Damn, it's too early for this song, and I wasn't ready...this one's personal, for me. JP, you pictured a boy and girl staying up too late, looking out the window..that was ME . My father died when I was 4 years old, and my sister and I were told that when we die, "we become a star in the sky", and for a long time, that's how I thought of my dad. So when I first heard this song some years later, in middle school, well...yeah. "A Starman, waiting in the sky, he'd like to come and meet us, but he thinks he'd blow our minds"...yeah. It hit hard. I only have to hear a few seconds to be feeling some kind of way about it...
Wow Joe...thank you so much for sharing that. Such a wonderful connection we can make with music, especially in our youth. I'm sorry to read of your father, but I appreciate you opening up, and moving me today.
@@JustJP Thanks, JP (and everyone who commented). Appreciate the comments. This really isn't about me, though, but a tribute to THAT song, and music in general. The fact that you had THAT specific visual just hit, and is just a testament to Bowie's "universal" touch , so to speak. Music can be a great healing factor.
This was huge in 1972, in a year where there were other huge songs. The video of Bowie in a multi-coloured jump suit, draping his arm around Mick Ronson caused a rumpus among the older generation. We kids loved it. Over the rainbow, there is a connection. Musically, but I notice strong similarities to the Byrds Mr Spaceman, too. Especially in the lyrical story. One of Bowie best in my opinion.
Yeah - THAT was the subject of conversation the next day ... men just never did that in the open back then. Didn't have to be gay to think that was cool.
People truly believed bowie is an alien 👽sending to earth after the top of the pops aired. After decades that he always steps ahead, he truly is an alien.
You MUST all watch the Top Of The Pops performance of this - it massively influenced so many of us. I was 11 years old and it was like we were actually watching a space alien… so many people say the same. Bowie and Ronson duetting on the vocal. Iconic.
"Lady Grinning Soul" is the last track on his Aladdin Sane album... I PROMISE you...is totally worth your time for a reaction, and I would love to see you do it
This album keeps getting better and better. It's best as a whole, start to finish. Before your album review I hope you listen to it in its entirety a few times. That's the true brilliance.
A great song. I discovered Bowie in 1972 with this album. Still one of my favorite albums and a great song . Ronson was a genius!!! Justin 49 years later and I'm still trying to "Sparkle" LOL.
His appearance on Top of the pops singing this with Mick Ronson in 1972 is one of those seminal moments ie Uk culture BEFORE this appearance and Uk culture AFTER this performance, THATS how important that night was 👀 👍🏴
1972 was a bloody fabulous year, all the great music and gigs, was the year I left school at 15 to chase Bolan all over the place lol lived in London saw everybody, am one lucky glam girl ⭐
Great pop song which helped cement his popularity in the UK following his appearance on BBC’s Top of the Pops with this song. Catch it on RUclips and see it from the eyes of kids who had never seen anything like that before. Magical!
This progression of the first verse, to the chorus, to the guitar solo, back to verse two, is one of my favorite in all of pop music. It just keeps going, so fluid. I love it.
A night with no sleep after an almost 14 hour work day at the hospital and back shortly..just finished watching my friends Mom’s UK memorial service ...was just scrolling through and you popped up.. this was such a triumphant moment for people that walked the Earth feeling that they needed to hide who they were.. if you watch the video from Top of the Pops, .. Mick and David showed the World 🌎 you could be cool and still put your arms around someone of the same sex.. so ahead of the times knowing what was coming around the bend.. so many people don’t seem to get it.. why is wanting to protect each other and our beautiful planet a problem for anyone! Where are you that it’s raining in NYC the sun is shining with a beautiful breeze.. so glad you loved the song and take the time to get it!It can only make things better for our children and the future of our planet 🌎 keep up the awesome reaction my friend!❣️👌❣️
Bowie's performance of this song on Top Of The Pops was such an iconic moment, the androgynous alien in a coloured jumpsuit with one arm draped around Mick Ronson's shoulder. Daring, influential and life changing for many at the time who felt excluded. And such a feelgood track as you rightly say, though now I'll never be able to hear without thinking of the Wizard of Oz! Talking of which did you know that if you put on Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd at the very start of the Wizard of Oz, the music almost exactly matches the action! It's spooky...
Beautiful day to be ALIVE!!! 'Let all the children boogie!' The old Portuguese fisherman in me. Says take me to the deep,blue sea.But the 'Space' around the stars, is something that I'd like to know,a billion miles of darkness,would not leave me feeling low! (Apologies to Marillion.) Peace & parsecs,it's good to be home again.
