"Little Wonder" is a song by English musician

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

, released as the second single from his 21st album, '' Earthling'' (1997). It was the album's biggest hit, reaching number 14 in the UK. At the

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...

Brit Awards The BRIT Awards (often simply called the BRITs) are the British Phonographic Industry's annual popular music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain", or "Britannia" (in the early days the awards were sponsored ...

, the song was nominated for Best British Video.

Background

The sampled spoken line "If it's good to ya, it's gotta be good for ya" during the instrumental break, comes from the spoken intro of a live

Steely Dan Steely Dan is an American rock band founded in 1971 in New York by Walter Becker (guitars, bass, backing vocals) and Donald Fagen (keyboards, lead vocals). Initially the band had a stable lineup, but in 1974, Becker and Fagen retired from live ...

song called "

Bodhisattva In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood. In the Early Buddhist schools ...

" from the ''Citizen Steely Dan'' box. Two main interpretations to the lyrics are given by James E. Perone, who writes that the song may simply represent some characteristics of Bowie's own personality or, in another case, an alien observing aspects of the life on Earth. Bowie uses the names of all seven dwarfs in the lyrics. The drum break is sampled from

The Winstons The Winstons were an American funk and soul music group based in Washington, D.C. They are known for their 1969 recording featuring a song entitled "Color Him Father" on the A-side, and "Amen, Brother" on the B-side. Halfway into "Amen, Brother", ...

instrumental, "Amen, Brother", a popular drum solo and sample commonly referred to as the "

Amen break The Amen break is a drum break that has been widely sampled in popular music. It comes from the 1969 track "Amen, Brother" by the soul group the Winstons, released as the B-side of the 1969 single "Color Him Father". The drum break lasts about se ...

". while the chord progression is similar to an early David Bowie song, "

Can't Help Thinking About Me "Can't Help Thinking About Me" is a song written by English musician David Bowie and recorded with his band the Lower Third. Released as a single by Pye Records on 14 January 1966, it was the first one issued under the "David Bowie" name after ...

Critical reception

British magazine ''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as '' Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music W ...

'' rated the song three out of five, adding, "The idea of giving Bowie a

drum & bass Drum and bass (also written as drum & bass or drum'n'bass and commonly abbreviated as D&B, DnB, or D'n'B) is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by fast breakbeats (typically 165–185 beats per minute) with heavy bass and sub-ba ...

makeover sounds slightly absurd but, though disconcerting, it seems to work. The central song, however, is a little understated and something a little more bold might have worked better." David Sinclair from ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'' wrote, "Racing

jungle A jungle is land covered with dense forest and tangled vegetation, usually in tropical climates. Application of the term has varied greatly during the past recent century. Etymology The word ''jungle'' originates from the Sanskrit word ''jaṅ ...

beats and strafing bursts of ultra-distorted guitar underpin the first taster from Bowie's new album, '' Earthling''. Quite a grower even if it does sound, in places, disconcertingly like

Babylon Zoo Babylon Zoo were an English rock band formed in 1992 in Wolverhampton. Their song " Spaceman" gained considerable exposure through its use in a Levi's jeans television advert in the United Kingdom in late 1995. Released as the band's debut sin ...

Live versions

Bowie performed "Little Wonder" as the opening song at his fiftieth birthday celebration concert in New York City on 9 January 1997. This performance was included on the ''

Earthling in the City ''Earthling in the City'' is a 6-track promotional CD by David Bowie that was distributed by '' GQ'' magazine with their November 1997 issue. The disc is largely made up of live performances and remixes of songs drawn from Bowie's albums ''Black ...

'' CD. Bowie played the song live (along with " Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps)") on the 8 February 1997 episode of ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...

''. A July 1997 performance at the

Phoenix Festival The Phoenix Festival was set up by John Vincent Power of the Mean Fiddler Music Group in 1993 as an alternative to the established Glastonbury and Reading Festivals. It was held at Long Marston Airfield near Stratford-upon-Avon and was one of the ...

was released in 2021 on '' Look at the Moon! (Live Phoenix Festival 97)''. The song was performed at the GQ Awards in New York City on 15 October 1997, later released on the live album '' LiveAndWell.com'' in 2000. Bowie's 25 June 2000 performance of the song at the

Glastonbury Festival Glastonbury Festival (formally Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts and known colloquially as Glasto) is a five-day festival of contemporary performing arts that takes place in Pilton, Somerset, England. In addition to contemp ...

was released in 2018 on ''

Glastonbury 2000 ''Glastonbury 2000'' is a live album by English musician David Bowie. It was recorded during his Sunday night headline slot at the Glastonbury Festival on 25 June 2000. The album marks the first time the full video and audio of the performance a ...

