First Time Hearing David Bowie's Life On Mars?

[@AYANNACYMONE]

*What do you think this video means?* 🤔

[@karedhyn]

About a girl with the fight of her parents and go to see movies

[@tamaradelempickafacebook]

It means that you should react to David Bowie "Heroes" Live Aid 85. 😁💖💕

[@castilloanayabrayanisaac724]

React to Starman! Such a nostalgic song

[@AYANNACYMONE]

lol! will do! 💕

[@AYANNACYMONE]

👀

[@moonstone1159]

Bowie was always an other-wordly figure in self-presentation and with music to match. He's a true original and genius and inspired other artists.

[@AYANNACYMONE]

Seriously! He definitely had his own unique style that to this day I've not seen replicated!

[@joshuayeager3686]

The original story behind Bowie writing this song is that he had entered a song writing contest shortly before he became famous and ended up losing to the person who wrote “My Way” for Paul Anka. Bowie ended hating the song and said he could make it better so the music in “Life On Mars” is actually in a minor key to “My Way”’s original with some other different variations he added to the song and the writing he obviously wrote to match the tone.

[@bookwoman53]

Hi. When David was young he and a friend were at the playground fighting over a girl. The friend punched David in the eye. He accidentally scratched the eyeball and paralysed the blue iris. David’s pupil was permanently dilated.

[@TheNraveles]

8 months late but in a documentary I think they confirmed that was a myth and he got it solely bc he got hit in the eye with a ball

[@AlexisLopez-pb8ms]

There will never be another Bowie

[@elenaofavalormoanadisneypr6893]

Alexis Lopez William Finley From Phantom Of The Paradise(1974) Is The Original David Bowie. Just Like Paul Williams Is The Original Elton John.

[@Ross.Cavendish]

Life on Mars was recorded 50 years ago (August 1971) at the Trident Studio in Soho, London. It is the same studio where The Beatles recorded Hey Jude.

[@davidfisher8821]

Good reaction! Most of Bowie’s music is perplexing. He wants to leave the interpretation of the song up to the listener...what a song means is up to you. He builds a relationship with the listener through his mysterious lyrics. You’ve just scratched the surface, there are scores of great Bowie songs! Try Station to Station, Rock and Roll Suicide, Man who Sold The world, or Moonage Daydream for a little variety!

[@AYANNACYMONE]

Thanks!! I love that. I think art and music in general is subjective. It's nice that he leaves the meaning up in the air for listeners to take what they resonate with and leave what they don't! Also, thank you so much for the recommendations! I've been wondering which songs I should dive into next! 🤍

[@Tampahop]

Bowie always seemed to be ahead of the times as far as music goes, and every time he changed his music style, he changed his persona. He has been Major Tom, Aladdin Sane, Ziggy Stardust, Halloween Jack, the Thin White Duke, the Goblin King, Screaming Lord Byron, and the Blind Prophet (I may have missed a few).

[@Codex7777]

Aladdin Sane wasn't a new character. It was still Ziggy. Bowie described the album as, 'Ziggy goes to America'. :)

[@tamaradelempickafacebook]

Maybe you should react to David Bowie "Fame". 💕

[@gsparkman]

This is from 1973. Everyone seems to suggest songs from Bowies later career. Nothing wrong with that, but learn why Bowie is Bowie you should listen his music back from this point. And then move forward in time to experience the Cha-Cha-Changes in his styles. Early Bowie is what made him the star that inspired so many other artists.

[@timlynch5710]

I've been a Bowie fans for decades. Ayanna, I've never heard such a more on target analysis as this video is for this song. You've nailed it. You just get it. I love you.

[@SuperDancingdevil]

I was just a kid when I first heard this song without any visuals I liked it a lot, As I got older I still liked it and when I saw the video finally I realised how beautiful a man could be, Now I’m much older and I still like that song a lot and he remained beautiful in that video.

[@vibingwithvinyl]

This is permanently linked with the british TV show "Life on Mars" in my head. Loved that show.