Were those South Side of the Sky la-la-las at the start of the video? Even though I'm a total prog head, I really like a lot of David Bowie's songs. 1972, so much good music on the FM radio. Edit to add: I forgot to mention I just listened to South Side of the Sky live at Montreaux version about 25 minutes before listening to this (Me and Sarah Jane reaction was the video in between).
This boy was me too at age 12 and it was during the moon landings. I would lay in bed thinking of the astronauts and I even would look out the window to the sky fully knowing I could never spot them. Totally appropriate song for the times. When I heard it then it totally resonated with me. Magic!
THANKS JUSTIN. THIS SONG OF BOWIE IS A HYMN.👏🇺🇸🇬🇷👍🥂.I WANT MORE FROM DAVID BOWIE.LIKE....LADIES GRINNING SOUL,WITH MIKE GARSON IN PIANO....AND MORE OTHERS....💙💙
Great posting JP...it gets better and better, and with Bowie, if you like, it can stranger and stranger. He's always provocative and it's always a wondrous time spent. (To answer your question, sometimes if I have trouble falling asleep I think about leaving earth, passing the moon, then Mars, Jupiter etc, and zoom into deep space at warp speed. I instantly fall asleep.Maybe it's a Starman thing, but it works for me.) When this was first performed on British TV the beautiful young Bowie daringly hugged (hugged, I say!) the beautiful young Ronson and sang with him, something now cliché, but shocking at the time. Had never been done before. Certainly not 'on the telly.' The nation went crazy. Robert Smith, Morrissey, the Gallagher brothers and 100s of others claim this changed the course of their own music journey and was hugely inspirational to their own development. Ziggy had landed. "Let all the children boogie."!!!
I love how, in your opening, you are humming/singing the "La la la la la" part from "South Side of the Sky! Love this song (Starman), and the entire iconic album!
Great Bowie I instantly liked it after about 20 secs on my first listen on the radio in the old days. Bowie was great and this was his Ziggy Stardust era, so early Bowie. Remember in 1972 we were still going to moon. I am sure this was a major influence on Bowie. Great song from a great musical era. Thanks for the great reaction.
Rainy days are good days for books and music. I like exploring large bookstores, libraries, art galleries, museums and restaurant menus. Yesterday was sunny but I still used the opportunity to hit the book/music store to order a few things. It was nice. I first heard this close to 50 years ago. My cousin, who was a music man, hand lent me a box of lps that he had already recorded to play (at weddings and wedding socials). This was one of the albums and I was a bit mixed about it. Fast forward to now and I like it a lot more. I get that "over the rainbow" vibe. Great review as usual.
Like so many of the other commenters the song has an emotional residence for me taking me back to a time of innocence in my life when I discovered Bowie. Great review also I noticed in your intro today you were singing the Harmony Part in south side of the sky! I sing that to myself as well LOL. Check out their 2003 live version of this song the harmonies are impeccable!
Wow I’m a massive Bowie fan have been since a child ( I’m 38 now)When he died I was terrible for 2 weeks I know the concept of the song and album but I never knew the Somewhere over the rainbow thing! That’s crazy ✌️
The Ziggy Stardust character, and Starman in particular, was the reason why Bowie was cast in the role of the protagonist in 1976 sci-fi cult movie The Man Who Fell to Earth, based on Walter Travis' 1963 novel.
This was the first David Bowie song I heard, and I liked it immediately. I actually misheard and thought it was David Cassidy, who we really were not supposed to like, but I was young and confused. It's a perfect pop song, memorably melodic with very relatable lyrics.
Not supposed to like… very true but, we did. Very nice voice and that hair. Cherish is something I play once in a while and I mimic his voice (badly) and wonder what he sound like singing the Turtles song, Happy Together a little slower and sexier. I think it would work.
Space vs. the Sea: Space, for me. But the ocean's got some cool stuff, too. But since you asked, @justjp and because you just played "Starman", this would be a good segue to some underwater tunes, like Donovan's "Atlantis" or Jimi Hendrix's "In 1983 (A Merman I Should Be".
The "blow our minds" line reminds me of a book by Arthur C. Clark, Childhood's End. I won't spoil it for anyone, but those who have read it and remember will know how fitting it is. I wonder if Bowie had read it. But like all good lyrics, it has multiple meanings--a weird alien, alternate sexuality, but, most of all, mind blowing music. Some of that is explored in the movie Bowie was in a little later, The Man Who Fell to Earth.
