David Bowie - Life on Mars

Xah Lee, 2005-06, 2010-07-03

David Bowie (b1947) is a true artist in all the glory of that word.

“Life on Mars?” (1971), this is a great song. The lyrics is just fantastic. If i were to list top 20 greatest songs (not counting classical music), this would be in it.

Both lyrics and music are by David Bowie.

Lennon ⇒ what does Lennon refers to? Some web discussion suggest it may be John Lennon and or Vladimir Lenin. The suggestion for Lenin cites the line “the workers have struck for fame” inferring the proletariat in communism. While, Lennon connotes captilism, with his big records success. Some suggest it's a pun on both, since Lennon is a major peace activist in the Vietnam war era, running afoul with the US Government and FBI at the time, and have sympathies for communism. (For more about Lennon, see: I Met the Walrus.)

Ibiza ⇒ a island east of Spain. Ibiza

Norfolk Broads ⇒ A network of mostly navigable rivers and lakes in the English counties of Norfolk and Suffolk. (above London) Norfolk Broads

Rule Britannia ⇒ a British patriotic song. Rule, Britannia!

It's a god-awful small affair To the girl with the mousy hair But her mummy is yelling “No” And her daddy has told her to go But her friend is nowhere to be seen Now she walks through her sunken dream To the seat with the clearest view And she's hooked to the silver screen But the film is a saddening bore For she's lived it ten times or more She could spit in the eyes of fools As they ask her to focus on Sailors fighting in the dance hall Oh man! Look at those cavemen go It's the freakiest show Take a look at the Lawman Beating up the wrong guy Oh man! Wonder if he'll ever know He's in the best selling show Is there life on Mars? It's on Amerika's tortured brow That Mickey Mouse has grown up a cow Now the workers have struck for fame 'Cause Lennon's on sale again See the mice in their million hordes From Ibiza to the Norfolk Broads Rule Britannia is out of bounds To my mother, my dog, and clowns But the film is a saddening bore 'Cause I wrote it ten times or more It's about to be writ again As I ask you to focus on

“David Bowie - Life On Mars”

This vid is directed by Mick Rock, 1973.

Note the distinguished mark of David's pupils. Commonly thought to be a genetic condition known as Heterochromia, e.g. each iris has different color. That's not true. According to Wikipedia, the appearance of David's eye is a result of injury of the left eye. At age 15, he got punched by his friend George Underwood over a girl. Operation prevented it from being blind but left with imperfect vision and permanently dilated pupil.

Wikipedia has quite some bits about the meaning and background of the song. See: Life on Mars?.