Ashes to Ashes (David Bowie song)
Encyclopedia
"Ashes to Ashes" is a single by David Bowie
, released in 1980. It made #1 in the UK and was the first cut from the Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)
album, also a #1 hit. As well as its musical qualities, it is noted for its innovative video
, directed by Bowie and David Mallet
. The lyrics revisit Bowie's Major Tom
character from 1969's "Space Oddity", which he referenced once again in 1995 with "Hallo Spaceboy
". Years later, Bowie said that with "Ashes to Ashes" he was, "wrapping up the seventies really for myself, and that seemed a good enough epitaph for it".
However, interviewed in 1980, David Bowie gave a very different perspective on the song, peering forward into the new decade rather than backwards into the one before: "It's a nursery rhyme. It's very much a 1980s nursery rhyme. I think 1980s nursery rhymes will have a lot to do with the 1880s/1890s nursery rhymes which are all rather horrid and had little boys with their ears being cut off and stuff like that...". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUWVUH02yZ8
and introspective, "Ashes to Ashes" featured Bowie's reinterpretation of "a guy that's been in such an early song", namely Major Tom
from his first hit in 1969, "Space Oddity". Described as "containing more messages per second" than any single released in 1980, the song also included plaintive reflections on the singer's moral and artistic journey:
Instead of a hippie
astronaut who casually slips the bonds of a crass and material world to journey beyond the stars, the song describes Major Tom as a "junkie
, strung out in heaven's high, hitting an all-time low". This lyric was interpreted as a play on the title of Bowie's 1977 album Low, which charted his withdrawal inwards following his drug excesses in America a short time before, another reversal of Major Tom's original withdrawal 'outwards' or towards space.
The final lines, "My mother said, to get things done, you better not mess with Major Tom", have been compared to the verse from a nursery rhyme:
Bowie himself said in an interview with NME
shortly after the single's release, "It really is an ode to childhood, if you like, a popular nursery rhyme. It's about space men becoming junkies (laughs)."
Musically "Ashes to Ashes" was notable for its delicate synthetic string sound, counterpointed by hard-edged funk
bass, and its complex vocal layering. Perhaps Bowie's most sophisticated sonic work to date, its choir-like textures were created by guitarist Chuck Hammer
with four multi-tracked guitar synthesizers
, each playing opposing chord inversions; this was underpinned by Bowie's dead-pan, chanted background voices.
The music video
for "Ashes to Ashes" was one of the most iconic of the 1980s. Costing £250,000, it was at the time the most expensive music video ever made. It incorporated scenes both in solarised
colour and in stark black-and-white, featuring Bowie in the gaudy Pierrot
costume that became the dominant visual representation of his Scary Monsters phase. Also appearing were Steve Strange
and other members of the London Blitz
scene, including Judith Franklin and Darla Jane Gilroy
, forerunners of (later participants in) the New Romantic
movement that was heavily influenced by Bowie's music and image.
Bowie described the shot of himself and the Blitz Kids marching towards the camera in front of a bulldozer as symbolising "oncoming violence". Although it appears that two of the Blitz Kids bow at intervals, they were actually trying to pull their gowns away from the bulldozer in an effort to avoid them getting caught. Scenes of the singer in a space suit—that suggested a hospital life-support system—and others showing him locked in what appeared to be a padded room, made reference to both Major Tom and to Bowie's new, rueful interpretation of him. Contrary to received opinion, the elderly woman lecturing Bowie at the end of the clip was not his real mother.
Record Mirror
readers voted "Ashes to Ashes" and Bowie's next single, "Fashion", the best music videos of 1980.
(1979).
The US release had "It's No Game
(No. 1)". The single peaked at #101 in America.
and a synthesizer solo. A 12:55 version that appeared on the bootleg From a Phoenix... The Ashes Shall Rise was a fake, repeating the song's instrumental breaks to achieve its additional length. Similarly, an 11:44 version on bootleg albums such as Glamour, Vampires of the Human Flesh and Monsters to Ashes was again nothing more the original track with segments repeated and looped.