Such a beautiful song...it has a sweeping, almost grand melody. As stated below, see the movie scene where Matt Damon is floating in his spaceship to this song in the movie The Martian. Perfect use of this song.
I was a very young teenager when I heard this song play on the radio; not even in stereo back then. I was very interested in space, astronomy etc. Of course I liked it immediately 👽
I spent 6 years in the US Navy, including 3 years aboard the USS Sea Devil SSN664, a fast attack nuke submarine out of Charleston, SC. (In the 1980's) I would definitely rather explore our oceans than outer space!
Timeless music. This was an instant like when I heard the song for the first time. Standout as song also apart from the album. Loved your reaction and insights.
@@jeffschielka7845 it's better than Heaven and Earth, but it would've sounded better if Jon Anderson was singing. So many more words available, so little to say 😎
The story I heard about this was that when Bowie presented this album to the record company, they were not happy with it because they didn't think there was a song on it that could be promoted as a single. So Bowie walked away & cobbled together this tune very quickly & he said he used every cliche phrase / slang / Americanism he could think of for the lyrics. So we end up with this little ditty that helped to rocket his Ziggy persona to superstardom when he performed it on TV. No end to his genius, just sayin'!
Mellotron: last September I bought one for my 68th birthday. They are basically the first sampler. Any sound source could be recorded on tapes that move when the keys are depressed across a playback head for a maximum of 8 seconds. Then automatically return to their original position. Mellotrons can be difficult to identify or very easily identified depending on what sound source is being used at that point. Mine has Strings Choirs Organs Accordions Flutes Saxophone Clarinet Bassoon Tubular Bells Percussion Harpsichord Piano Cello Violin Viola Trumpet Trombone Tuba Various sound effects And there’s 100 sounds on one interchangeable sound card. There are 3 more sound cards for the unit with all kinds of instruments and familiar sound effects many have heard. I plan to buy the other 3 cards in September for my 69th birthday.
Creeping up on that 18K subscriber goal Justin! You deserve all the good things coming your way because of your deep and sensitive disections of the music we (your subscribers) love. Also we see your hard work and dedication to the channel, thank you.
You bring interesting gems. Didn't know about "Over the Rainbow." And I'd listen to a channel that just repeated you imitating Bowie singing "let the children boogie." 😊
If you want to find unknown fishes I would suggest a high altitude tropical creek in some really off area (preferable insecure due to 100 years of wars) The ocean is after all quite uniform.
Hi JP. Dave from sunny London: perfect Weather To Fly (but I'll take the oceans over the stars). Amazingly, after his number one UK single Space Oddity in 1969, Bowie was branded a one hit wonder. This song catapulted him back into the singles charts, and suddenly there was a mad rush to gobble up all his material in the meantime. It's always been a favourite of mine, but I hadn't noticed the similarity with Somewhere over the Rainbow. His TV performance of Starman, getting up close and personal with Mick, raised a few eyebrows at the time but is now seen as a seminal moment.
You probably know this Gaia - but for those who don't - this didn't hit number 1 when it was first released in 1969 - but it was pretty high in the UK charts - top ten I think. This single was re-released - first in the US where it hit - just looked it up - number 15 in 1973 - it did not chart in the US in 1969 - re-released in the UK in 1975 and then hit number 1 in the UK in '75.
@@vdggmouse9512 Thanks. Yes, I've now checked it and found that it only got to number 5 in the UK in 1969. The one hit wonder point still applies though. Number 1 at the time? Sugar Sugar by The Archies. Aargh!
You should give a try to Suede's "the Power", darker than "Starman" but quite similar in construction, definitely very Bowie inspired and... Deep as the Ocean 😁
They were not going to release the album as the record company said that there was not a single on it... I believe that this was at the end of the week, so Bowie left and a couple of days later came back to the studio with this song and the following week the album was released... Have you done any of the space oddity album / man who sold the world?
*There's a star-man [over the rainbow] he'd like to come and [way up high] blow our minds, there's a star-man [over the rainbow] he's told us not to [skies are blue] it's all worthwhile, he told me let the children use it [dreams that you dare to dream really] children boogie*
of course Moonage Daydream is the best song on the album but Justin this album just keeps getting better and better. Lady Stardust, Hang onto yourself, Ziggy stardust, Suffragete City and Rock N Roll Suicide. You ll love it and Aladdin Sane should be the next Bowie album you do.
Sounds like he was listening to Radio Luxomberg (forgive spelling) which used to fade in and out in a phasey way, once or 40 seconds or so, all evening.
