I Can't Give Everything Away (2002 - 2016) [Box Set] by David Bowie

David Bowie I Can't Give Everything Away (2002 - 2016) [Box Set]

87
ChoruScore
3 reviews
Sep 12, 2025
Release Date
Rhino
Label

David Bowie's I Can't Give Everything Away (2002 - 2016) [Box Set] arrives as a carefully curated late-career dossier that reads like a final lesson in reinvention and mortality. Across three professional reviews, critics single out the set's emotional center in “I Can’t Give Everything Away” and the dark propulsion of “Blackstar”, presenting the collection as both elegy and archival triumph rather than a mere compilation.

The critical consensus, reflected in an 87.33/100 score across 3 professional reviews, praises the box set's balance of studio highlights, live preservation and revelatory curios. Reviewers consistently cite the Montreux live document, late-era remasters and selected B-sides as evidence of thoughtful curation and legacy-minded pedagogy. Standout tracks named repeatedly include “I Can’t Give Everything Away”, “Blackstar”, and frequently mentioned companions like “Dollar Days” and “Where Are We Now?”. Critics note themes of mortality, late-career retrospection and New York-period vitality; these threads give the collection narrative coherence and make it a key resource for those asking what critics say about I Can't Give Everything Away (2002 - 2016) [Box Set] and which are the best songs on it.

While reviews are overwhelmingly appreciative, they frame the box set as an interpretive act - an artful inventory that invites reappraisal rather than closing the book. For readers seeking a deep dive into Bowie’s final creative chapter, this collection offers preserved performances, instructive sequencing and the poignant final statements that many critics call essential.

Critics' Top Tracks

The standout songs that made critics take notice

1

I Can’t Give Everything Away

2 mentions

"it closes on an upbeat note with “I Can’t Give Everything Away”"
— Variety
2

Blackstar

2 mentions

"the intensity is palpable in every note of the album"
— Variety
3

Dollar Days

1 mention

"the final track on Blackstar gives this collection its name, ‘Dollar Days’ is more poignant"
— The Quietus
it closes on an upbeat note with “I Can’t Give Everything Away”
V
Variety
about "I Can’t Give Everything Away"
Read full review
2 mentions
95% sentiment

Track Ratings

How critics rated each track, relative to this album (0-100). Only tracks that made critics feel something are rated.

View:
1

Sunday - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:45
2

Cactus - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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02:54
3

Slip Away - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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06:04
4

Slow Burn - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
—
04:41
5

Afraid - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
—
03:28
6

I've Been Waiting For You - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
—
03:00
7

I Would Be Your Slave - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
—
05:13
8

I Took A Trip On A Gemini Spaceship - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:06
9

5:15 The Angels Have Gone - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
—
04:59
10

Everyone Says 'Hi' - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
—
03:59
11

A Better Future - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
—
04:11
12

Heathen (The Rays) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
—
04:16
13

Sunday - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
—
06:50
14

Life On Mars? - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
—
04:50
15

Ashes To Ashes - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
—
05:54
16

Cactus - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
—
03:11
17

Slip Away - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
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05:43
18

China Girl - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
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04:22
19

Starman - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
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04:43
20

I Would Be Your Slave - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
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05:50
21

I've Been Waiting for You - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
—
05:19
22

Stay - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
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06:17
23

Changes - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
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04:10
24

Fashion - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
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04:08
25

Fame - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
—
04:20
26

I'm Afraid Of Americans - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
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05:17
27

5:15 The Angels Have Gone - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
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05:16
28

"Heroes" - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
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06:03
29

Heathen (The Rays) - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
—
06:08
30

Everyone Says 'Hi' - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
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05:07
31

Hallo Spaceboy - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
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05:26
32

Let's Dance - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
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06:34
33

Ziggy Stardust - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
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04:45
34

Warszawa - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
—
06:24
35

Speed Of Life - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
—
02:53
36

Breaking Glass - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
—
02:34
37

What In The World - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
—
03:28
38

Sound And Vision - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
—
04:29
39

Art Decade - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
—
04:03
40

Always Crashing in the Same Car - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
—
03:41
41

Be My Wife - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
—
03:06
42

A New Career In A New Town - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
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03:37
43

Subterraneans - Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival, 18th July, 2002

0 mentions
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07:32
44

New Killer Star - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:40
45

Pablo Picasso - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:04
46

Never Get Old - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:24
47

The Loneliest Guy - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:11
48

Looking For Water - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:28
49

She'll Drive The Big Car - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:34
50

Days - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:18
51

Fall Dog Bombs The Moon - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:02
52

