New - Bowie, David - Hours - LP

1999's Hours harkened a return to the sounds of the Hunky Dory days. Written solely with long-time collaborator Reeves Gabrels over the previous year, Hours is one of David Bowie's most autobiographical records. It was also the first complete album by a major artist available to download over the Internet, preceding the physical release by two weeks. Standout tracks include "Thursday's Child," "Survive" and "The Dreamers," and the record's reoccurring themes of loss and regret are likely to strike hearts universally. With such personal lyrics as "Sometimes I cry my heart to sleep," Bowie is evoking emotions recognizable to us all and Hours deals more with real life as opposed to imagery and fantasy.