trio of groupings, if you will.

The Studio Albums
Given the massive scope of this box set, I thought it might be helpful to offer a brief overview leading into some initial thoughts about the sonic character across the entirety of the collection. I went into this review admittedly favoring Heathen, an outstanding album start to finish, and one that I’ve enjoyed up until now primarily in its SACD 5.1 surround sound incarnation. I have found it especially interesting to listen to this album in regular stereo on vinyl, and am finding that it holds up masterfully.

The big changeup for me was finding newfound love for the followup album, September 2003’s Reality (which I also own on SACD, and always liked a bunch). Written with his then-touring band in mind, Reality further marked Bowie’s rocking return to form, as produced by Tony Visconti. Featuring the instant classic “New Killer Star” (Side 1, Track 1), the album starts off with a bang runs through a fascinating reworking of Jonathan Richman’s classic 1976 Modern Lovers track “Pablo Picasso” (Side 1, Track 2), and a fabulous take on George Harrison’s “Try Some Buy Some” (Side 2, Track 3), a song originally recorded by Ronnie Spector (!), and later found on Harrison’s haunting masterpiece on Apple, May 1973’s Living in the Material World.

Bowie’s post-hiatus comeback album, March 2013’s The Next Day, and eventual swan song, ★ (Blackstar), have only grown in stature over the years. I have to admit that after Bowie passed away on January 8, 2016, I had a great deal of trouble even listening to his later-period music for quite some time. Thankfully, I was more than ready to revisit this music, so diving into 6. I Can’t Give Everything Away: (2002 – 2016) has given me a fresh re-appreciation of his masterful final works. The sting of sadness has transformed back into grateful awe for an artist who continued to be so incredibly prolific, delivering a one-two punch swan song for the ages. This all while battling illness, as we now know. Few, if any, artists have that clarity of thought at advanced ages while also facing mortality. This underscores just what a magical artist he was.

Overall, the studio albums sound terrific, with a roundness and warmth that surprised me given the time period in which they were created and how they were remastered. The music doesn’t feel harsh or brittle. Heathen and Reality sound especially good to me, but I also found ★ (Blackstar) refreshingly modern without falling prey to trendy production gimmickry. Clearly, having producer Visconti at his side to the end ensured continuity of sound and spirit across all of Bowie’s later works.

The Live Albums
Both of the live albums in this collection — the 4LP Montreux Jazz Festival and the 3LP A Reality Tour — are well-recorded documents of Bowie’s later touring bands. The recordings are modern and sound very good — not quite up to the level of the studio recordings, but certainly they are extremely enjoyable, and no doubt exemplary performances. Of the two, I think I like the sound of the previously unreleased Montreux Jazz Festival show a bit better, but that doesn’t surprise me, given that facility is state of the art and the engineers at this stage of the game (who have been recording shows there since the festival began!) know how to capture great sounds onsite. I only know the A Reality Tour album from its DVD incarnation, which given its October 2004 release was limited to a standard Dolby Digital soundtrack, so finally hearing it on vinyl — given that I unfortunately didn’t get the 2016 3LP European-issued set — in much fuller fidelity is a welcome joy.

Everything Else
6: I Can’t Give Everything Away (2002 – 2016) also gives us effectively five additional Bowie albums! The two 12in EPs — November 2013’s The Next Day Extra EP and January 2017’sNo Plan EP — amount to 10 tracks, while the staggering Re:Call 6 collection plays out as effectively four distinct album experiences.

The 4LPs comprising Re:Call 6 are perhaps the most fascinating part of this collection, a compilation of rarities including single and radio edits, digital streaming-only tracks, mixes previously exclusive to SACD releases (Heathen, Reality), and movie soundtracks (Underworld, Charlie’s Angels, Stealth, etc.). Re:Call 6 also includes numerous, already iconic live tracks such as Bowie’s notable 2005 appearance with Arcade Fire at the Fashion Rocks benefit concert (“Wake Up,” LP4, Side 7, Track 2) and with David Gilmour in 2006 at the Royal Albert Hall in London (a cover of the early Pink Floyd classic “Arnold Layne,” LP4, Side 7, Track 4).

If you were to try to collect all these tracks in their original form, and then tried to assemble them all into a compilation mirroring this release, it would no doubt take a lot of time, energy, and money. However, you still wouldn’t have them all neatly mastered to play together seamlessly as an album on multiple vinyl discs like these. And that is where Re:Call 6 becomes arguably my favorite part of this box set. It’s like its own special box-within-a-box-set treasure chest!