Try Some, Buy Some - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:24
53

Reality - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:21
54

Bring Me The Disco King - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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07:45
55

Rebel Rebel - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:30
56

New Killer Star - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:59
57

Reality - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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05:08
58

Fame - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:08
59

Cactus - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:05
60

Sister Midnight - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:34
61

Afraid - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:29
62

All The Young Dudes - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:34
63

Be My Wife - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:24
64

China Girl - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:08
65

The Loneliest Guy - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:58
66

The Man Who Sold The World - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:18
67

Fantastic Voyage - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:13
68

Hallo Spaceboy - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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05:27
69

Sunday - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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07:56
70

Under Pressure - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:18
71

Life On Mars? - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:32
72

Battle For Britain (The Letter) - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:55
73

Fall Dog Bombs The Moon - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:05
74

Ashes To Ashes - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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05:51
75

The Motel - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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05:44
76

Loving The Alien - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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05:04
77

Breaking Glass - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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02:29
78

Never Get Old - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:17
79

Changes - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:52
80

I'm Afraid Of Americans - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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05:19
81

"Heroes" - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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06:55
82

Bring Me The Disco King - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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07:56
83

Slip Away - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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05:56
84

Heathen (The Rays) - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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06:24
85

Five Years - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:13
86

Hang On To Yourself - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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02:55
87

Ziggy Stardust - Live; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:46
88

The Next Day - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:26
89

Dirty Boys - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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02:58
90

The Stars (Are Out Tonight) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:57
91

Love Is Lost - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:57
92

Where Are We Now? - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:09
93

Valentine's Day - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:02
94

If You Can See Me - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:12
95

I'd Rather Be High - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:44
96

Boss Of Me - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:09
97

Dancing Out In Space - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:21
98

How Does The Grass Grow? - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:34
99

(You Will) Set The World On Fire - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:32
100

You Feel So Lonely You Could Die - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:37
101

Heat - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:25
102

Atomica - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:05
103

Love Is Lost - Hello Steve Reich Mix by James Murphy for the DFA; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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10:25
104

Plan - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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02:00
105

The Informer - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:31
106

I'd Rather Be High - Venetian Mix; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:49
107

Like A Rocket Man - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:29
108

Born In A UFO - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:02
109

I'll Take You There - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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02:40
110

God Bless The Girl - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:11
111

So She - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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02:31
112

★

0 mentions
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09:57
113

'Tis A Pity She Was A Whore

0 mentions
—
04:52
114

Lazarus

0 mentions
—
06:24
115

Sue (Or In A Season Of Crime)

1 mention
5
04:40
116

Girl Loves Me

0 mentions
—
04:51
117

Dollar Days

1 mention
100
04:44
118

I Can't Give Everything Away

0 mentions
—
05:47
119

Lazarus - No Plan

0 mentions
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06:24
120

No Plan

0 mentions
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03:41
121

Killing A Little Time

0 mentions
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03:48
122

When I Met You

0 mentions
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04:08
123

Slow Burn - Single Edit; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
—
03:55
124

Wood Jackson - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:50
125

When The Boys Come Marching Home - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:48
126

Safe - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:45
127

Sunday - Moby Remix; 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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05:12
128

A Better Future (Remix by Air) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:59
129

Slip Away (SACD Mix) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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06:14
130

Slow Burn (SACD Mix) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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05:05
131

I've Been Waiting For You (SACD Mix) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:18
132

5:15 The Angels Have Gone (SACD Mix) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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05:24
133

A Better Future (SACD Mix) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:55
134

Safe (SACD Mix) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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05:54
135

Everyone Says ‘Hi’ (Radio Edit) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:30
136

Sunday (Tony Visconti Mix) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:59
137

Everyone Says ‘Hi’ (METRO Remix Radio Edit) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:40
138

Heathen (The Rays) [Live in Berlin 22/09/02] - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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05:57
139

Hop Frog (feat. David Bowie)

0 mentions
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01:46
140

Saviour (feat. David Bowie)

0 mentions
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05:25
141

Isn't It Evening (The Revolutionary) [feat. David Bowie]

0 mentions
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04:56
142

Bring Me The Disco King (Loner Mix) [feat. Maynard James Keenan and John Frusciante] [Underworld: Music from the Motion Picture] - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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06:09
143

New Killer Star (Radio Edit) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:43
144

Love Missile F1-11 - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:15
145

Fly - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:10
146

Queen Of All The Tarts (Overture) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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02:51
147

Never Get Old (Single Edit) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:40
148

Waterloo Sunset - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:29
149

Rebel Rebel (Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle Music from the Motion Picture) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:10
150

