"Scream Like a Baby" is a song written by

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 ...

. It appears on the 1980 album '' Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps)''.

Music and lyrics

The song focuses on a protagonist called Sam who is evidently being held, along with the track's narrator, in a political prison. Though set in the future, the story is related in the past tense, in a fashion Bowie has described as "future nostalgia... A past look at something that hasn't happened yet".

Nicholas Pegg Nicholas Pegg is a British actor, writer and director. Educated at Nottingham High School and graduating with a Master of Arts in English Literature from the University of Exeter, Pegg subsequently trained at the Guildford School of Acting. Acti ...

(2000). ''The Complete David Bowie'': p.181 Musically the song is noted for its "ultra-modern new wave guitar/synth sound", as well as for Bowie's use of

varispeed A variable speed pitch control (or vari-speed) is a control on an audio device such as a turntable, tape recorder, or CD player that allows the operator to deviate from a standard speed (such as 33, 45 or even 78 rpm on a turntable), resulting i ...

vocals to illustrate Sam's downward spiral in the prison hospital – according to ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...

'' critics

Roy Carr Roy Carr (1945 – 1 July 2018) was an English music journalist, covering pop, rock and jazz. He joined the ''New Musical Express (NME)'' in the late 1960s, and edited ''NME'', '' Vox'' and ''Melody Maker'' magazines. Biography Born in Blackpoo ...

and

Charles Shaar Murray Charles Shaar Murray (born Charles Maximillian Murray; 27 June 1951) is an English music journalist and broadcaster. He has worked on the '' New Musical Express'' and many other magazines and newspapers, and has been interviewed for a number of ...

, the effect is "as if the narrator of ' All the Madmen' inhabited the world of '

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeast A ...

'". "Scream Like a Baby" was one of several tracks on ''Scary Monsters'' that evolved from pieces Bowie had written years before. It was originally composed in 1973, with different lyrics, as "I Am a Laser" for The Astronettes ( Ava Cherry, Geoffrey MacCormack and Jason Guess).David Buckley (1999). ''Strange Fascination - David Bowie: The Definitive Story'': p.207 Bowie worked on an album for the group but it was eventually dropped, finally surfacing in 1995 as the Ava Cherry album '' People from Bad Homes''; "I Am a Laser" was one of the tracks.

Release, promotion and live performances

"Scream Like a Baby" was released as the B-side to the single "

Fashion Fashion is a form of self-expression and autonomy at a particular period and place and in a specific context, of clothing, footwear, lifestyle, accessories, makeup, hairstyle, and body posture. The term implies a look defined by the fashion in ...

" in October 1980. Bowie intended to play the song during his 1987

Glass Spider Tour The Glass Spider Tour was a 1987 worldwide concert tour by English musician David Bowie, launched in support of his album '' Never Let Me Down'' and named for that album's track "Glass Spider". It began in May 1987 and was preceded by a two-wee ...

, including in rehearsals leading up to the tour, but the song was dropped from the set list by the time the tour started.

Personnel

According to Chris O'Leary: *

– lead and backing vocals *

Carlos Alomar Carlos Alomar (born 7 May 1951) is a Puerto Ricans, Puerto Rican guitarist. He is best known for his work with David Bowie from the mid-1970s to the early 2000s, having played on more Bowie albums than any musician other than pianist Mike Garso ...

– guitar *

Andy Clark Andy Clark, (born 1957) is a British philosopher who is Professor of Cognitive Philosophy at the University of Sussex. Prior to this, he was at professor of philosophy and Chair in Logic and Metaphysics at the University of Edinburgh in Scotl ...

– synthesizer * George Murray – bass *

Dennis Davis Dennis Davis (August 28, 1949 – April 6, 2016) was an American drummer and session musician best known for his work with David Bowie, playing on ten albums - including seven successive studio albums - during the singer's classic mid- and late ...

– drums Production *David Bowie – producer *

Tony Visconti Anthony Edward Visconti (born April 24, 1944) is an American record producer, musician and singer. Since the late 1960s, he has worked with an array of performers. His first hit single was T. Rex's " Ride a White Swan" in 1970, the first of man ...

– producer

Notes

David Bowie songs 1980 songs Songs written by David Bowie Song recordings produced by Tony Visconti Song recordings produced by David Bowie {{1980s-rock-song-stub