Kinda quirky. I’d heard live versions from various years and grew to like it more as I ingested the song, gulp. Get in ma belly! Good to hear the original but, lil bit out of date to me. Still glad to have heard it. Dream I had years ago, one of my favorites. I was with my Dad on a space shuttle in orbit, seated behind the pilot, who had a old fashioned grid screen to watch. Suddenly, I saw on his grid a downward funnel form and a worried pilot talking nervously to the others. Then, my point of view changed and I was falling, just me, down to earth (Man Who Fell To Earth, I get it). I hit the ocean but didn’t wake up; I just slowly sank to the bottom of the ocean. I came to a stop at the sea floor and was at peace with various sea life. Then, I woke up. Hard to pick but, I guess ocean exploration. Thx for your patience. Played Bowie’s Heathen, Beck’s Sea Change, etc. yesterday at work, was raining… great gray rainy day albums. Peace and dreaming Music
Now David has become that Starman, waiting in the sky. And if you listen to Radiohead, (and you definitely should), you know that in the deepest ocean, at the bottom of the sea, are weird fishes.
STARMAAANNN OVER THE RAINBOWWW WAY UP HIIIGGHHH The importance here is that people know Ziggy is there, though they can't quite figure out where he is or what he's doing. He's gotta establish himself as an artist so people can believe in him. This song was inspired by T. Rex and Motown, and it wasn't supposed to even exist. David had two songs called Velvet Goldmine and Sweet Head written for the album, but RCA made him cut them because they were too sexual. They got reduced to being bonus tracks on later issues a few decades later. Starman was written because there was a need for a single, or Bowie was told he wouldn't be able to release the record. He threw it together in the blink of an eye and recorded everything in one take. Only Bowie, only the great single of the album. One of a kind. Playing it with The Spiders on Top of the Pops in 1972 is what established him as a starman in the UK. The name comes from an earlier persona he had with the Hype during 1970 and 1971 called Rainbowman.
Damn, it's too early for this song, and I wasn't ready...this one's personal, for me. JP, you pictured a boy and girl staying up too late, looking out the window..that was ME . My father died when I was 4 years old, and my sister and I were told that when we die, "we become a star in the sky", and for a long time, that's how I thought of my dad. So when I first heard this song some years later, in middle school, well...yeah. "A Starman, waiting in the sky, he'd like to come and meet us, but he thinks he'd blow our minds"...yeah. It hit hard. I only have to hear a few seconds to be feeling some kind of way about it...
Very moving, sir.
Sorry for your loss.
I feel what your saying sir.
Wow Joe...thank you so much for sharing that. Such a wonderful connection we can make with music, especially in our youth. I'm sorry to read of your father, but I appreciate you opening up, and moving me today.
@@JustJP Thanks, JP (and everyone who commented). Appreciate the comments. This really isn't about me, though, but a tribute to THAT song, and music in general. The fact that you had THAT specific visual just hit, and is just a testament to Bowie's "universal" touch , so to speak. Music can be a great healing factor.
For me...David Bowie is the "Starman" waiting in the sky...🎶⭐🎶
This was huge in 1972, in a year where there were other huge songs. The video of Bowie in a multi-coloured jump suit, draping his arm around Mick Ronson caused a rumpus among the older generation. We kids loved it.
Over the rainbow, there is a connection. Musically, but I notice strong similarities to the Byrds Mr Spaceman, too. Especially in the lyrical story.
One of Bowie best in my opinion.
Yeah - THAT was the subject of conversation the next day ... men just never did that in the open back then. Didn't have to be gay to think that was cool.
"let all the children boogie" love it
This, Hunky Dory and Aladdin Sane my favourite three Bowie albums.
People truly believed bowie is an alien 👽sending to earth after the top of the pops aired.
After decades that he always steps ahead, he truly is an alien.
You MUST all watch the Top Of The Pops performance of this - it massively influenced so many of us. I was 11 years old and it was like we were actually watching a space alien… so many people say the same. Bowie and Ronson duetting on the vocal. Iconic.
Me: I used to think he was saying there's a snowman waiting in the sky.
Hubby: Now that would just be silly.
Lol!!
Now I hearing the "Walking in the Air' theme from THE SNOWMAN Christmas cartoon, with the David Bowie narration...
@@joemaurone7923 OMG 😹
@@joemaurone7923 I love that cartoon!