''. A live version recorded at BBC Radio Theatre, London, on 27 June 2000 was released on the bonus disc accompanying the first releases of ''

Bowie at the Beeb ''Bowie at the Beeb'' is a compilation album by English singer-songwriter David Bowie, first released in 2000. Originally, it came in a three-CD set, the third, bonus CD being a live recording made on at the Portland BBC Radio Theatre. Later e ...

'' in 2000.

Other releases

* The "Danny Saber remix" appeared on the soundtrack for the European release of ''

The Saint The Saint may refer to: Fiction * Simon Templar, also known as "The Saint", the protagonist of a book series by Leslie Charteris and subsequent adaptations: ** ''The Saint'' (film series) (1938–43), starring Louis Hayward, George Sanders an ...

'' as well as the second soundtrack for the movie ''

Hackers A hacker is a person skilled in information technology who uses their technical knowledge to achieve a goal or overcome an obstacle, within a computerized system by non-standard means. Though the term ''hacker'' has become associated in popu ...

''. This remix also appeared on the four-track bonus disc that followed the live album '' LiveAndWell.com'' in 2000. * A video edit was released on a

Jukebox A jukebox is a partially automated music-playing device, usually a coin-operated machine, that will play a patron's selection from self-contained media. The classic jukebox has buttons, with letters and numbers on them, which are used to selec ...

7" release of the single " Dead Man Walking" in 1997. * Three remixes, "Censored Video Edit", "Junior Vasquez Club Mix" and "Danny Saber Dance Mix", also appeared on the bonus disc of the ''Digibook Expanded Edition'' of '' Earthling'' from 2004. * The single version has been included on compilation albums: some editions of ''

Best of Bowie ''Best of Bowie'' is a 2002 greatest hits album by English recording artist David Bowie. Released in October after the critical and commercial success of the '' Heathen'' album released four months earlier, the songs range from his second alb ...

'' (2002), the 3-disc and 2-disc versions of ''

Nothing Has Changed ''Nothing Has Changed'' (stylised as ''Nothing has changed.'') is a compilation album by English musician David Bowie. It was released on 18 November 2014 through Parlophone in the United Kingdom, and Columbia Records and Legacy Recordings in t ...

'' (2014), and the 2-disc edition of ''

Bowie Legacy ''Legacy (The Very Best of David Bowie)'' (also known as ''Legacy'') is a greatest hits album by English musician David Bowie, released on 11 November 2016 through Sony Music Entertainment in the US and Warner Music Group in the UK and several t ...

'' (2016). * A new 'Unplugged' Danny Saber Mix was released on streaming services to commemorate ''Earthling's'' 25th anniversary in February 2022.

Music video

The accompanying

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

for "Little Wonder" was directed by

Floria Sigismondi Floria Sigismondi (, born 1965) is an Italian-Canadian film director, screenwriter, music video director, artist, and photographer. She is best known for writing and directing '' The Runaways'', for directing music videos for performers includi ...

, an Italian-Canadian photographer and director. It is set in a dystopian world of mutants, depicting rapid-pace shots of Bowie as an aging Ziggy Stardust and Halloween Jack wandering the New York streets and subways. The video includes video sculptures by the artist

Tony Oursler Tony may refer to: People and fictional characters * Tony (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Gregory Tony (born 1978), American law enforcement officer * Motu Tony (born 1981), New Zealand international rugby leagu ...

. Bowie has said of Sigismondi's work, "I thought she just has a wonderful eye, great textures, fabulous cutting." The video is in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art, New York.

Track listings

* UK CD version one # "Little Wonder" (edit) – 3:40 # "Little Wonder" (Ambient Junior Mix) – 9:55 # "Little Wonder" (Club Dub Junior Mix) – 8:10 # "Little Wonder" (4/4 Junior Mix) – 8:10 # "Little Wonder" (Juniors Club Instrumental) – 8:14 * UK CD version two (limited edition) # "Little Wonder" (edit) – 3:40 # " Telling Lies" (Adam F Mix) – 3:58 # "

Jump They Say "Jump They Say" is a song by English singer-songwriter and actor David Bowie, from his 18th album, ''Black Tie White Noise'' (1993). It was produced by Nile Rodgers and released as the first single from the album in March 1993. While Bowie opt ...

" (

Leftfield Leftfield are a British electronic music duo formed in 1989 as the duo of Neil Barnes and Paul Daley (the latter formerly of the Rivals and A Man Called Adam). The duo was very influential in the evolution of electronic music in the 1990s, wi ...

