No Plan is an extended play, comprising songs written and recorded by English musician David Bowie, released posthumously on 8 January 2017.[1] The release coincided with what would have been Bowie's 70th birthday, almost a year after his death. No Plan compiles the original songs written for Bowie's Off-Broadway musical, Lazarus, including the titular "Lazarus", "No Plan", "Killing a Little Time", and "When I Met You". The songs were first recorded by the cast of the musical as part of its official soundtrack.[2] The recordings featured on No Plan come from the sessions for Bowie's twenty-sixth and final studio album Blackstar, with "Lazarus" appearing as the third track on the album. Upon release, No Plan debuted at #138 on the Billboard 200, selling more than 5,000 units in its first week there.[3] The music video for the title track was also released in accompaniment with the EP. It was directed by Tom Hingston.[1]

No Plan
EP by
Released8 January 2017 (2017-01-08)
RecordedJanuary–May 2015
Length17:59
Label
Producer
David Bowie chronology
Legacy
(2016)
No Plan
(2017)
Live Nassau Coliseum '76
(2017)
David Bowie EP chronology
Live EP (Live at Fashion Rocks)
(2005)
No Plan
(2017)
Is It Any Wonder?
(2020)
Alternative cover
Digital release cover
Singles from No Plan
  1. "No Plan"
    Released: 7 January 2017

Critical reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [2]
Exclaim!7/10[4]
The Independent     [5]

The EP received positive reviews from music critics. Exclaim! critic Calum Slingerland wrote: "One would hope the plan for Bowie going forward would be for him to avoid falling into the category of "rock icon with innumerable posthumous releases," but thankfully for listeners, the music on No Plan holds up."[4] The Independent's Andy Gill stated: "Blackstar’s moods and musical modes are continued through these tracks, in which Thomas Jerome Newton's decline eerily reflects Bowie's own."[5]

AllMusic senior critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine thought that the tracks on the EP "provide a bittersweet coda to Bowie's 21st century comeback", even if "these songs don't feel like a surprise".[2] Alfred Soto of Spin stated: "Presenting listeners with two discrete but related musical adventures like and No Plan, the survivors grasped that even the oblique tastes better with a dash of the obvious."[6]

Track listing

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All tracks are written by David Bowie

No Plan(CD, vinyl, digital download)
No.TitleLength
1."Lazarus"6:24
2."No Plan"3:40
3."Killing a Little Time"3:46
4."When I Met You"4:09
Total length:17:59

Personnel

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Personnel adapted from No Plan liner notes.

Musicians

Production

Design

  • Barnbrook – cover design
  • DSS – front cover star image
  • Jimmy King – Bowie image

Charts

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Chart (2017) Peak
position
Mexico Ingles Airplay (Billboard)[7] 24
Portuguese Albums (AFP)[8] 28
UK Official Charts Singles 92[9]
US Billboard 200[10] 131
US Top Alternative Albums (Billboard)[11] 7
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[12] 10
Year-end Chart (2017) Position
UK Official Chart Singles (Vinyl) 1[13]

References

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  1. ^ a b Trendell, Andrew (8 January 2017). "New David Bowie 'No Plan' EP and video released to mark his birthday". NME. Retrieved 5 March 2017.
  2. ^ a b c Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "No Plan – David Bowie : Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 5 March 2017.
  3. ^ "Billboard 200 Chart Moves: 'No Plan' Marks David Bowie's 45th Charting Album". Billboard. Retrieved 21 February 2018.
  4. ^ a b Slingerland, Calum (8 January 2017). "David Bowie – No Plan". Exclaim!. Retrieved 5 March 2017.
  5. ^ a b Gill, Andy (11 January 2017). "Album reviews: The Flaming Lips – Oczy Mlody, David Bowie – No Plan, Sohn – Rennen, and more". The Independent. Archived from the original on 21 June 2022. Retrieved 5 March 2017.
  6. ^ Soto, Alfred (23 February 2017). "Review: David Bowie's No Plan Is a Fond, Final Glimpse at a Departed Master". Spin. Retrieved 5 March 2017.
  7. ^ "David Bowie – Chart history". Billboard Mexico Ingles Airplay for David Bowie. Retrieved 25 February 2017.
  8. ^ "Portuguesecharts.com – David Bowie – No Plan". Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 May 2020.
  9. ^ "no plan | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Official Charts. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
  10. ^ "David Bowie Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
  11. ^ "David Bowie Chart History (Top Alternative Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 24 October 2020.
  12. ^ "David Bowie Chart History (Top Rock Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  13. ^ "The UK's biggest selling vinyl albums and singles of 2017". Retrieved 22 January 2018.
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