Sourced

• I'm an instant star. Just add water and stir.
  • Quoted in Halliwell's Who's Who in the Movies 15th Edition (2003) by Leslie Halliwell, p. 60

• I get offered so many bad movies. And they're all raging queens or transvestites or Martians.
  • 1983 Comment, quoted in Halliwell's Who's Who in the Movies 15th Edition (2003) by Leslie Halliwell, p. 60

• I always had a repulsive need to be something more than human. I felt very puny as a human. I thought, "Fuck that. I want to be a superhuman."
  • Quoted in Fas Ferox - A Modern Day Mythology - World Walkthrough (2006), edited by Anna Young and James Curcio

Livewire interview (2002)

Livewire interview (16 June 2002)

• It's odd but even when I was a kid, I would write about 'old and other times' as though I had a lot of years behind me. Now I do, so there is a difference in the weight of memory. When you're young, you're still 'becoming', now at my age I am more concerned with 'being'. And not too long from now I'll be driven by 'surviving', I'm sure. I kind of miss that 'becoming' stage, as most times you really don't know what's around the corner. Now, of course, I've kind of knocked on the door and heard a muffled answer. Nevertheless, I still don't know what the voice is saying, or even what language it's in.

• Strangely, some songs you really don't want to write. I didn't like writing 'Heathen'. There was something so ominous and final about it. It was early in the morning, the sun was rising and through the windows I could see two deer grazing down below in the field. In the distance a car was driving slowly past the reservoir and these words were just streaming out and there were tears running down my face. But I couldn't stop, they just flew out. It's an odd feeling, like something else is guiding you, although forcing your hand is more like it.

• Heathenism is a state of mind. You can take it that I'm referring to one who does not see his world. He has no mental light. He destroys almost unwittingly. He cannot feel any Gods presence in his life. He is the 21st century man. However, there's no theme or concept behind Heathen, just a number of songs but somehow there is a thread that runs through it that is quite as strong as any of my thematic type albums.

• I had to resign myself, many years ago, that I'm not too articulate when it comes to explaining how I feel about things. But my music does it for me, it really does. There, in the chords and melodies, is everything I want to say. The words just jolly it along. It's always been my way of expressing what for me is inexpressible by any other means.

Lyrics

• We can be heroes, just for one day.
  • "Heroes"

• I, I can remember (I remember)
  Standing, by the wall (by the wall)
  And the guns, shot above our heads (over our heads)
  And we kissed, as though nothing could fall (nothing could fall)
  And the shame, was on the other side
  Oh we can beat them, for ever and ever
  • "Heroes"

• I've nothing much to offer,
  There's nothing much to take.
  I'm an absolute beginner,
  But I'm absolutely sane.
  As long as we're together
  The rest can go to hell.
  I absolutely love you,
  But we're absolute beginners.
  With eyes completely open,
  But nervous all the same.
  • Absolute Beginners

• If our love song
  Could fly over mountains,
  Could laugh at the ocean,
  Just like the films,
  There's no reason
  To feel all the hard times,
  To lay down the hard lines,
  It's absolutely true.
  • Absolute Beginners

• Though we're absolute beginners
  With nothing much at stake
  As long as you're still smiling
  There's nothing more I need.
  • Absolute Beginners

• Put on your red shoes , and dance the blues.
  • Let's Dance

• I know when to stay in
  And when to go out
  Get things done!
  • Modern Love

• I catch a paperboy, but things dont really change!
  • Modern Love

• Im glad that you're older than me
  Makes me feel important and free
  Is that make you smile, isnt that me?!
  • Sweet Thing

• Love is careless, in its choosing
  Sweeping over, cross a baby
  Love descends on those defenseless
  Idiot love, sparks the fusion
  Inspirations have i none, just to touch the flaming dove
  All i have is my love of love, and love is not loving!
  • Soul Love

• Then i put my face in tomorrow, i believe we're not alone
  I believe in Beatles, i believe my little soul has grown
  And im still so afraid, yes im still so afraid, yeah im still so afraid, on my own!
  • Afraid

• Boys, boys, there's a sweet thing
  Boys, boys, there's a sweet thing, sweet thing,
  If you want it, boys, get it here thing
  Cuz hope, boys is a cheap thing, cheap thing!
  • Sweet Thing

• Funny how secrets travel!
  • I'm Deranged

• The clutch of love
  And the fist of life
  Over your head!
  • I'm Deranged

• Who will love Aladdin Sane?
  • Aladdin Sane (1913-1938-197?)

• All the young dudes
  Carry the news
  Boogaloo dudes
  Carry the news.
  • All The Young Dudes

• There's such a sad love
  Deep in your eyes, a kind of pale jewel
  Open and closed within your eyes.
  I'll place the sky within your eyes.
  • As The World Falls Down

• Makes no sense at all
  Makes no sense to fall
  Falling
  As the world falls down
  Falling
  Falling
  Falling in love
  As the world falls down
  (down) Falling
  Falling
  Falling in love.
  • As The World Falls Down

• Time and again i tell myself
  I'll stay clean tonight
  But the little green wheels keep following me !
  (Oh no, not again!)
  I'm stuck with a valuable friend
  I'm happy , hope you're happy too!
  • Ashes To Ashes

• Ashes to ashes, funk to funky
  We know Major Tom's a junkie
  Strung out in heaven's high
  Hitting an all-time low.
  • Ashes To Ashes