As you’ll hear in the title track “Ziggy played guitar!” 😁
"Lady Grinning Soul" is the last track on his Aladdin Sane album... I PROMISE you...is totally worth your time for a reaction, and I would love to see you do it
One of my all time faves of his! I am hoping Justin will be doing the whole album in due time. 😁
Maybe my favorite Bowie song. When he died I couldn't listen to this song for a long time without crying. He's a Starman now. 😓
Another amazing track from an album full of amazing tracks, there'll never be another like him. Good talk too.
This album keeps getting better and better. It's best as a whole, start to finish. Before your album review I hope you listen to it in its entirety a few times. That's the true brilliance.
Ty David! Definitely will do
"Star...Man...Over the Rainbow"...
Never made that connection before, but now, I can't unhear it. Thanks, JP!
#themoreyouknow
🌈
Bowie actually sang the Over the Rainbow lyrics once… at the Rainbow Theatre concert in ‘72.
With Bowie’s Vocals and Songwriting along with Ronson’s Guitar & String Arraignment makes Starman Absolutely Amazing
A great song. I discovered Bowie in 1972 with this album. Still one of my favorite albums and a great song . Ronson was a genius!!! Justin 49 years later and I'm still trying to "Sparkle" LOL.
His appearance on Top of the pops singing this with Mick Ronson in 1972 is one of those seminal moments ie Uk culture BEFORE this appearance and Uk culture AFTER this performance, THATS how important that night was 👀
👍🏴
1972 was a bloody fabulous year, all the great music and gigs, was the year I left school at 15 to chase Bolan all over the place lol lived in London saw everybody, am one lucky glam girl ⭐
Neither space nor ocean. Both terrify me. Love the reaction!
Great pop song which helped cement his popularity in the UK following his appearance on BBC’s Top of the Pops with this song. Catch it on RUclips and see it from the eyes of kids who had never seen anything like that before. Magical!
This progression of the first verse, to the chorus, to the guitar solo, back to verse two, is one of my favorite in all of pop music. It just keeps going, so fluid. I love it.
A night with no sleep after an almost 14 hour work day at the hospital and back shortly..just finished watching my friends Mom’s UK memorial service ...was just scrolling through and you popped up.. this was such a triumphant moment for people that walked the Earth feeling that they needed to hide who they were.. if you watch the video from Top of the Pops, .. Mick and David showed the World 🌎 you could be cool and still put your arms around someone of the same sex.. so ahead of the times knowing what was coming around the bend.. so many people don’t seem to get it.. why is wanting to protect each other and our beautiful planet a problem for anyone! Where are you that it’s raining in NYC the sun is shining with a beautiful breeze.. so glad you loved the song and take the time to get it!It can only make things better for our children and the future of our planet 🌎 keep up the awesome reaction my friend!❣️👌❣️
Hope that you get some well-deserved rest Bel! Thank you as always!
Bowie's performance of this song on Top Of The Pops was such an iconic moment, the androgynous alien in a coloured jumpsuit with one arm draped around Mick Ronson's shoulder. Daring, influential and life changing for many at the time who felt excluded. And such a feelgood track as you rightly say, though now I'll never be able to hear without thinking of the Wizard of Oz!
Talking of which did you know that if you put on Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd at the very start of the Wizard of Oz, the music almost exactly matches the action! It's spooky...
I remember that TOTP performance so well!
Beautiful day to be ALIVE!!! 'Let all the children boogie!' The old Portuguese fisherman in me. Says take me to the deep,blue sea.But the 'Space' around the stars, is something that I'd like to know,a billion miles of darkness,would not leave me feeling low! (Apologies to Marillion.) Peace & parsecs,it's good to be home again.
This song was featured in the Ridley Scott movie The Martian
One of my fave movies too. Terrific use of the song in it as well. Made me love it even more that they used a Bowie song in it. 👍👍👍
Were those South Side of the Sky la-la-las at the start of the video?
Even though I'm a total prog head, I really like a lot of David Bowie's songs. 1972, so much good music on the FM radio.
Edit to add: I forgot to mention I just listened to South Side of the Sky live at Montreaux version about 25 minutes before listening to this (Me and Sarah Jane reaction was the video in between).
This boy was me too at age 12 and it was during the moon landings. I would lay in bed thinking of the astronauts and I even would look out the window to the sky fully knowing I could never spot them. Totally appropriate song for the times. When I heard it then it totally resonated with me. Magic!