Gosh, where to start on my favorite moments from Re:Call 6 thus far? “Saviour” featuring Kristeen Young (LP2, Side 4, Track 3) sounds almost like Bowie duetting with Kate Bush! Rediscovering “New Killer Star” anew on this set has made it a favorite track (LP3, Side 5, Track 1) from the latter part of Bowie’s career, and here we get not only a rocking tight single edit of it but also a 2003 version recorded at AOL Live (LP3, Side 6, Track 2). Bowie’s tribute to Ray Davies and The Kinks is a wonderful driving version of “Waterloo Sunset” (LP3, Side 5, Track 6). The acoustic “Days” (LP3, Side 6, Track 3) from Reality (not The Kinks’ like-named tune!) captures a sweet folksy moment onstage. I could go on, but I think you get the idea that with its whopping 41 tracks, Re:Call 6 is a collector’s bounty that works well end-to-end as a listening experience. Many kudos must be given to the producers who thoughtfully assembled it all.

Wrapping things up, I can easily give 6: I Can’t Give Everything Away: (2002 – 2016) 16LP/2EP box set a solid 10 for its Music. And, given its more-than-fine sonics, I’m happy to give the Sound a collective 9 overall. Generally, everything here sounds quite great, and the pressings are clean, tight, well-centered, and quiet. What more can you ask for in a super deluxe box set?

In sum, David Bowie’s 6. I Can’t Give Everything Away: (2002 – 2016) is a thorough collection crafted with love and honor. Kudos to the team at Warner Music Group, Parlophone, and, of course, the Bowie estate for ensuring no corners were cut along the way. Make the investment to get this one for yourself whenever you can.

Author bio: Mark Smotroff is an avid vinyl collector who has also worked in marketing communications for decades. He has reviewed music for eCoustics, among others, and you can see more of his impressive C.V. at LinkedIn.

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Footnote 1: AP editor Mike Mettler adds: I pretty much concur with Mark’s track-specific assessments and respective ratings for this endlessly fascinating Bowie box set. Given the Music vacillates between 9 and 11, a 10 rating for it overall is quite fitting — as is a 9 for the Sound. That said, some tracks rate 8.5 and some go up to 10, so I might be inclined to ratchet the Sound tally up to a 9.5. Spending more mega-hours to further consume all the contents of this uber-packed box may codify that thought a bit more somewhere down the line, but rest assured — as it stands, David Bowie’s 6. I Can’t Give Everything Away: (2002 – 2016) is a monster box set very much worthy of its price tag and overall heft.

DAVID BOWIE
6. I CAN’T GIVE EVERYTHING AWAY (2002 – 2016)
180G 18LP (Parlophone)
MUSIC: 10
SOUND: 9

Project produced for release by Olivia Thomas for Warner Music. and Aisha Cohen and Nigel Reeve for RZO Music
Original studio albums produced by David Bowie with Tony Visconti
A Reality Tour live album mixed by Tony Visconti
Montreux Jazz Festival live recording produced by Claude Nobs and Thierry Amsallem
Montreux Jazz Festival live recording engineered by David Richards
All albums remastered by John Weber at AIR Studios in London
Vinyl production lacquers cut by John Weber at AIR Studios in London
Vinyl LPs manufactured in Germany at Optimal

Heathen (1LP)

Side 1
1. Sunday
2. Cactus
3. Slip Away
4. Slow Burn
5. Afraid
6. I’ve Been Waiting For You

Side 2
1. I Would Be Your Slave
2. I Took A Trip On A Gemini Spaceship
3. 5:15 The Angels Have Gone
4. Everyone Says ʻHiʼ
5. A Better Future
6. Heathen (The Rays)

Montreux Jazz Festival (4LP)

LP1, Side 1
1. Sunday
2. Life On Mars?
3. Ashes To Ashes
4. Cactus

LP1, Side 2
1. Slip Away
2. China Girl
3. Starman
4. I Would Be Your Slave

LP2, Side 3
1. I’ve Been Waiting For You
2. Stay
3. Changes
4. Fashion

LP2, Side 4
1. Fame
2. I’m Afraid Of Americans
3. 5:15 The Angels Have Gone
4. ‟Heroes”

LP3, Side 5
1. Heathen (The Rays)
2. Everyone Says ‘Hi’
3. Hallo Spaceboy

LP3, Side 6
1. Letʼs Dance
2. Ziggy Stardust
3. Warszawa

LP4, Side 7
1. Speed Of Life
2. Breaking Glass
3. What In The World
4. Sound And Vision
5. Art Decade

LP4, Side 8
1. Always Crashing In The Same Car
2. Be My Wife
3. A New Career In A New Town
4. Subterraneans

Reality (1LP)

Side 1
1. New Killer Star
2. Pablo Picasso
3. Never Get Old
4. The Loneliest Guy
5. Looking For Water
6. She’ll Drive The Big Car

Side 2
1. Days
2. Fall Dog Bombs The Moon
3. Try Some, Buy Some
4. Reality
5. Bring Me The Disco King

A Reality Tour (3LP)

LP1, Side 1
1. Rebel Rebel
2. New Killer Star
3. Reality
4. Fame
5. Cactus
6. Sister Midnight