• I've never done good things
  I've never done bad things
  I never did anything out of the blue.
  • Ashes To Ashes

• My mama said to get things done
  You'd better not mess with Major Tom.
  • Ashes To Ashes

• You're such a wonderful person
  But you got problems
  • Breaking Glass

• I'm having so much fun with the poisonous people
  Spreading rumours and lies and stories they made up
  Some make you sing and some make you scream
  One makes you wish that you'd never been seen.
  • Candidate

• Still don't know what I was waiting for
  And my time was running wild.
  A million dead-end streets and
  Every time I thought I'd got it made
  It seemed the taste was not so sweet.
  So I turned myself to face me
  But I've never caught a glimpse
  Of how the others must see the faker
  I'm much too fast to take that test.
  • Changes

• Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes
  Turn and face the strange
  • Changes

• I watch the ripples change their size
  But never leave the stream
  Of warm impermanence and
  So the days float through my eyes
  But still the days seem the same.
  And these children that you spit on
  As they try to change their worlds
  Are immune to your consultations
  They're quite aware of what they're going through.
  • Changes

• Strange fascination, fascinates me
  Oh! changes are taking pace im going through!
  • Changes

• Who wants the love of all the world
  When here was love in the eyes of just one girl
  That day, that precious day
  When even a fool learns to love.
  • Even A Fool Learns To Love

• In the event that this fantastic voyage
  Should turn to erosion and we never get old
  Remember it's true, dignity is valuable
  But our lives are valuable too.
  • Fantastic Voyage

• We're learning to live with somebody's depression
  And I don't want to live with somebody's depression.
  • Fantastic Voyage

• It's a moving world, but that's no reason
  To shoot some of those missiles
  Think of us as fatherless scum
  It won't be forgotten
  'Cos we'll never say anything nice again, will we?
  • Fantastic Voyage

• And the wrong words make you listen
  In this criminal world
  Remember it's true, loyalty is valuable
  But our lives are valuable too.
  • Fantastic Voyage

• Bye bye love.
  • Hallo Spaceboy

• Ground to Major bye-bye Tom
  • Hallo Spaceboy

• God is an American.
  • I'm Afraid of Americans

• I smiled sadly for a love I could not obey
  Lady Stardust sang his songs
  Of darkness and dismay
  • Lady Stardust (The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars)

• Oh wait, I'm getting ahead of myself
  Let me take you back to when it all began
  • Nathan Adler

• One day nothing meant nothing
  Ten dollars tore us apart
  One thing led to a dead end
  One shot put her away
  • One Shot

• God is on top of it all
  That's all
  • Pallas Athena

• There's a taste in my mouth and it's no taste at all
  • Queen Bitch

• Oh no love! you're not alone
  No matter what or who you've been
  No matter when or where you've seen
  All the knives seem to lacerate your brain
  I've had my share, I'll help you with the pain
  You're not alone!
  • Rock & Roll Suicide (The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars)

• There's a starman waiting in the sky
  He'd like to come and meet us
  But he thinks he'd blow our minds.
  • Starman (The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars)

• Oh don't lean on me man, cause you can't afford the ticket
  Back from Suffragette City
  Oh don't lean on me man
  Cause you ain't got time to check it
  You know my Suffragette City
  Is outta sight...she's all right ... Wham, bam, thank you ma'am!
  • Suffragette City (The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars). The last expression is a widely known slang phrase, for a quick sex encounter, which was also the title of a song on Charles Mingus album 'Oh Yeah'.

• You - are not a victim
  You - just scream with boredom
  You - are not evicting time
  • Time

• Baby, I’ll slay a dragon for you
  Or banish wicked giants from the land
  But you will find, that nothing in my dream can hurt you
  We will only love each other as forever
  
  • When I Live My Dream

• In this age of grand illusion, you walked into my life out of my dreams —
  I don't need another change — still you forced a way into my scheme of things.
  You say we're growing, growing heart and soul
  In this age of grand illusion, you walked into my life out of my dreams.
  • Word On A Wing

• Just because I believe don't mean I don't think as well.
  Don't have to question everything in heaven nor hell.
  • Word On A Wing

• Lord I kneel and offer you, my word on a wing
  And I'm trying hard to fit among your scheme of things
  It's safer than a strange land, but I still care for myself
  And I don't stand in my own light... Lord, Lord, my prayer flies like a word on a wing
  My prayer flies like a word on a wing
  Does my prayer fit in with your scheme of things?
  • Word On A Wing

• Do you remember, your President Nixon?
  Do you remember, the bills you have to pay
  Or even yesterday?
  • Young Americans

• All right. I want the young American.
  • Young Americans

• We live for just these twenty years
  Do we have to die for the fifty more.
  • Young Americans

• When the kids had killed the man, I had to break up the band
  • Ziggy Stardust on The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars

• Ziggy played guitar
  • Ziggy Stardust

Unsourced

• I've found that every time I've made a radical change, it's helped me feel buoyant as an artist.

• If I feel comfortable with what I'm doing, something's wrong.

• I won't be writing a song about this one. (Talking about his artery clogging incident in 2004)

• Now that I understand myself and others, I'm supposed to die? What a crap game! I'd like to live to be 200 or 300 years old.

• I re-invented my image so many times that I'm in denial that I was originally an overweight Korean woman. (During a spoof segment on "Late Night with Conan O'Brien".)

• I don't know where I'm going from here, but I promise that it won't be boring.