TV series Life on Mars
, the writing team of Matthew Graham
and Ashley Pharoah
decided to transplant the characters from 1973 to 1981, and chose the title Ashes to Ashes
because they thought of it as "that year's big Bowie track". They also borrowed the famous Pierrot
iconography from the video of the Bowie single as part of the programme's visual design. In the first season's finale, a car bomb goes off at the line "One flash of light".
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
, released in 1980. It made #1 in the UK and was the first cut from the Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)
Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)
Scary Monsters is an album by David Bowie, released in September 1980 by RCA Records. It was Bowie's final studio album for the label and his first following the so-called Berlin Trilogy of Low, "Heroes" and Lodger . Though considered significant in artistic terms, the trilogy had proved less...
album, also a #1 hit. As well as its musical qualities, it is noted for its innovative video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
, directed by Bowie and David Mallet
David Mallet (director)
David Mallet is a British director particularly noted for his work on music videos, including David Bowie's innovative "Ashes to Ashes", Rush's "Distant Early Warning, and Queen's "Radio Ga Ga" and "I Want to Break Free" videos. He has also served as a producer on television programmes including...
. The lyrics revisit Bowie's Major Tom
Major Tom
Major Tom is a fictional astronaut created by David Bowie, heard in his songs "Space Oddity," "Ashes to Ashes," and "Hallo Spaceboy." Bowie's own interpretation of the character evolved throughout his career. 1969's "Space Oddity" depicts an astronaut who casually slips the bonds of a crass and...
character from 1969's "Space Oddity", which he referenced once again in 1995 with "Hallo Spaceboy
Hallo Spaceboy
"Hallo Spaceboy" is a song by David Bowie from his 1995 album Outside, and was issued as a single in 1996. Bowie and Brian Eno co-wrote the song...
". Years later, Bowie said that with "Ashes to Ashes" he was, "wrapping up the seventies really for myself, and that seemed a good enough epitaph for it".
However, interviewed in 1980, David Bowie gave a very different perspective on the song, peering forward into the new decade rather than backwards into the one before: "It's a nursery rhyme. It's very much a 1980s nursery rhyme. I think 1980s nursery rhymes will have a lot to do with the 1880s/1890s nursery rhymes which are all rather horrid and had little boys with their ears being cut off and stuff like that...". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vUWVUH02yZ8
Music and lyrics
MelancholicMelancholia
Melancholia , also lugubriousness, from the Latin lugere, to mourn; moroseness, from the Latin morosus, self-willed, fastidious habit; wistfulness, from old English wist: intent, or saturnine, , in contemporary usage, is a mood disorder of non-specific depression,...
and introspective, "Ashes to Ashes" featured Bowie's reinterpretation of "a guy that's been in such an early song", namely Major Tom
Major Tom
Major Tom is a fictional astronaut created by David Bowie, heard in his songs "Space Oddity," "Ashes to Ashes," and "Hallo Spaceboy." Bowie's own interpretation of the character evolved throughout his career. 1969's "Space Oddity" depicts an astronaut who casually slips the bonds of a crass and...
from his first hit in 1969, "Space Oddity". Described as "containing more messages per second" than any single released in 1980, the song also included plaintive reflections on the singer's moral and artistic journey:
-
- I've never done good things
- I've never done bad things
- I never did anything out of the blue
Instead of a hippie
Hippie
The hippie subculture was originally a youth movement that arose in the United States during the mid-1960s and spread to other countries around the world. The etymology of the term 'hippie' is from hipster, and was initially used to describe beatniks who had moved into San Francisco's...
astronaut who casually slips the bonds of a crass and material world to journey beyond the stars, the song describes Major Tom as a "junkie
Substance dependence
The section about substance dependence in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders does not use the word addiction at all. It explains:...
, strung out in heaven's high, hitting an all-time low". This lyric was interpreted as a play on the title of Bowie's 1977 album Low, which charted his withdrawal inwards following his drug excesses in America a short time before, another reversal of Major Tom's original withdrawal 'outwards' or towards space.
