Today (January 8) is David Bowie’s birthday. If the genre-bending, gender-bending artist were alive today he would be 77 years old. Sadly, though, the artist, who melded nuance with pop culture, passed away on January 10. 2016, at just 69 years old.
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But of course, Bowie’s impact from his astonishing career remains today, both in global culture at large and in the music he left behind. Known for songs like “Heroes,” “Starman” and “Let’s Dance,” Bowie was also someone who had his ear to the proverbial street, listening out for other musicians he could take under his wing. Case in point: these three artists here below.
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Here below, we wanted to dive into three songs that Bowie helped write for other artists. Rock songs that defy convention and showcase just why the artist remains so important today. Let’s dive in.
1. “Tonight,” Iggy Pop
Written by David Bowie, Iggy Pop
This song, written by Bowie and Iggy Pop, was released first on Pop’s 1977 LP, Lust for Life, a record that includes hits like the title track and the iconic song, “The Passenger.” (Bowie helped write a number of tracks for Pop’s 1977 album.) But Bowie also recorded his own version of “Tonight” some seven years later for his 1984 record of the same name.
The Iggy Pop version of the song combines big percussion with Pop’s enchanting, droning voice. His work often sounds like a combination between rock, disco and spoken word. As for Bowie’s version of “Tonight,” he recorded with Tina Turner singing backup in the mid-80s, though his offers a mellower, even reggae vibe. On his rendition of the track, Pop sings with reassurance,
I saw my baby
She was turning blue
I knew that soon, her
Young life was through
And so I got down on my knees
Down by her bed
And these are the words
To her I said
Everything will be alright tonight
Everything will be alright tonight
2. “Music Is Lethal,” Mick Ronson
Written by David Bowie, Lucio Battisti
The fourth song on Mick Ronson’s 1974 album, Slaughter on 10th Avenue, opens with shimmering acoustic guitar and Ronson’s booming voice. Ronson, of course, was famously Bowie’s guitar player for his space-aged group, the Spiders from Mars, created for the 1972 LP, The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. While the music for this track was originally written by Italian artist Lucio Battisti (and later re-recorded by Ronson), Bowie wrote the lyrics for “Music Is Lethal.” On it, Ronson sings,
My friend myself
Boredoms hero
Prince of the alleys
Stumble falling to a winsome table in search of wine
Mulatto hookers,
Cocaine bookers, Troubled husbands
Stolen freedoms, that only evening unfolds to shine
Through the twisting inn of screaming pleasure
Two wet lips of infant leisure smiled
Could I grasp at the stars?
As they play your night blue hair
3. “People From Bad Homes,” Ava Cherry and the Astronettes
Written by David Bowie
Artist and model Ava Cherry worked with Bowie in the mid-1970s. The two also had a romantic and professional relationship, though both were marred with ups and downs. At first, Cherry, a waitress with she met Bowie, adored the artist and his space-aged album, The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. Later, they began to work together. Bowie guided Cherry into her the backing group The Astronettes and he recorded a record with them. But it wasn’t released for some two decades. That album, People From Bad Homes, was unleashed in 1995 but it was done so without Cherry or Bowie’s approval. On the LP’s title track, Cherry sings,
People from bad homes
Don’t have the time
To look things over
Make up their minds
People from good homes
Don’t have the minds
To care for bad homes
Don’t have the time
Home is the main line
Can’t take the plain
Those people have notions
Play out this game
Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
