Life on Mars?: In a Nutshell
What do you get when you combine imagery straight from a freak show cinema, a whiff of Marxist class consciousness, an ironic meta-commentary on the creative process, and the melody from Frank Sinatra's crooner classic "My Way"?
Why, you get David Bowie's "Life on Mars," one of the weirdest (and awesomest, if that's even a word) tracks you're ever likely to encounter atop anybody's "Greatest Songs Ever" list. "Look at those cavemen go / It's the freakiest show." Indeed.
Music Video
Shmoop Connections
Explore the ways this song connects with the world and with other topics on Shmoop
What in the world does David Bowie have to do with the
history of American labor unions? (Hint: it's got something to do with "Mickey Mouse growing up a cow.") And who's supposed to be going "on sale again," exactly? Lennon (John, of the Beatles) or Lenin (Vladimir Ilyich, of the Bolsheviks)? Is Bowie taking a dig here at the
rock n' roll industry or at the failed utopias of
Cold War-era Communism?
On the Charts
When released as a single in 1973, the song reached number three on in the UK and stayed on the charts for thirteen weeks.
With the 2006 release of the British television show (now also an American show) "Life on Mars," 33 years after the song's original debut, "Life on Mars?" re-entered the UK charts at #55.
"Life on Mars?" consistently performs well in "Best Songs Ever" lists. Recently,
Neil McCormick of the UK's Telegraph declared it the greatest song of all time.
Folders in your Toolbar below to quickly find your saved stuff.
