After the freakish {\hard rock} of {^The Man Who Sold the World}, {$David Bowie} returned to {\singer/songwriter} territory on {^Hunky Dory}. Not only did the album boast more folky songs ({&"Song for Bob Dylan,"} {&"The Bewlay Brothers"}), but he again flirted with {$Anthony Newley-esque} dancehall music ({&"Kooks,"} {&"Fill Your Heart"}), seemingly leaving {\heavy metal} behind. As a result, {^Hunky Dory} is a kaleidoscopic array of {\pop} styles, tied together only by {$Bowie}'s sense of vision: a sweeping, cinematic mélange of high and low art, ambiguous sexuality, kitsch, and class. {$Mick Ronson}'s guitar is pushed to the back, leaving {$Rick Wakeman}'s {\cabaret} piano to dominate the sound of the album. The subdued support accentuates the depth of {$Bowie}'s material, whether it's the revamped {\Tin Pan Alley} of {&"Changes,"} the {$Neil Young} homage {&"Quicksand,"} the soaring {&"Life on Mars?,"} the rolling, vaguely homosexual anthem {&"Oh! You Pretty Things,"} or the dark acoustic rocker {&"Andy Warhol."} On the surface, such a wide range of styles and sounds would make an album incoherent, but {$Bowie}'s improved songwriting and determined sense of style instead made {^Hunky Dory} a touchstone for reinterpreting {\pop}'s traditions into fresh, postmodern {\pop} music. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide