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"Space Oddity"
David Bowie
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The 鈥渕ust-see movie鈥 of 1968 was Stanley Kubrick鈥檚 2001: A Space Odyssey - 鈥淚 see it every week,鈥 John Lennon confirmed.
Another youngster on whom the film - described as 鈥渢he ultimate trip鈥 - made a strong impression, was 21 year-old David Bowie from Beckenham.
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"I went stoned out of my mind to see the movie"
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By the time Bowie came to record this song about the disillusioned astronaut Major Tom in 1969, he'd been making records for five years. Working under an ever-lengthening list of aliases, he had already released nine singles and one LP, but it was "Space Oddity" that would give him his first hit.
At the time, Rolf Harris was advertising the stylophone - and, impressed by the squeaky electronic noise this hand-held machine produced, Marc Bolan bought one as a present for his mate David. And it was with the help of this marvel of 20th Century technology that Bowie fashioned "Space Oddity" - complete with a chorus not a million miles away from the Bee Gees' "New York Mining Disaster, 1941".
But Bowie鈥檚 producer Tony Visconti was not impressed.
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"I hated that song, I've grown to like it a bit since then"
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Dismissing "Space Oddity" as 'a cheap shot, a gimmick to cash-in on the moon landing', he passed responsibility for the knob-twiddling over to the late Gus Dudgeon, who later went on to great success with Elton John - for whom he produced "Rocket Man"!
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"This is the most innovative thing I'd heard in years" |
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Like "Bohemian Rhapsody", this unusual title encapsulates a song in which everything is a hook the confident seven note sweep of "This is Ground Control..." the vocal decorations on "today" and "she knows" the accoustic guitar break the movie-style dialogue the auto-voice repeating "Can you hear me Major Tom?" and morphing into the real clincher - a weightless E note over Fmajor7 for "Here... am I floating in my tin can". Dominic King |
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Among the session musicians on "Space Oddity" was Rick Wakeman, who received the grand total of nine pounds for his contribution on the mellotron.
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"And you know that is something very, very special"
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Songwriting tips Bowie had to change producers for this track.
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Test your knowledgeHave a go听at听the "Space Oddity" quiz! |
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