Holy Holy
Encyclopedia
"Holy Holy" is a song by David Bowie
, originally released as a single in 1971. It was recorded shortly after the completion of The Man Who Sold the World
, in the perceived absence of a clear single from that album. Like Bowie's two previous singles, it sold poorly and failed to chart.
At the time Marc Bolan
's Tyrannosaurus Rex was a significant source of inspiration for Bowie. On this track, according to NME
editors Roy Carr
and Charles Shaar Murray
, "Bolan's influence is so much in the ascendant that it virtually amounts to a case of demonic possession
. The single's B-side was another Tyrannosaurus Rex flavoured song called "Black Country Rock
". Bowie performed "Holy Holy" on Britain's Granada Television
wearing a dress, which he would also wear on the cover of the soon-to-be-released UK edition of The Man Who Sold the World.
A more frantic version of the song was recorded in 1971 for The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
. It was dropped from the album, but subsequently appeared as the B-side to "Diamond Dogs
" in 1974. This version was also released as a bonus track on the Rykodisc
reissue of The Man Who Sold the World in 1990 (despite the sleeve notes referring to it as the original cut), as well on as the Ziggy Stardust - 30th Anniversary Reissue bonus disc in 2002. Bowie himself vetoed the inclusion of the original at a late stage, and the single remains the 1970 version's only official release, though it has appeared on several bootlegs.
' Deathrock
band, Shadow Project
, as the last song on their debut.
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...
, originally released as a single in 1971. It was recorded shortly after the completion of The Man Who Sold the World
The Man Who Sold the World
The Man Who Sold the World is the third studio album by David Bowie. It was originally released on Mercury Records in November 1970 in the United States and in April 1971 in the UK. The album was Bowie's first with the nucleus of what would become the "Spiders from Mars", the backing band made...
, in the perceived absence of a clear single from that album. Like Bowie's two previous singles, it sold poorly and failed to chart.
At the time Marc Bolan
Marc Bolan
Marc Bolan was an English singer-songwriter, guitarist and poet. He is best known as the founder, frontman, lead singer & guitarist for T. Rex, but also a successful solo artist...
's Tyrannosaurus Rex was a significant source of inspiration for Bowie. On this track, according to 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...
editors Roy Carr
Roy Carr
Roy Carr is an English music journalist. He joined the New Musical Express in the late 1960s and has edited NME, VOX and Melody Maker magazines...
and Charles Shaar Murray
Charles Shaar Murray
Charles Shaar Murray is an English music journalist. His first experience in journalism came 1970 when he was asked to contribute to the satirical magazine Oz...
, "Bolan's influence is so much in the ascendant that it virtually amounts to a case of demonic possession
Demonic possession
Demonic possession is held by many belief systems to be the control of an individual by a malevolent supernatural being. Descriptions of demonic possessions often include erased memories or personalities, convulsions, “fits” and fainting as if one were dying...
. The single's B-side was another Tyrannosaurus Rex flavoured song called "Black Country Rock
Black Country Rock
"Black Country Rock" is a song written by David Bowie in 1970 for the album The Man Who Sold the World, released in November 1970 in the U.S. and April 1971 in the UK. An upbeat blues-rock number, it has been described as a "respite" from the musical and thematical heaviness of the remainder of the...
". Bowie performed "Holy Holy" on Britain's Granada Television
Granada Television
Granada Television is the ITV contractor for North West England. Based in Manchester since its inception, it is the only surviving original ITA franchisee from 1954 and is ITV's most successful....
wearing a dress, which he would also wear on the cover of the soon-to-be-released UK edition of The Man Who Sold the World.
A more frantic version of the song was recorded in 1971 for The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars is a 1972 concept album by English musician David Bowie, which is loosely based on a story of a rock star named Ziggy Stardust. It peaked at number five in the United Kingdom and number 75 in the United States on the Billboard Music...
. It was dropped from the album, but subsequently appeared as the B-side to "Diamond Dogs
Diamond Dogs (song)
"Diamond Dogs" is a 1974 single by David Bowie, and the title track of the album of the same name.The lyric introduces the listener to Bowie’s latest persona and his environment; Halloween Jack dwells on top of tenement buildings in a post-apocalyptic Manhattan...
" in 1974. This version was also released as a bonus track on the Rykodisc
Rykodisc
Rykodisc Records is an American record label. It is owned by Warner Music Group, operates as a unit of WMG's Independent Label Group and is distributed through Alternative Distribution Alliance.-Company history:...
reissue of The Man Who Sold the World in 1990 (despite the sleeve notes referring to it as the original cut), as well on as the Ziggy Stardust - 30th Anniversary Reissue bonus disc in 2002. Bowie himself vetoed the inclusion of the original at a late stage, and the single remains the 1970 version's only official release, though it has appeared on several bootlegs.
Production credits
- Producers:
- Herbie FlowersHerbie FlowersHerbie Flowers is an English musician specialising in bass guitar, double-bass and tuba. He is noted as a member of Blue Mink, T...
on "Holy Holy" - 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...
on "Black Country Rock"
- Herbie Flowers
- Musicians:
- 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...
: vocals, guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with... - Mick RonsonMick RonsonMichael "Mick" Ronson was an English guitarist, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, arranger and producer. He is best known for his work with David Bowie, as one of The Spiders from Mars...
: guitar - Herbie FlowersHerbie FlowersHerbie Flowers is an English musician specialising in bass guitar, double-bass and tuba. He is noted as a member of Blue Mink, T...
: bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
on "Holy Holy" - Mick WoodmanseyMick WoodmanseyMick 'Woody' Woodmansey is an English rock drummer from Driffield, Yorkshire, best known for his work with David Bowie and the Spiders from Mars...
: drumDrumThe drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
s - Tony Visconti: bass on "Black Country Rock"
- David Bowie
Cover versions
"Holy Holy" was covered by Rozz WilliamsRozz Williams
Rozz Williams was an American vocalist and musician of several varieties, most famous for fronting the band Christian Death, then later Shadow Project with musician Eva O, though his main project throughout his career was the industrial, Premature Ejaculation...
' Deathrock
Deathrock
Deathrock is a term used to identify a sub-genre of punk rock incorporating horror elements and spooky atmospherics, that emerged on the West Coast of the United States in 1979.-Characteristics:...
band, Shadow Project
Shadow Project
Shadow Project were a deathrock band formed in the early 1990s with Rozz Williams, Eva O and Paris Sadonis. The band's first album included bassist Jill Emery and drummer Thomas Morgan....
, as the last song on their debut.