http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQTENuQYgjM For the most part, 'Hunky Dory' constitutes a natural transition from 'The Man Who Sold the World' to 'The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars'. The hard sound of his previous album gives way to a relaxed backdrop of strings and piano (played by one Rick Wakeman), while the glam tendencies intermittently scratch at the door. 'Life on Mars' is the album's defining moment, possibly even Bowie's defining moment of the early 70s. It is a metaphorical, beautifully written song about a girl's pop culture escapism (not the first time Bowie would lend his lyricism to such critiques). These hallmarks (the glam of 'Queen Bitch', the cryptic lyrics) would all manifest themselves at different times throughout Bowie's later career. An expectant father, Bowie candidly lets us catch him at a time of hope, which is particularly endearing in 'Kooks'. In this ode to his son (now talented filmmaker Duncan Jones), Bowie warns him, 'Don't pick fights with the bullies or the cads, 'cause I'm not much cop at punching other people's dads'. For fans of Bowie's darker work, it is reassuring to hear him full of humour and sentimentality. On the whole, the first side is heartwarming, thanks mainly to its uncynical portrayal of childhood -- the depiction of a child's bedroom in 'Eight Line Poem' is particularly homely.