Low

In an effort to curb his cocaine habit, Bowie moved from LA to Berlin, a city where it was much harder to obtain. The krautrock and electronic influences hinted at on Station to Station came to the forefront, resulting in one of Bowie’s most daring albums. The lyrics were introspective and personal, dealing with his struggles during this period. The image used for the album cover was actually a still taken from The Man Who Fell to Earth (like the cover of Station to Station before it), therefore this minilander pulls double duty as the human disguise of Thomas Jerome Newton, and the Low album cover. The downbeat tone of the photo is fitting for the background of the album, but the still’s context in the film is also pertinent. This image is from a point in the film after Newton had revealed his true alien face to his lover Mary Lou, to her horror. They speak again at the docks afterward, where this shot was taken.