The final lines, "My mother said, to get things done, you better not mess with Major Tom", have been compared to the verse from a nursery rhyme:
-
- My mother said
- That I never should
- Play with the gypsies in the wood
Bowie himself said in an interview with NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
shortly after the single's release, "It really is an ode to childhood, if you like, a popular nursery rhyme. It's about space men becoming junkies (laughs)."
Musically "Ashes to Ashes" was notable for its delicate synthetic string sound, counterpointed by hard-edged funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
bass, and its complex vocal layering. Perhaps Bowie's most sophisticated sonic work to date, its choir-like textures were created by guitarist Chuck Hammer
Chuck Hammer
Chuck Hammer is an American guitarist and Emmy nominated digital film composer, known for seminal guitar-synth with Lou Reed, David Bowie, and Guitarchitecture....
with four multi-tracked guitar synthesizers
Guitar/synthesizer
A guitar synthesizer is any one of a number of musical instrument systems that allow a guitar player to play synthesizer sound. While the term "MIDI guitar" is often used as a synonym for the field of guitar/synthesis or for a guitar/synthesizer, MIDI is not always used...
, each playing opposing chord inversions; this was underpinned by Bowie's dead-pan, chanted background voices.
Music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
for "Ashes to Ashes" was one of the most iconic of the 1980s. Costing £250,000, it was at the time the most expensive music video ever made. It incorporated scenes both in solarised
Solarisation
Solarisation is a phenomenon in photography in which the image recorded on a negative or on a photographic print is wholly or partially reversed in tone. Dark areas appear light or light areas appear dark...
colour and in stark black-and-white, featuring Bowie in the gaudy Pierrot
Pierrot
Pierrot is a stock character of pantomime and Commedia dell'Arte whose origins are in the late 17th-century Italian troupe of players performing in Paris and known as the Comédie-Italienne; the name is a hypocorism of Pierre , via the suffix -ot. His character in postmodern popular culture—in...
costume that became the dominant visual representation of his Scary Monsters phase. Also appearing were Steve Strange
Steve Strange
Steve Strange , is a Welsh pop singer, best known as the lead singer and frontman of the 1980s pop group Visage...
and other members of the London Blitz
Blitz Kids
The Blitz Kids were a group of young people who frequented the Blitz nightclub in Covent Garden, London in the very early 1980s, and are credited with launching the New Romantic cultural movement...
scene, including Judith Franklin and Darla Jane Gilroy
Darla Jane Gilroy
Darla Jane Gilroy was one of the four "Blitz kids" featured in David Mallet's legendary music video for David Bowie's 1980 number 1 hit Ashes to Ashes....
, forerunners of (later participants in) the New Romantic
New Romantic
New Romanticism , was a pop culture movement in the United Kingdom that began around 1979 and peaked around 1981. Developing in London nightclubs such as Billy's and The Blitz and spreading to other major cities in the UK, it was based around flamboyant, eccentric fashion and new wave music...
movement that was heavily influenced by Bowie's music and image.
Bowie described the shot of himself and the Blitz Kids marching towards the camera in front of a bulldozer as symbolising "oncoming violence". Although it appears that two of the Blitz Kids bow at intervals, they were actually trying to pull their gowns away from the bulldozer in an effort to avoid them getting caught. Scenes of the singer in a space suit—that suggested a hospital life-support system—and others showing him locked in what appeared to be a padded room, made reference to both Major Tom and to Bowie's new, rueful interpretation of him. Contrary to received opinion, the elderly woman lecturing Bowie at the end of the clip was not his real mother.
Record Mirror
Record Mirror
Record Mirror was a British weekly pop music newspaper, founded by Isadore Green and featured, news articles, interviews, record charts, record reviews, concert reviews, letters from readers and photographs. The paper became respected by both mainstream pop music fans and serious record collectors...
readers voted "Ashes to Ashes" and Bowie's next single, "Fashion", the best music videos of 1980.
