David Bowie’s solo works are definitely his most commendable, but his collaborative works are nothing to sneeze at. And he collaborated with quite a few big and small names during his heyday. Let’s take a look at a few (arguably) underrated David Bowie collaborations through the years to celebrate what would have been his 78th birthday today, January 8.
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1. Pet Shop Boys
Synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys were a surprisingly good match for a David Bowie song. They remixed Bowie’s famed collab with Brian Eno, “Hallo Spaceboy” from the 1995 album Outside.
The remix came a year later and features Neil Tennant on backing vocals, as well as some spliced cuts from Bowie’s “Space Oddity”. Pet Shop Boys and Bowie famously performed the song live at the 1996 Brit Awards.
2. Iggy Pop
David Bowie collaborations often featured Iggy Pop, which makes sense considering they spent a lot of time together during the Berlin era. Pop’s legendary and still-jamworthy song “Lust For Life” from 1977 was primarily his own songwriting effort, though Bowie has a co-writing credit for the song. If you’re a fan of the 1996 film Trainspotting, you’ll probably recognize this garage rock jam immediately.
3. Giorgio Moroder
Unless you’re a diehard and well-read David Bowie fan, you might not know about this particular collaboration. Originally, “Cat People (Putting Out Fire)” was written and recorded by David Bowie for the 1982 erotic horror movie of the same name.
The director of the film, Paul Schrader, reached out to Bowie about collaborating on the film’s soundtrack. Bowie wrote the song’s lyrics, and producer Giorgio Moroder (of disco fame) composed the actual music. However, Bowie didn’t like the original song and re-recorded it for inclusion on Let’s Dance in 1983.
4. John Lennon
This famous example of David Bowie collaborations involved none other than famed former Beatle, John Lennon. “Fame” was inspired by a jam session Bowie had with Lennon, which was originally based on a cover of “Footstompin’” by The Flares.
The collab paid off: “Fame” became Bowie’s very first no. 1 song in the United States. Biographer Chris O’Leary claimed that Lennon provided the backing vocals as well as the acoustic guitar track.
Photo by Tim Boxer/Archive Photos/Getty Images
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