THANKS JUSTIN. THIS SONG OF BOWIE IS A HYMN.👏🇺🇸🇬🇷👍🥂.I WANT MORE FROM DAVID BOWIE.LIKE....LADIES GRINNING SOUL,WITH MIKE GARSON IN PIANO....AND MORE OTHERS....💙💙
Great posting JP...it gets better and better, and with Bowie, if you like, it can stranger and stranger. He's always provocative and it's always a wondrous time spent. (To answer your question, sometimes if I have trouble falling asleep I think about leaving earth, passing the moon, then Mars, Jupiter etc, and zoom into deep space at warp speed. I instantly fall asleep.Maybe it's a Starman thing, but it works for me.)
When this was first performed on British TV the beautiful young Bowie daringly hugged (hugged, I say!) the beautiful young Ronson and sang with him, something now cliché, but shocking at the time. Had never been done before. Certainly not 'on the telly.' The nation went crazy. Robert Smith, Morrissey, the Gallagher brothers and 100s of others claim this changed the course of their own music journey and was hugely inspirational to their own development. Ziggy had landed. "Let all the children boogie."!!!
One of the 10 albums I would want to be stuck on a deserted island with. Right up there with Genesis A Trick of the Tale and Straight Up by Badfinger.
"A Trick of the Tail" is a desert island disc for me as well.
I love how, in your opening, you are humming/singing the "La la la la la" part from "South Side of the Sky!
Love this song (Starman), and the entire iconic album!
You humming Chris Squire’s vocal from South Side of the Sky created a huge grin on my face 😁
Great Bowie I instantly liked it after about 20 secs on my first listen on the radio in the old days. Bowie was great and this was his Ziggy Stardust era, so early Bowie. Remember in 1972 we were still going to moon. I am sure this was a major influence on Bowie. Great song from a great musical era. Thanks for the great reaction.
Definitely a feel good cheery tune!👍🏻❤️☮️🎼🎤🎸
This song changed history. That moment on air blew generations minds.
the guitar melody after the first chorus is a banger. so many catchy little melodic moments in this tune.
You know, Bowie from 1968 to his sadly passing was filled with fantastic songs
The octave jump is like Over the Rainbow. Never noticed that before!
This album and Hunky Dory are my “comfort food” of music.
You know what JP I love your reactions! I always find myself coming back to them✌️
A brilliant song. I’ve loved Bowie for the last 50 years and I will have this playing at my funeral.
Rainy days are good days for books and music. I like exploring large bookstores, libraries, art galleries, museums and restaurant menus. Yesterday was sunny but I still used the opportunity to hit the book/music store to order a few things. It was nice.
I first heard this close to 50 years ago. My cousin, who was a music man, hand lent me a box of lps that he had already recorded to play (at weddings and wedding socials). This was one of the albums and I was a bit mixed about it. Fast forward to now and I like it a lot more. I get that "over the rainbow" vibe.
Great review as usual.
Like so many of the other commenters the song has an emotional residence for me taking me back to a time of innocence in my life when I discovered Bowie. Great review also I noticed in your intro today you were singing the Harmony Part in south side of the sky! I sing that to myself as well LOL. Check out their 2003 live version of this song the harmonies are impeccable!
Good news.. the starman is on Earth.. bad news.. "he" will blow your mind.
Wow I’m a massive Bowie fan have been since a child ( I’m 38 now)When he died I was terrible for 2 weeks I know the concept of the song and album but I never knew the Somewhere over the rainbow thing! That’s crazy ✌️
Of all the songs that inspired me as a closeted bisexual, this was chief among them. Let all the children boogie, indeed.
The Ziggy Stardust character, and Starman in particular, was the reason why Bowie was cast in the role of the protagonist in 1976 sci-fi cult movie The Man Who Fell to Earth, based on Walter Travis' 1963 novel.
Great reaction. Love learning new things. Over the rainbow similarities will forever be there for me now. All the best.
One of the best, for sure. It just keeps getting better.
This was the first David Bowie song I heard, and I liked it immediately. I actually misheard and thought it was David Cassidy, who we really were not supposed to like, but I was young and confused. It's a perfect pop song, memorably melodic with very relatable lyrics.
Not supposed to like… very true but, we did. Very nice voice and that hair. Cherish is something I play once in a while and I mimic his voice (badly) and wonder what he sound like singing the Turtles song, Happy Together a little slower and sexier. I think it would work.
Ha!☺️
Fantastic! Now the album is really building up momentum...
Space vs. the Sea: Space, for me. But the ocean's got some cool stuff, too.
But since you asked, @justjp and because you just played "Starman", this would be a good segue to some underwater tunes, like Donovan's "Atlantis" or Jimi Hendrix's "In 1983 (A Merman I Should Be".
Ocean for sure! And yes, let the children boooahhh gaaah!