LP1, Side 2
1. Afraid
2. All The Young Dudes
3. Be My Wife
4. China Girl
5. The Loneliest Guy
6. The Man Who Sold The World
7. Fantastic Voyage

LP2, Side 3
1. Hallo Spaceboy
2. Sunday
3. Under Pressure
4. Life On Mars?
5. Battle For Britain (The Letter)

LP2, Side 4
1. Fall Dog Bombs The Moon
2. Ashes To Ashes
3. The Motel
4. Loving The Alien
5. Breaking Glass
6. Never Get Old

LP3, Side 5
1. Changes
2. I’m Afraid Of Americans
3. ‟Heroes”
4. Bring Me The Disco King

LP3, Side 6
1. Slip Away
2. Heathen (The Rays)
3. Five Years
4. Hang On To Yourself
5. Ziggy Stardust

The Next Day (2LP)

LP1, Side 1
1. The Next Day
2. Dirty Boys
3. The Stars (Are Out Tonight)
4. Love Is Lost

LP1, Side 2
1. Where Are We Now?
2. Valentine’s Day
3. If You Can See Me
4. I’d Rather Be High

LP2, Side 3
1. Boss Of Me
2. Dancing Out In Space
3. How Does The Grass Grow?
4. (You Will) Set The World On Fire

LP2, Side 4
1. You Feel So Lonely You Could Die
2. Heat
3. So She
4. Plan
5. I’ll Take You There

The Next Day Extra EP (1LP)

Side 1
1. Atomica
2. Love Is Lost (Hello Steve Reich Mix By James Murphy For The DFA)
3. The Informer

Side 2
1. I’d Rather Be High (Venetian Mix)
2. Like A Rocket Man
3. Born In A UFO
4. God Bless The Girl

★ (Blackstar) (1LP)

Side 1
1. ★
2. ’Tis A Pity She Was A Whore
3. Lazarus

Side 2
1. Sue (Or In A Season Of Crime)
2. Girl Loves Me
3. Dollar Days
4. I Can’t Give Everything Away

No Plan EP (1LP)

Side 1
1. Lazarus
2. No Plan
3. Killing A Little Time
4. When I Met You

Side 2
* No music – etching only

Re:Call 6 (4LP)

LP1, Side 1
1. Slow Burn (Single Edit)
2. Wood Jackson
3. When The Boys Come Marching Home
4. Safe
5. Sunday (Moby Remix)

LP1, Side 2
1. A Better Future (Remix By Air)
2. Slip Away (SACD Mix)
3. Slow Burn (SACD Mix)
4. I’ve Been Waiting For You (SACD Mix)
5. 5:15 The Angels Have Gone (SACD Mix)

LP2, Side 3
1. A Better Future (SACD Mix)
2. Safe (SACD Mix)
3. Everyone Says ‘Hi’ (Radio Edit)
4. Sunday (Tony Visconti Mix)
5. Everyone Says ‘Hi’ (Metro Remix Radio Edit)

LP2, Side 4
1. Heathen (The Rays) (Live In Berlin, 22/09/02)
2. Hop Frog – Lou Reed Featuring David Bowie
3. Saviour – Kristeen Young Featuring David Bowie
4. Isn’t It Evening (The Revolutionary) – Earl Slick Featuring David Bowie
5. Bring Me The Disco King (Loner Mix) – David Bowie Featuring Maynard James Keenan And John Frusciante (Taken From The Underworld Motion Picture Soundtrack)

LP3, Side 5
1. New Killer Star (Radio Edit)
2. Love Missile F1-11
3. Fly 4
. Queen Of All The Tarts (Overture)
5. Never Get Old (Single Edit)
6. Waterloo Sunset

LP3, Side 6
1. Rebel Rebel (2003 Re-Record) (Taken From The Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle Motion Picture Soundtrack)
2. New Killer Star (Sessions @ AOL Live Version, 23/09/03)
3. Days (Live)
4. 5:15 The Angels Have Gone (Live)
5. Rebel Never Gets Old (Radio Mix)
6. (She Can) Do That – David Bowie With BT (Taken From The Stealth Motion Picture Soundtrack)

LP4, Side 7
1. Life On Mars? (Live At Fashion Rocks, 08/09/05)
2. Wake Up (Live At Fashion Rocks, 08/09/05) – David Bowie With Arcade Fire
3. Five Years (Live At Fashion Rocks, 08/09/05) – David Bowie With Arcade Fire
4. Arnold Layne (Live At The Royal Albert Hall, 29/05/06) – David Gilmour Featuring David Bowie
5. Love Is Lost (Hello Steve Reich Mix By James Murphy For The DFA Edit)

LP4, Side 8
1. Sue (Or In A Season Of Crime) (2014 Version)
2. ’Tis A Pity She Was A Whore (2014 Version)
3. Lazarus (Radio Edit)
4. I Can’t Give Everything Away (Radio Edit)