12" Vocal Mix) – 7:40 # "Little Wonder" (

Danny Saber Danny Saber (born 1966) is a musician in Los Angeles. He is an audio engineer, record producer, and remixer as well. He is a former member of Black Grape and Agent Provocateur. He plays organ, and keyboards, and is a prominent Los Angeles DJ. Sa ...

Mix)" – 3:06 * US CD version # "Little Wonder" (Album version) – 6:02 # "Little Wonder" (Ambient Junior Mix) – 9:55 # "Little Wonder" (Club Dub Junior Mix) – 8:10 # "Little Wonder" (Danny Saber Dance Mix) – 5:30 * European CD version one # "Little Wonder" (Album version) – 6:02 # "Little Wonder" (Ambient Junior Mix) – 9:55 # "Little Wonder" (Danny Saber Mix) – 3:06 # "Little Wonder" (Club Dub Junior Mix) – 8:10 # "Little Wonder" (4/4 Junior Mix) – 8:10 * European CD version two # "Little Wonder" (edit) – 3:40 # "Little Wonder" (Junior Club Mix) – 8:10 # "Telling Lies" (Adam F Mix) – 3:58 * European CD version three # "Little Wonder" (edit) – 3:40 # "Telling Lies" (Adam F Mix) – 3:58 * Japanese CD version # "Little Wonder" (edit) – 3:40 # "Little Wonder" (Junior Club Mix) – 8:10 # "Little Wonder" (Danny Saber Mix) – 3:06 # "Little Wonder" (Club Dub Junior Mix) – 8:10 # "Little Wonder" (4/4 Junior Mix) – 8:10 * UK 12" version # "Little Wonder" (Junior Club Mix) – 8:10 # "Little Wonder" (Danny Saber Mix) – 5:30 # "Telling Lies" (Adam F Mix) – 3:58 * European 12" version # "Little Wonder" (Junior Club Mix) – 8:10 # "Little Wonder" (Danny Saber Mix) – 5:30 An additional three promo CD singles were also released.

Production credits

;Producer * David Bowie *

Mark Plati Mark Plati is a New York–based musician, record producer, and songwriter, best known for his work in the 1990s with David Bowie. Plati also has worked with Spookey Ruben, The Cure, Duncan Sheik, Hooverphonic, Robbie Williams, Joe McIntyre, ...

– *

Reeves Gabrels Reeves Gabrels (born June 4, 1956) is an American guitarist, songwriter and record producer. A member and guitarist of British band the Cure since 2012, Gabrels worked with David Bowie from 1987 to 1999, and was a member of the band Tin Machine. ...

– ;Musicians * David Bowie – vocals,

sample Sample or samples may refer to: Base meaning * Sample (statistics), a subset of a population – complete data set * Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal * Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of s ...

s, guitar, keyboards *

– programming, real and

sampled Sample or samples may refer to: Base meaning * Sample (statistics), a subset of a population – complete data set * Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal * Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of so ...

guitars, vocals *

– drum loops, electronic percussion, programming,

loop Loop or LOOP may refer to: Brands and enterprises * Loop (mobile), a Bulgarian virtual network operator and co-founder of Loop Live * Loop, clothing, a company founded by Carlos Vasquez in the 1990s and worn by Digable Planets * Loop Mobile, an ...

s *

Gail Ann Dorsey Gail Ann Dorsey (born November 20, 1962) is an American musician. With a long career as a session musician mainly on bass guitar, she is perhaps best known for her lengthy residency in David Bowie's band, from 1995 to Bowie's death in 2016. Asid ...

– bass *

Zachary Alford Zachary "Zack" Alford is a professional drummer, known for his work with the B-52's, Bruce Springsteen, David Bowie and Tomoyasu Hotei. Alford was brought in by Danny Kortchmar to drum on Billy Joel's ''River of Dreams'' album. Alford contrib ...

Discogs - ''Zachary Alford'' - (profile & discography)
/ref> – drums *

Mike Garson Michael David Garson (born July 29, 1945) is an American pianist, who has worked with David Bowie, Nine Inch Nails, St. Vincent, Duran Duran, Free Flight and The Smashing Pumpkins. Early career Garson went to Lafayette High School in Broo ...

– keyboards, piano

Charts

Cover versions

* Haitian Hate Gods – ''.2 Contamination: A Tribute to David Bowie'' (2006) * Idiots Loop - ''Cover Ups'' (2019)

References

{{authority control 1997 songs 1997 singles David Bowie songs Music videos directed by Floria Sigismondi Parlophone singles Songs written by David Bowie Songs written by Reeves Gabrels Song recordings produced by David Bowie Jungle music songs