I agree. the Ocean!!!! The earth is most fascinating still. and people don't have a clue!
The "blow our minds" line reminds me of a book by Arthur C. Clark, Childhood's End. I won't spoil it for anyone, but those who have read it and remember will know how fitting it is. I wonder if Bowie had read it. But like all good lyrics, it has multiple meanings--a weird alien, alternate sexuality, but, most of all, mind blowing music. Some of that is explored in the movie Bowie was in a little later, The Man Who Fell to Earth.
Quintessential Bowie.
your opener was nice. Chris Squire's vocal line there from SSoTS is a treat.
Such a beautiful song...it has a sweeping, almost grand melody. As stated below, see the movie scene where Matt Damon is floating in his spaceship to this song in the movie The Martian. Perfect use of this song.
I was a very young teenager when I heard this song play on the radio; not even in stereo back then. I was very interested in space, astronomy etc. Of course I liked it immediately 👽
I spent 6 years in the US Navy, including 3 years aboard the USS Sea Devil SSN664, a fast attack nuke submarine out of Charleston, SC. (In the 1980's) I would definitely rather explore our oceans than outer space!
This has got to be one of my favorite “back in the day” albums 🎶🎶🎶🎶
Another fine reaction to the greatest album of all time.
So happy someone is finally reacting to this album. :)
Timeless music. This was an instant like when I heard the song for the first time.
Standout as song also apart from the album. Loved your reaction and insights.
I love the strings!!
This is always a Go to song for me....
anxiously awaiting for your reaction to 'Brother of Mine' 🙂
😎
@@jeffschielka7845 😀
@@Lightmane Did you watch The Ice Bridge video? What did you think in 5000 words or less.
@@jeffschielka7845 it's better than Heaven and Earth, but it would've sounded better if Jon Anderson was singing.
So many more words available, so little to say 😎
@@Lightmane That's pretty much what I wrote in my comment. Definitely missing Anderson's vocals and Chris of course!
The story I heard about this was that when Bowie presented this album to the record company, they were not happy with it because they didn't think there was a song on it that could be promoted as a single. So Bowie walked away & cobbled together this tune very quickly & he said he used every cliche phrase / slang / Americanism he could think of for the lyrics. So we end up with this little ditty that helped to rocket his Ziggy persona to superstardom when he performed it on TV. No end to his genius, just sayin'!
Mellotron: last September I bought one for my 68th birthday. They are basically the first sampler. Any sound source could be recorded on tapes that move when the keys are depressed across a playback head for a maximum of 8 seconds. Then automatically return to their original position. Mellotrons can be difficult to identify or very easily identified depending on what sound source is being used at that point.
Mine has
Strings
Choirs
Organs
Accordions
Flutes
Saxophone
Clarinet
Bassoon
Tubular Bells
Percussion
Harpsichord
Piano
Cello
Violin
Viola
Trumpet
Trombone
Tuba
Various sound effects
And there’s 100 sounds on one interchangeable sound card. There are 3 more sound cards for the unit with all kinds of instruments and familiar sound effects many have heard.
I plan to buy the other 3 cards in September for my 69th birthday.
❤️❤️❤️ Starman..
Creeping up on that 18K subscriber goal Justin! You deserve all the good things coming your way because of your deep and sensitive disections of the music we (your subscribers) love. Also we see your hard work and dedication to the channel, thank you.
Thank you so much Robert!
Great song brother, as you said a happy song.
You bring interesting gems. Didn't know about "Over the Rainbow." And I'd listen to a channel that just repeated you imitating Bowie singing "let the children boogie." 😊
Hahaha! I love how he said that :D
Love this track, can you please listen to Golden years, my favourite. Fabulous reaction as ever 🙂
I believe he’s done it already with Station to Station.
One of the best written songs ever.
If you want to find unknown fishes I would suggest a high altitude tropical creek in some really off area (preferable insecure due to 100 years of wars) The ocean is after all quite uniform.
Great song.
Hi JP. Dave from sunny London: perfect Weather To Fly (but I'll take the oceans over the stars). Amazingly, after his number one UK single Space Oddity in 1969, Bowie was branded a one hit wonder. This song catapulted him back into the singles charts, and suddenly there was a mad rush to gobble up all his material in the meantime. It's always been a favourite of mine, but I hadn't noticed the similarity with Somewhere over the Rainbow. His TV performance of Starman, getting up close and personal with Mick, raised a few eyebrows at the time but is now seen as a seminal moment.