Release
"Ashes to Ashes" hit #4 in the UK Singles Chart in its first week of release, rising to #1 a week later, making it Bowie's fastest-selling single to that point in time. It was issued in three different sleeves, the first 100,000 copies including one of four sets of stamps, all featuring Bowie in the Pierrot outfit he wore in the video. The B-side, "Move On", was a track lifted from his previous album, LodgerLodger (album)
Lodger is an album by British singer-songwriter David Bowie, released in 1979. The last of the 'Berlin Trilogy' recorded in collaboration with Brian Eno , it was more accessible than its immediate predecessors Low and "Heroes", having no instrumentals and being somewhat lighter and more pop-oriented...
(1979).
The US release had "It's No Game
It's No Game
"It's No Game" is a song written by David Bowie for the 1980 album Scary Monsters , featuring lead guitar played by Robert Fripp...
(No. 1)". The single peaked at #101 in America.
Track listing
- "Ashes to Ashes" (Bowie) – 3:34
- "Move OnMove On (David Bowie song)"Move On" is a song written by David Bowie and Brian Eno in 1979 for the album Lodger. "Move On" was lyrically Bowie's ode to his own wanderlust, musically his earlier classic "All the Young Dudes" played backwards.Musicians on this song:...
" (Bowie) – 3:16
Production credits
- ProducersRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
:- Tony ViscontiTony ViscontiAnthony Edward Visconti is an American record producer and sometimes a musician or singer.Since the late 1960s, he has worked with an array of performers; his lengthiest involvement with any artist is with David Bowie: intermittently from Bowie's 1969 album Space Oddity to 2003's Reality, Visconti...
- David BowieDavid BowieDavid Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
- Tony Visconti
- Musicians:
- David Bowie: Vocals
- Chuck HammerChuck HammerChuck Hammer is an American guitarist and Emmy nominated digital film composer, known for seminal guitar-synth with Lou Reed, David Bowie, and Guitarchitecture....
: Roland GR500Roland GR-500The Roland GR-500, manufactured by Roland Corporation, was the Roland's first guitar synthesizer.The synthesizer module included Bass, Solo Synth, and String sounds based on previous Orchestral and analog mono-synths from Roland...
guitar synthesizer - Carlos AlomarCarlos AlomarCarlos Alomar is an American guitarist, composer and arranger best known for his work with David Bowie, having played on more Bowie albums than any other musician...
: Guitar - Simon HouseSimon HouseSimon House is a composer and classically trained violinist and keyboard player, perhaps best known for his work with space rock band Hawkwind. His arrival in 1974 introduced a new element to the band's style...
: Violin - Roy BittanRoy BittanRoy Bittan is an American keyboardist, best known as a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, which he joined on August 23, 1974...
: Piano - George MurrayGeorge Murray (musician)George Murray is an American bass guitarist best known for his work with David Bowie as a part of his regular ensemble , on a number of Bowie's albums released in the 1970s.-Selective Discography:Weldon Irvine...
: Bass - Dennis DavisDennis DavisDennis Davis is an American drummer and session musician best known for his work with David Bowie.He was born and raised in Manhattan, New York City and studied with the late drummers Max Roach and Elvin Jones. He met guitarist Carlos Alomar when they were both playing with Roy Ayers...
: Drums
Charts
| Chart (1980) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| UK Singles Chart | 1 |
| Irish Singles Chart | 4 |
| Australian Kent Report Singles Chart | 3 |
| Canadian Singles Chart | 35 |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 11 |
| Austrian Singles Chart | 6 |
| Swedish Singles Chart | 6 |
| Norwegian Singles Chart | 3 |
| German Singles Chart | 9 |
| US Billboard | 101 |
| US Cash Box | 79 |
Alternative versions
There have long been rumours of an extended unreleased version of the song, allegedly some 13 minutes long and featuring additional verses, a longer fade-outFade (audio engineering)
In audio engineering, a fade is a gradual increase or decrease in the level of an audio signal. The term can also be used for film cinematography or theater lighting, in much the same way ....
and a synthesizer solo. A 12:55 version that appeared on the bootleg From a Phoenix... The Ashes Shall Rise was a fake, repeating the song's instrumental breaks to achieve its additional length. Similarly, an 11:44 version on bootleg albums such as Glamour, Vampires of the Human Flesh and Monsters to Ashes was again nothing more the original track with segments repeated and looped.
