Conceived following Bowie's marriage to the model Iman and the disbandment of his rock band Tin Machine, it was recorded throughout 1992 between studios in Montreux, Los Angeles and New York City.

The album features several guest appearances, including previous collaborators Mike Garson and Mick Ronson, and new arrivals Lester Bowie and Chico O'Farrill.

Inspired to write the title track after witnessing the 1992 Los Angeles riots, Black Tie White Noise is primarily separated into themes of racial harmony and David's marriage to Iman.

It features prevalent saxophone work from Bowie and a wide variety of musical styles, from art rock, electronic and soul, to jazz, pop and hip-hop influences.

Released amidst the rise of Britpop in the UK, Black Tie White Noise initially received favourable reviews from music critics, who praised its experimentation but criticised its lack of cohesion.

David Bowie began recording material with his former Let's Dance (1983) collaborator Nile Rodgers months after disbanding the rock band Tin Machine.

Released as a single in August 1992, it appeared on the film's accompanying soundtrack album[3] and featured a sound that foreshadowed Bowie's direction for his next solo record,[1][4] his first since Never Let Me Down six years earlier.

Savage offered him the "artistic freedom" that he was craving: "[Studio head] David Nemran ... encouraged me to do exactly what I wanted to do, without any kind of indication that it would be manipulated, or that my ideas would be changed, or that other things would be required of me.

[1] The song was first attempted by Tin Machine during the sessions for their 1989 debut album, but Bowie was dissatisfied with the result so it was shelved, eventually rerecording it for Black Tie.

[1] Black Tie White Noise features a wide variety of musical influences and styles,[15] including soul, hip-hop, disco, pop, avant-garde jazz and gospel.

Perone finds the "Black Tie" signifies "a wedding" while "White Noise" epitomises the "instrumentally focused, slightly experimental jazz pieces".

It's a piece that, in Pegg's words, "fuses dance beats, distant backing vocals and Eastern-influenced saxophone cadences" that set the stage for the remaining tracklist.

[12][22] To evoke the racial theme, the lyrics reference "We Are the World" by the supergroup USA for Africa (1985) and Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" (1971);[22] Pegg says that the "black and white voices" of Al B Sure!

[22] "Jump They Say" discusses themes of mental illness,[22] and is loosely based on David's step-brother Terry Burns, who died by suicide in 1985 after being hospitalised for schizophrenia.

[28] Buckley considers "Pallas Athena", a mostly instrumental track reminiscent of the Berlin era,[22] Bowie's most experimental work in a decade,[13] combining "contemporary hip-hop dance rhythms" with the ambience of Low (1977).

[1][22] The latter was originally recorded in Arabic by the Mauritanian singer Tahra Mint Hembara (a friend of Iman's) in 1988 as "T Beyby"; her producer Martine Valmont wrote English lyrics and retitled it "Don't Let Me Down & Down".

[1][22][18] The gospel cover of "I Know It's Gonna Happen Someday" is reminiscent of Bowie's early 1970s ballads, including a direct reference to the climax of "Rock 'n' Roll Suicide" (1972).

[i][9][36] The LP release removed "The Wedding" and "Looking for Lester",[9] while the CD edition featured a remix of "Jump They Say" and the outtake "Lucy Can't Dance".

[8] David Sinclair of Q magazine argued Black Tie "picks up where Scary Monsters left off" and "if any collection of songs could reinstate [Bowie's] godhead status, then this is it.

"[53] He primarily criticised the lack of "obvious" hit singles, but felt the record was full of "imagination and charm" and deemed Bowie's saxophone performances some of his best to date.

[53] A reviewer for Billboard was also positive, describing it as a whole "trail-blazing and brilliant", further noting "inspired covers" and echoes of Let's Dance, Scary Monsters and Ziggy Stardust (1972).

[54] Rolling Stone's Paul Evans hailed it "one of the smartest records of a very smart career", finding references to the artist's previous works as well as new innovations that "point the way to future risk, to brave changes yet to come".

A reviewer for Vox magazine found the radio-friendly singles calculated and Bowie's saxophone playing inferior to his musical contributions on "Heroes" (1977), but felt its "bent, ethnic-sounding notes create the album's most atmospheric moments".

[55] Entertainment Weekly's Ken Tucker described Black Tie as a "stultifying yet annoying" record save for "Miracle Goodnight" and "I Know It's Gonna Happen Someday".

[44] The veteran critic Robert Christgau said in The Village Voice that the music was Bowie's "most arresting" because of its dance beats and electronic textures, but reacted negatively towards the lyrics.

[31][13] In a positive review, BBC Music's David Quantick recognised Black Tie White Noise as a continuation of Scary Monsters, wherein Bowie used aspects of his entire career in new, innovative ways.

[24] In a 2016 retrospective ranking all of Bowie's 26 studio albums from worst to best, Bryan Wawzenek of Ultimate Classic Rock placed Black Tie White Noise at number 25 (above Never Let Me Down).

[68] In a 2018 list which included Bowie's two albums with Tin Machine, the writers of Consequence of Sound ranked Black Tie White Noise number 18 out of 28.

David Sackllah wrote that the record holds up "fairly well" and, as the beginning of an experimental era, Black Tie "stood as one of his better works from the decade".

The CD-ROM, which Bowie intended to be "fully interactive", gave users a chance to remake the "Jump They Say" video using pre-existing footage and view excerpts from the Black Tie White Noise film.