You probably know this Gaia - but for those who don't - this didn't hit number 1 when it was first released in 1969 - but it was pretty high in the UK charts - top ten I think. This single was re-released - first in the US where it hit - just looked it up - number 15 in 1973 - it did not chart in the US in 1969 - re-released in the UK in 1975 and then hit number 1 in the UK in '75.
@@vdggmouse9512 Thanks. Yes, I've now checked it and found that it only got to number 5 in the UK in 1969. The one hit wonder point still applies though. Number 1 at the time? Sugar Sugar by The Archies. Aargh!
I think the mellotron was playing the morse code like pre-chorus.
It's guitar with piano. :) There is mellotron providing the violin like sounds arranged and played by guitarist Mick Ronson.
Amazing Mr bowie
You should give a try to Suede's "the Power", darker than "Starman" but quite similar in construction, definitely very Bowie inspired and... Deep as the Ocean 😁
They were not going to release the album as the record company said that there was not a single on it... I believe that this was at the end of the week, so Bowie left and a couple of days later came back to the studio with this song and the following week the album was released... Have you done any of the space oddity album / man who sold the world?
Ah..the chameleon that was David Bowie..good one JP
Mick Ronson had a bigger input into 70s UK music than many people realise. Ziggy would not have been Ziggy without him.
Going to the stars ...I hope
*There's a star-man [over the rainbow] he'd like to come and [way up high] blow our minds, there's a star-man [over the rainbow] he's told us not to [skies are blue] it's all worthwhile, he told me let the children use it [dreams that you dare to dream really] children boogie*
I put _Ziggy Stardust_ on the night I heard that Bowie had died. It was at this point I started crying.
Have you done anything from Lou Reed’s Transformer? It has a similar sound due to the Bowie/Ronson production.
Somewhere over the rainbow.......no, let's not go there. This is a great song. Classic. Effortless.
Please work through Hunky Dory and Aladdin Sane after this, both absolute musts.
I love Bowie. So many sides to him.
of course Moonage Daydream is the best song on the album but Justin this album just keeps getting better and better. Lady Stardust, Hang onto yourself, Ziggy stardust, Suffragete City and Rock N Roll Suicide. You ll love it and Aladdin Sane should be the next Bowie album you do.
Come save us, Ziggy!
Sounds like he was listening to Radio Luxomberg (forgive spelling) which used to fade in and out in a phasey way, once or 40 seconds or so, all evening.
Kinda quirky. I’d heard live versions from various years and grew to like it more as I ingested the song, gulp.
Get in ma belly!
Good to hear the original but, lil bit out of date to me. Still glad to have heard it.
Dream I had years ago, one of my favorites.
I was with my Dad on a space shuttle in orbit, seated behind the pilot, who had a old fashioned grid screen to watch. Suddenly, I saw on his grid a downward funnel form and a worried pilot talking nervously to the others.
Then, my point of view changed and I was falling, just me, down to earth (Man Who Fell To Earth, I get it). I hit the ocean but didn’t wake up; I just slowly sank to the bottom of the ocean. I came to a stop at the sea floor and was at peace with various sea life. Then, I woke up.
Hard to pick but, I guess ocean exploration. Thx for your patience. Played Bowie’s Heathen, Beck’s Sea Change, etc. yesterday at work, was raining… great gray rainy day albums.
Peace and dreaming Music
Interesting dream David! I can see a painting of that
Life on Mars is another good one
Now David has become that Starman, waiting in the sky. And if you listen to Radiohead, (and you definitely should), you know that in the deepest ocean, at the bottom of the sea, are weird fishes.
Bowie & Ronson
Perfect Together
Great song. I would say ocean. Its scary and I would like to conquer it.
A new king in Atlantis!
STARMAAANNN
OVER THE RAINBOWWW
WAY UP HIIIGGHHH
The importance here is that people know Ziggy is there, though they can't quite figure out where he is or what he's doing. He's gotta establish himself as an artist so people can believe in him. This song was inspired by T. Rex and Motown, and it wasn't supposed to even exist. David had two songs called Velvet Goldmine and Sweet Head written for the album, but RCA made him cut them because they were too sexual. They got reduced to being bonus tracks on later issues a few decades later. Starman was written because there was a need for a single, or Bowie was told he wouldn't be able to release the record. He threw it together in the blink of an eye and recorded everything in one take. Only Bowie, only the great single of the album. One of a kind. Playing it with The Spiders on Top of the Pops in 1972 is what established him as a starman in the UK. The name comes from an earlier persona he had with the Hype during 1970 and 1971 called Rainbowman.