Live versions
- A live recording from a special performance at the BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Radio Theatre, London, on 27 June 2000 was released on the bonus disc that followed the first releases of the Bowie at the BeebBowie at the BeebBowie at the Beeb is a compilation album by David Bowie, first released in 2000. Originally, it came in a three CD set, the third, bonus CD being a recording on at the Portland BBC Radio Theatre...
album. - A live recording from A Reality TourA Reality TourA Reality Tour was a worldwide concert tour by David Bowie in support of the Reality album. The tour commenced on 7 October 2003 at the Forum, Copenhagen, Denmark continuing through Europe, North America, Asia, including a return to New Zealand and Australia for the first time since the 1987 Glass...
appears on the 2003 concert DVD. - The song was also played on the Serious MoonlightSerious Moonlight TourThe David Bowie Serious Moonlight Tour was thus far Bowie's longest, largest and most successful concert tour. The tour opened at the Vorst Forest Nationaal - Brussels on 18 May 1983 and ended in the Hong Kong Coliseum on 8 December 1983; 16 countries visited, 96 performances, 2,601,196 tickets...
, Sound+Vision, HeathenHeathen TourThe David Bowie Heathen Tour was a 2002 concert tour in support of the album, Heathen, and was also notable for the performances of all songs from the 1977 Low album.-History:...
, and Reality tours.
Other releases
- To promote the single in August 1980, a so-called medley of "Space Oddity" and "Ashes to Ashes", called "The Continuing Story of Major Tom", was released on 12" in the US. However, this medley was simply "Space Oddity" cross-fading into the 7" single edit of "Ashes to Ashes". The promo's B-side was the full-length album version of "Ashes to Ashes".
- It has appeared on the following Bowie compilations:
- ChangestwobowieChangestwobowieChangestwobowie, released in 1981, was a David Bowie compilation album issued by RCA Records. Its title and packaging followed the format of RCA's first Bowie compilation, Changesonebowie in 1976. As well as post-1976 singles, the album collected songs from earlier in Bowie's career that had not...
(single edit) (1981) - Golden YearsGolden Years (album)Golden Years is a 1983 compilation album by David Bowie.-Side one:#"Fashion" – 4:51#"Red Sails" – 3:47#"Look Back in Anger" – 3:07#"I Can't Explain" – 2:14#"Ashes to Ashes" – 4:26-Side two:...
(1983) - Fame and FashionFame and Fashion-Side one:# "Space Oddity" – 5:15# "Changes" – 3:33# "Starman" – 4:10# "1984" – 3:24# "Young Americans" – 5:10# "Fame" – 4:00-Side two:# "Golden Years" – 4:03# "TVC 15" – 5:29# " "Heroes" " – 6:07...
(1984) - Sound and Vision (1989)
- ChangesBowieChangesbowieChangesbowie is a compilation album by David Bowie, released in 1990 in the United States by Rykodisc and by EMI in the UK as part of Rykodisc's Bowie remastering program, to replace the deleted RCA Records compilation Changesonebowie....
(1990) - The Singles CollectionThe Singles Collection (David Bowie album)The Singles Collection is a compilation album by David Bowie, released in 1993 in the UK and as The Singles 1969 to 1993 in the United States...
(1993) - Best of BowieBest of BowieBest of Bowie is a career-spanning greatest hits album by multi-platinum recording artist David Bowie. The songs range from his second album to 2002. It was released 35 years after his first album, David Bowie....
(2002)
- Changestwobowie
Cover versions
- SunnaSunnaSunna may refer to:* Sunna , a British rock band from the early 2000s* Sunna , a Saxon chief* Kim Sunna, a Swedish professional ice hockey player* Sól , Germanic goddess/personification of the Sun in Old High German...
– Released on the Album Two Minute TerrorTwo Minute Terror-External links:**... - Lassigue Bendthaus – Pop ArtificiellePop ArtificiellePop Artificielle is a 1999 album by "lb" . All of the songs are covers of pop songs from the 1960s, 70s, and 80s...