[@robertsmithfan877]

i love all of david bowies eras but the ziggy era will always be my favorite tbh, i love how experimental it is fashion and music wise

[@georgepotter353]

bowie studied with marcel marcou (greatest mime ever) to make every finger, hand, foot...etc movement that he made be meaningful and well placed. Exceptional theatrics in every performance.

[@brucedillinger9448]

He studied with Lindsay Kemp.

[@rebeldiamond601]

I recommend listening to him sing it live in his later years. Sooo much better than the recorded version in my opinion. He brings so much depth and emotion to it, like he throws his whole soul and entire being into the performance. It’s amazing to listen to.

[@andreaaase1065]

I’m so excited for you, discovering David Bowie. You’re in for a treat! You mentioned fame, so be sure to check out that song! That came a little later in the 70s when he was experimenting with “plastic soul” as he called it. He helped launch the careers of Stevie Ray Vaughan (Let’s Dance) and Luther Vandross (Young Americans), he always surrounded himself with amazing talent, and always changed things up. It’s impossible for me to pick a favorite, but I’ll list a few: Rock N Roll Suicide, Station to Station, Panic In Detroit, Fame, as I already mentioned, Boys Keep Swinging... there’s so much more but I’ll pause there. Enjoy!

[@Bellhelly]

First time hearing that interpretation of this song and I believe Bowie would have love it. Thanks. Oh Youngblood sung a Bowie cover in a event online to celebrate Bowie´s birthday.

[@ETBrenner]

This is perhaps my favorite of all of Bowie's songs - and I love a LOT of his work. And I really like your analysis of this song - I think you got a lot of the same stuff I get out of it: the feeling of alienation and jadedness regarding the world. He's got so much great material to choose from, but I'd really like to hear your reaction to the title track of The Man Who Sold The World (there's also a beloved cover of that song by Kurt Cobain/Nirvana that's very worth reacting to also, later on...).

[@oscarclarke2653]

YES! I love seeing people reacting to Life On Mars?

[@AYANNACYMONE]

🤍🤍🤍 such a great song!

[@1nelsondj]

Bowie was one of the greats, hard to think of a more influential music artist. He was constantly evolving and his music evolved with him. Early on he tried to be a singer like Anthony Newley, he was in jazz and blues bands before recording some novelties songs and then moving on to folk rock. It took him quite a while to become famous. His "Ziggy Stardust" album put him on the map, it was a concept album about an alien who came to Earth. He made an r&b album a few years later called "Young Americans" then started working with Brian Eno, recorded his Berlin trilogy, 2 of those albums were half moody instrumental synth songs. He went the pop-star route in the mid-eighties then abandoned it to front an actual rock band Tin Machine. Always changing.

[@f.murphy8340]

You are bright, honest and thoughtful. A famous critic once said about "message" - that a "poem should not mean, but be." The vibe, if you will, is the meaning. You also need to consider context, and Bowie's masterpiece, "Ziggy Stardust" as a self-contained work of art should be listened to in its entirely - this song is from that album. Well done!

[@TheMike_I]

Yes! Jessica Lange singing Life On Mars was priceless! Did you watch AHS Coven, Stevie Nicks is my favorite ❤️

[@AYANNACYMONE]

omg yesss! Coven is definitely one of my favorite seasons!! I really enjoy Stevie/Fleetwood Mac's music, so that was a plus as well!!

[@karenribaul9710]

I had the pleasure of being Frances Conroy's stand in on Coven and Freak Show. Jessica Lange was the epitome of a talented actress!

[@chrismeadows4216]

I'll be back after the song premieres to give extra context like before, but for now, I'd like to request My Death (live Hammersmith 1973) for you to hear David at the height of his Ziggy Stardust era. During the final show of the tour, in fact. It's a live-only cover with no David Bowie studio version. An English translation of a Jacques Brel song. An immensely passionate and emotional performance and perhaps the most powerful live performance of the era. I cannot recommend it enough.

[@AYANNACYMONE]

Thanks Chris for the recommendations! I will definitely make sure I watch that, it sounds amazing!! I really appreciate your comments! Hope you have a nice day!

