Life on Mars?

"Life on Mars?" is a song by English singer-songwriter David Bowie, first released on his 1971 album ''Hunky Dory''. In 1968, Bowie was commissioned to write English lyrics for the Claude François French song " Comme d'habitude". After his lyrics were rejected, songwriter Paul Anka rewrote it into "My Way", made famous by singer Frank Sinatra in 1969. Annoyed at the success of "My Way", Bowie used the song as a template and wrote "Life on Mars?" as a parody of Sinatra's recording. It was written primarily on piano and recorded on 6 August 1971, the final day of the ''Hunky Dory'' sessions. Co-produced by Bowie and Ken Scott, the backing band consisted of guitarist Mick Ronson, bassist Trevor Bolder and drummer Mick Woodmansey; Ronson also composed the song's string arrangement. Piano was played by Strawbs member Rick Wakeman.

Musically, "Life on Mars?" is described as a "soaring, cinematic ballad". Primarily glam rock, with elements of cabaret and art rock, the song has a complex structure, containing different chord changes throughout. The instruments act in tandem with one another and Bowie's vocal, steadily growing throughout its runtime. Lyrically, the song describes a girl who goes to the cinema to escape reality, using numerous surreal images, thematically reflecting optimism and the effects of Hollywood. Despite its title, the song has no connection to Mars itself, instead a reference to a then-recent media frenzy between the United States and Soviet Union.

At the height of Bowie's fame as Ziggy Stardust, RCA Records issued "Life on Mars?" as a single on 22 June 1973 in the United Kingdom, where it peaked at number three. The single was promoted by a promotional video shot by photographer Mick Rock, featuring a made-up Bowie in a turquoise suit singing the song against a white backdrop. Bowie performed the song during his concerts frequently throughout his career, performances of which have appeared on several live albums. The song also has appeared on numerous compilation albums and was remixed by Scott in 2003 and 2016, the latter being a 'stripped down' mix. The 2016 mix was accompanied by a remastered and reedited version of Rock's video.

"Life on Mars?" is considered by biographers and reviewers as one of Bowie's finest songs, with many describing it as a masterpiece. Praise is also given to Bowie's vocal performance and growth as a songwriter. Several publications have also considered it one of the greatest songs of all time. The song was the namesake of the British television series ''Life on Mars'' and has featured in other films and television shows. Artists who have covered the song include singer Barbra Streisand and Nine Inch Nails members Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross. The song charted worldwide following Bowie's death in 2016 and became a frequent tribute song for the artist; tributes by Nicholas Freestone and singer Lorde garnered widespread attention.

Background and writing

In early 1968, David Bowie's publisher, David Platz, was sharing a London office with another music publisher, Geoffrey Heath. One day, Heath brought in an acetate of the 1967 French song " Comme d'habitude", composed by Claude François and Jacques Revaux, and sung by François. Having a limited option for the song's British rights, Heath requested Platz for a songwriter to write English lyrics for the song. Platz suggested Bowie, who at that point had done other translations for him. Bowie's then-manager, Kenneth Pitt, believed that Bowie was a stronger lyricist than a composer and if he wrote "to a strong melody composed by someone else," it would guarantee him a hit. Bowie's translation, titled "Even a Fool Learns to Love", took influence from his then-recent work as a mime and featured a reference to his 1967 track "When I Live My Dream". He later told Michael Parkinson in a 2002 interview that he "wrote some really terrible lyrics o it.

Although Bowie recorded an unreleased demo in February 1968, the French publishers of "Comme d'habitude" rejected him, primarily due to his obscurity. Soon after, songwriter Paul Anka bought the rights to "Comme d'habitude" and rewrote it into "My Way", a song made famous by American singer Frank Sinatra in 1969. The success of "My Way" prompted Bowie to write "Life on Mars?" as a parody of Sinatra's recording. He told Parkinson: "That really made me angry for so long—for about a year... eventually I thought, 'I can write something as big as that, and I'll write one that sounds a bit like it. Bowie acknowledged the song's influence in the liner notes for ''Hunky Dory'', which state that the song was "inspired by Frankie".

Using "My Way" as a basis, Bowie wrote "Life on Mars?" relatively quickly. He later recalled in the liner notes for the 2008 compilation '' iSelect'' that he began humming the melody in a park in Beckenham, Kent, thereafter returning home to Haddon Hall and writing the rest of the song that afternoon on piano, which he primarily used to compose other songs of this period. Bowie believed that using "Comme d'habitude" as a basis was not "theft", but rather "a statement of rightful ownership". One '' Melody Maker'' reviewer suggested the song was written after "a brief and painful affair" with actress Hermione Farthingale. While on tour in 1990, Bowie introduced the song by saying "You fall in love, you write a love song. This is a love song." Despite writing it quickly, Bowie's original handwritten lyrics were vastly different—save for the chorus—than the finished recording, being more akin to the tone of ''Hunky Dory''s other Nietzsche-inspired numbers: "There's a shoulder-rock movement and the trembling starts / And a great Lord signs in vain / What can you buy when there's no-one to tell you / What a bargain you made..."

Recording

Early demo

Bowie recorded a demo of "Life on Mars?" between May and June 1971. According to biographer Nicholas Pegg, the demo runs at a short length of 1:53 and features Bowie alone on vocals and piano. Lyrically, it only contains the first verse and chorus, and featured several lyrical variations from the finished track, including "It's a simple but small affair", "Her mother is yelling no, and her father has asked her to go" and "It's a time for the lawman beating up the wrong guy". The demo remains unreleased. According to biographer Marc Spitz, Bowie had recorded demos of "Life on Mars?" and other ''Hunky Dory'' tracks "Oh! You Pretty Things" and "Andy Warhol" around this time, which inspired Bowie's new manager, Tony Defries, to look into securing a new record contract for Bowie, eventually signing him with RCA Records.

Studio version

Work on ''Hunky Dory'' officially began at Trident Studios in London on 8 June 1971. "Life on Mars?" was recorded on the final day of the sessions, 6 August. According to O'Leary, Bowie and co-producer Ken Scott considered the track to be "the Big One" and saved it for the end. Earlier in July, Defries sent a letter to jazz pianist Dudley Moore asking him to play piano during a session. There is no known evidence that Moore replied and although the specific song Defries was asking him to play on is unknown, biographer Kevin Cann deduces that it was most likely "Life on Mars?". In the end, piano was played by keyboardist Rick Wakeman, noted session musician and member of the Strawbs, who previously played Mellotron on Bowie's 1969 self-titled album. In 1995 he recalled that he met with Bowie in late June 1971 at Haddon Hall, where he heard demos of "Changes" and "Life on Mars?" in "their raw brilliance ... the finest selection of songs I have ever heard in one sitting in my entire life ... I couldn't wait to get into the studio and record them." The piano Wakeman played was the same 1898 Bechstein used by the Beatles for " Hey Jude" and later by Queen for "Bohemian Rhapsody".

Along with Wakeman on piano, the backing band consisted of guitarist Mick Ronson, bassist Trevor Bolder and drummer Mick Woodmansey. Ronson also composed the song's string arrangement which, according to Woodmansey, was the first he had ever undertaken: "He was very nervous about it. We had a whole string section at Trident with the proper BBC
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