- Happy RhodesHappy RhodesHappy Rhodes is an American singer, songwriter, instrumentalist and electronic musician with a four-octave vocal range. She has released 11 albums since 1986.- Family :...
– Rhode Songs (1993) - Tears for FearsTears for FearsTears for Fears are an English new wave band formed in the early 1980s by Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith.Founded after the dissolution of their first band, the mod-influenced Graduate, they were initially associated with the New Wave synthesiser bands of the early 1980s but later branched out into...
– Released on the albums Ruby Trax, Saturnine Martial & LunaticSaturnine Martial & LunaticSaturnine Martial & Lunatic is the second official compilation album released by the British band Tears for Fears. It is a collection of B-sides and rare tracks, spanning some ten years of recording from the band's Mercury/Phonogram era.-Track listing:...
and David Bowie Songbook - Bic RungaBic RungaBriolette Kah Bic Runga MNZM is a New Zealand pop recording artist whose first solo album, Drive, debuted at number one on the New Zealand RIANZ charts. She has since become one of the highest-selling New Zealand artists in recent history...
– Live recording - Something for KateSomething for KateSomething for Kate are a rock band from Melbourne, Australia. Members include songwriter, vocalist and guitarist Paul Dempsey, drummer Clint Hyndman and bassist Stephanie Ashworth...
– Live recording released on B-sides compilation CD - jacksoulJacksouljacksoul, sometimes stylized as jackSOUL, was a Canadian soul and R&B band. Based in Toronto, the band was fronted by singer Haydain Neale, and was best known for their hits "Can't Stop" and "Still Believe in Love"....
– mySOULMySOULmySOUL is the fourth album by Canadian R&B/soul band jacksoul, released in 2006. The album comprises mainly covers of rock, pop and soul songs, although it also includes one original song by jacksoul singer and songwriter Haydain Neale....
(2006) - TripodTripod (band)Tripod is an Australian musical comedy act, specialising in improv, parody and satire. As its name suggests, the band is a trio; it comprises Scod , Yon and Gatesy...
– Live version combined with "Space Oddity" (2006) - Samantha MumbaSamantha MumbaSamantha Tamania Anne Cecilia Mumba is an Irish singer and actress.Her first album was released in 2000. Her most notable role was Mara in the 2002 film The Time Machine. She has also appeared in a number of Irish independent films.-Early life, education and early career:Mumba was born in Dublin,...
– Sampled in her "Body II BodyBody II Body"Body II Body" is a song by Samantha Mumba, released as the second single from her album Gotta Tell You in the autumn of 2000. The chorus from David Bowie's "Ashes to Ashes" is sampled heavily in the song. The single reached the top 5 in the UK and #2 in Ireland. The single wasn't released in the US...
" single. (2000) - Bojan ZBojan ZulfikarpašicBojan Zulfikarpašić was born February 2, 1968 in Belgrade) is a Serbian jazz pianist...
– Xenophonia (2006) - Sneaker PimpsSneaker PimpsSneaker Pimps were a British trip-hop band formed in Hartlepool, England in 1994. They are best known for their first album Becoming X and particularly the singles "6 Underground", "Spin Spin Sugar", and "Tesko Suicide" from the same album...
– ICA Home Taping Cover Set (2000) - The String Quartet – BowieMania: Mania, une Collection Obsessionelle de Beatrice Ardisson (2007)
- Danny MichelDanny MichelDanny Michel is a singer-songwriter from Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario.- Biography :Danny Michel was born in 1970 next to the "Smiles n' Chuckles" chocolate factory in Kitchener, Ontario, Canada...
– Loving the Alien: Danny Michel Sings the Songs of David Bowie (2004) - Northern KingsNorthern KingsNorthern Kings is a Finnish symphonic metal cover supergroup, made up of four musicians who have already become well known in their existing bands: Jarkko Ahola from Teräsbetoni, ex-Dreamtale, Marco Hietala from Nightwish and Tarot, Tony Kakko from Sonata Arctica and Juha-Pekka Leppäluoto from...