[@chrismeadows4216]

@@AYANNACYMONE You too! I'm excited to see how these songs feel for you. The lyrics for Life on Mars? are really complicated, but just as importantly, it's a beautiful song and the video is gorgeous.

[@rhyfeddu]

I really appreciate your extended thoughts about what you're watching, really getting into it 👍 If you haven't already (since you talked about this song in relation to fame) definitely look at Bowie's song "Fame" - even more explicit commentary. Welcome to Bowie! It's a ride. lol Thanks!

[@jacoolckers6465]

The British TV series "Life on Mars" is a must see.

[@phohead]

This song and Under Pressure by Bowie and Mercury(Queen) gives me the same nice, beautiful, melancholy feeling. Love it!

[@stevedotwood]

The starman from Mars. Excellent reaction. (someone hit him in his youth, hence the different pupils, but it fits him so well - Bowie the alien)

[@fifimsp]

I saw Bowie in an interview say something about how people come up with more complex and deep things then the ever had in mind. LOL.

[@johnheppenstall4904]

'So much to unpack and no way to unpack it'. Just how I felt in 1973 when it was released as a single! It was No 3 UK single chart. It IS a sad song and kind of an upside-down take on 'My Way'. Apparently.

[@gwynedd-1]

One of my favourite Bowie songs. I used to sing this at the top of my voice (which is real bad lol) with my friends. Gone too soon.

[@coolhive2941]

His left eye, I believe, was a result of an injury and it’s permanently dilated. In many videos or appearances it often looks to have a different color iris, but this video shows it clearly dilated. As for the song, it’s a classic but not one of my faves. It always felt like an interlude to me that went on too long. Can you react to Fashion? Or Fame? Those are top tier to me.

[@AYANNACYMONE]

Ohhh okay! I don't think I noticed it in my Space Oddity reaction, so I thought it might've been a visual effect! I will definitely be reacting to those two songs! Thanks for the recommendations! Hope you have a nice day! 💕

[@lordgarth7635]

@@AYANNACYMONE The faded out look is just an older special effect to highlight his unique look challenging stereotypes. Fame next perhaps, plus Golden Years, Heroes, Starman and Let's Dance :)

[@crazyelf62]

At 15 years old in 1962, he got into a fight with a childhood friend as they were both after the same girl. He was treated for it for 4 months but doctors never could get it back to normal and he had bad depth perception from then on. He later said it was one of those accidents that worked to his advantage which added to his mystique The friends name is George Underwood and they remained friends until Bowie died.

[@lindataylor5636]

I saw at the beginning they said it was produced by Mick Rock????? I thought he was the guy who took all the pictures of rock stars during the 70's

[@chrismeadows4216]

He was. Also a videographer, so RCA hired him to shoot all things Ziggy Stardust in 1972 and 1973.

[@lindataylor5636]

@@chrismeadows4216 I just ordered a copy of the photo he took of david and ronno on a train, quite an iconic photo

[@chrismeadows4216]

@@lindataylor5636 Undoubtedly. I just got a t-shirt with Ziggy holding the saxophone. The Rebel Rebel single cover.

[@jameshumphreys9715]

In 2019 the BBC did a programme called Icons, they have Icons from the 20th Century, Muhammad Ali Sport, Nelson Mandela and Margaret Thatcher leader David Bowie won the entertainment Category, he was against Charlie Chaplin, Marilyn Monroe and Billie Holiday, this song was seen as a work of art in the show.

[@LiveHedgehog]

The TV show of the same name uses this song very well at 4 different points. It's such a good song. The original UK Life on Mars, not the US remake.

[@wpollock1]

This video is from 1973, so I think it was very basic....I really don't think there was any message in the video itself....but the song of course is quite complex. Bowie is VERY artsy, as you will see. Ashes to Ashes video is very imaginative. Bowie is so creative. Great insights....you are very intelligent.

[@christinawoolley6206]

Early Bowie....yes! He was intrigued by Japanese Kabuki and it influenced his style. Your comments about his face are spot on. Thank you so much for sharing! 😻

[@CA-tz2sg]

I cry every time I hear his 1999 live version of this song from Paris. He was much older but his performance is beyond. You must see it! This song is one of my all time favorites. I always have felt like the girl with mousy hair...a little out of place.