New Killer Star (Sessions@AOL, 23/09/03) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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04:48
151

Days (Live) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:22
152

5:15 The Angels Have Gone (Live) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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05:25
153

Rebel Never Gets Old (Radio Mix) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:26
154

(She Can) Do That [with BT] [Stealth: Music from the Motion Picture] - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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03:15
155

Life On Mars? - Live at Fashion Rocks 08/09/05

0 mentions
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04:45
156

Wake Up (with Arcade Fire) - Live at Fashion Rocks 08/09/05

0 mentions
—
06:18
157

Five Years (with Arcade Fire) - Live at Fashion Rocks 08/09/05

0 mentions
—
03:50
158

Arnold Layne (Live at The Royal Albert Hall 29/05/06) [feat. David Bowie]

0 mentions
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04:02
159

Love Is Lost (Hello Steve Reich Mix by James Murphy for The DFA Edit) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
—
04:09
160

Sue (Or In A Season Of Crime) [2014 Version] - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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07:26
161

‘Tis A Pity She Was A Whore (2014 Version) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
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05:25
162

Lazarus (Radio Edit) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
—
04:06
163

I Can’t Give Everything Away (Radio Edit) - 2025 Remaster

0 mentions
—
04:24

What Critics Are Saying

Deep insights from 3 critics who reviewed this album

The Quietus logo

The Quietus

Unknown
Sep 15, 2025
90

Critic's Take

Inevitably elegiac yet intellectually curious, David Bowie in I Can't Give Everything Away (2002 - 2016) [Box Set] feels like a final seminar on mortality and reinvention. The reviewer singles out “Bring Me The Disco King” as one of his greatest songs and frames “Dollar Days” alongside “Where Are We Now?” as quietly devastating; these are the best tracks on the set because they stitch elegy to melody with a scholar's restraint. The boxset, with its Montreux live document and late-era remasters, confirms Bowie as a teacher-figure - doleful, generous and always a little oblique. This is the best collection for anyone asking which are the best songs on I Can't Give Everything Away (2002 - 2016) [Box Set], because it foregrounds his late-period masterpieces and their lessons on ageing, art and loss.

Key Points

  • The best song is "Bring Me The Disco King" because the reviewer calls it one of his greatest, highlighting its melancholy piano and revisited craft.
  • The album’s core strengths are elegiac songwriting, late-career reinvention, and a pedagogic, reflective approach to mortality and legacy.

Themes

mortality late-career reflection pedagogy reappraisal legacy
Read full review

Re

Record Collector

Unknown
Sep 15, 2025
80

Critic's Take

Simon Price frames David Bowie's late-career work as a New York-inflected coda, arguing that the box set highlights the best tracks like “Slip Away” and “I Can’t Give Everything Away” as emotional and compositional high points. He writes with knowing relish about the late-period pleasures - the Montreux live set's conviviality, the studio curios and the haunting finality of ★/Blackstar. The narrative places those songs as the best songs on I Can't Give Everything Away (2002 - 2016) [Box Set] because they balance playful covers and bold late statements, giving listeners both fun and profundity.

Key Points

  • The best song is the title-linked “I Can’t Give Everything Away” because it encapsulates Bowie’s final, elegant artistic statement.
  • The box set’s core strengths are its New York-centered context, generous live-documentation, and a mix of playful covers with profound late works.

Themes

New York period late-career retrospection live performance preservation mortality and final statement
Read full review
Variety logo
92

Critic's Take

The boxed set I Can't Give Everything Away (2002 - 2016) [Box Set] reads like a final, artful inventory of a late renaissance, and Jem Aswad repeatedly hails the closing moments of I Can't Give Everything Away (2002 - 2016) [Box Set] — especially “I Can’t Give Everything Away” and the fury of “Blackstar” - as the emotional core. Aswad writes in a measured, appreciative voice about Bowie’s late-period mastery, praising the dark, driving intensity of “Blackstar” and the bittersweet uplift of “I Can’t Give Everything Away” as decisive final statements. He frames the set as generous curation rather than mere retread, noting standout moments from the studio albums and live recordings that make the box set essential for understanding Bowie’s last creative chapter. The result feels less like a cash-in and more like a lovingly assembled obituary in music form, which is why listeners asking "best songs on I Can't Give Everything Away" will most often hear “Blackstar” and “I Can’t Give Everything Away” cited first.

Key Points

  • The best song is "Blackstar" because its intensity and innovation make it the most powerful late-career statement.
  • The album's core strengths are careful curation, thematic confrontation with mortality, and strong late-period songwriting and live performances.

Themes

late-career reflection mortality and death curation and archival release creative revival
Read full review