– Reborn (2007) with lead vocals by Tony KakkoTony KakkoToni Kristian "Tony" Kakko is a Finnish musician, composer and vocalist. He is mainly known as the vocalist, primary songwriter, and creative force in the band Sonata Arctica since 1996.-Biography:... - JenifereverJenifereverJeniferever is a band from Uppsala, Sweden formed in 1996. Their music could be described as ambient indie rock or post-rock; it is slow-paced, melodic, and frequently building to an orchestral-like climax. Their sound has been compared to bands such as The Appleseed Cast and Sigur Rós. Their name...
– Repetition Bowie (2007) - Keane – Tribute to "Ashes to Ashes" with the song "Better Than This" from the album Perfect Symmetry (2008)
- Dana InternationalDana InternationalSharon Cohen , professionally known as Dana International is an Israeli pop singer of Yemenite Jewish ancestry. She has released eight albums and three additional compilation albums, positioning herself as one of Israel's most successful musical acts ever...
– Sampled in her "Gotta Move On" song. (2002) - Mick KarnMick KarnAndonis Michaelides , better known as Mick Karn, was an English multi-instrumentalist musician and songwriter, who came to fame as the bassist for the art rock band Japan, from 1974 to 1982....
and WarpaintWarpaint (band)Warpaint is an American art rock group from Los Angeles, formed in 2004. The band's members are Emily Kokal , Theresa Wayman , Jenny Lee Lindberg , and Stella Mozgawa . The band's membership has also included actress Shannyn Sossamon and Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist Josh Klinghoffer...
(different versions) – We Were So Turned On: A Tribute to David Bowie (2010) - A Perfect CircleA Perfect CircleA Perfect Circle is an American rock supergroup formed in 1999 by guitarist Billy Howerdel and Tool vocalist Maynard James Keenan. The original incarnation of the band also included Paz Lenchantin on bass, Troy Van Leeuwen on guitar, and Tim Alexander on drums...
– Live recording - WarpaintWarpaint (band)Warpaint is an American art rock group from Los Angeles, formed in 2004. The band's members are Emily Kokal , Theresa Wayman , Jenny Lee Lindberg , and Stella Mozgawa . The band's membership has also included actress Shannyn Sossamon and Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist Josh Klinghoffer...
- We Were So Turned On: A Tribute to David Bowie (2010)We Were So Turned OnWe Were So Turned On: A Tribute to David Bowie is a David Bowie tribute album released worldwide on September 6, 2010 by Manimal Vinyl as a charity for War Child UK...
Cultural reference
For the 2008 sequel to their 2006 BBCBBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
TV series Life on Mars
Life on Mars (TV series)
Life on Mars is a British television series broadcast on BBC One between January 2006 and April 2007. The series combines elements of science fiction and police procedural....
, the writing team of Matthew Graham
Matthew Graham
Matthew Graham is a British television writer, and the co-creator of the BBC/Kudos Film and Television science fiction series Life on Mars, which debuted in 2006 on BBC One and has received international critical acclaim....
and Ashley Pharoah
Ashley Pharoah
Ashley Pharoah is a British Television writer, co-creator of the successful drama series Life on Mars, which began on BBC One in 2006....
decided to transplant the characters from 1973 to 1981, and chose the title Ashes to Ashes
Ashes to Ashes (TV series)
Ashes to Ashes is a British science fiction and police procedural drama television series, serving as the sequel to Life on Mars.The series began airing on BBC One in February 2008. A second series began broadcasting in April 2009...
because they thought of it as "that year's big Bowie track". They also borrowed the famous Pierrot
Pierrot
Pierrot is a stock character of pantomime and Commedia dell'Arte whose origins are in the late 17th-century Italian troupe of players performing in Paris and known as the Comédie-Italienne; the name is a hypocorism of Pierre , via the suffix -ot. His character in postmodern popular culture—in...
iconography from the video of the Bowie single as part of the programme's visual design. In the first season's finale, a car bomb goes off at the line "One flash of light".