[@lillymsf5946]

Be careful - David Bowie songs have a dangerous way of getting stuck in your head. I cannot tell you the number of school days i had where i was in the courtyard, writing an essay, doing art after school, making a metal car or even just waiting outside the classroom and i started humming.... "Though i'm past one hundred thousand miles, I'm feeling very sti-i-i-i-hill....." I annoyed many of my friends - except none of them knew David Bowie so they were well dropped XD

[@AYANNACYMONE]

hahahha i think your warning may have come a bit too late! Already humming Life on Mars? continuously! 😂 Hope you're having a nice day! Sending you love! 💕

[@lillymsf5946]

@@AYANNACYMONE Thanks! XD very happy to see you getting into some of the old stuff; Life on Mars is a criminally underrated Bowie song. Try Starman or Young Americans next - all are great rlly. Love ur Harry Styles reactions too. Keep it up! ;)

[@imano8265]

Love you´re reaction! This video is from 1973 after he had become a star. The song from "Hunky Dory"was released 1971 I think when he was no star so to say. But it was rereleased as a single in 1973 and it became a success and ended up in third position in the UK charts. I only wantet to say that the video and the song are not cotemporary and were made from very different positions.

[@karedhyn]

The best reaction how ever Ayanna, TEA!!!

[@777kvp]

To me-you Totally got the duel meanings in this song and the beauty of the string arrangement too-Bravo!!

[@dusterss6290]

Bowie's eyes are different because he got punched in a fight when young. Apparently a thumb hooked his eye or something. But I see the lyric about beating up the wrong guy and being in a best selling show because it predicts the Rodney King shit show.

[@lindataylor5636]

He had one eye permanently dilated due to getting punched in the face by a high school friend over a girl, if you want to hear a real uncomfortable song by Bowie and the Spiders you should play Five Years, it is meant to make you feel uncomfortable and it does, even though Five Years is off of the Ziggy album Bowie had not transformed himself into the Ziggy character yet, if you listen to the string arrangements during the song that was Mick Ronson, he was a great arranger but never got credit it for it he also co produced all the early Bowie album but got no credit for that either, you should play a song with Bowie and Ronson together, they were very compelling on stage, Bowie looking like someone who landed from outer space and Ronno looking like God's gift to women

[@Codex7777]

Visuals have always been an important part of Bowie's performance but here you seemed focused so much on the visuals, that you lost sight of the music and lyrics...

[@tommccormick5140]

Great job breaking this song down! Love your point of view. 🌹

[@SuperSuperswan]

One of the best videos of all time.

[@TheWizardOfEgo]

Jessica Lange did such a fantastic job I cried

[@chrismeadows4216]

This song is about oppression, for the most part. More specifically, it's about Hermione Farthingale, a woman David loved who he was in a band called Feathers with. Her parents were arguing about politics and her dad told her to go see a movie so she wouldn't have to be in that negative environment. When she watched the film, she saw too many parallels to real life. Police beating people up over race, navymen hitting each other for petty reasons. David's mother, his dog, and clowns represent women, animals, and freaks, and they didn't matter to the British government at that point in time. When he asked "Is there life on Mars?", he was asking if these "aliens" will be recognized as existing or if they'll be ignored by society for the rest of time. "Now the workers have struck for fame, because Lennon's on sale again" was a reference to Vladimir Lenin, the face of communism, and John Lennon, who had just released the song Working Class Hero. Disney had animation strikes in the 1940s while Dumbo was being made, and discontent in the 1970s when workers were being underpaid. Mickey Mouse represents both a cash cow and a sacred cow. Disney soulessly uses films to make money while not caring about fans or employees, and it's supposed to be impossible to criticize them because of the good done for people as an entertainment corporation. This song's history began in France. It was originally a composition called Comme d'habitude (As usual), and it was quite famous there performed by a man named Jacques Revaux. David's manager had him doing work translating foreign songs to English for record labels. He rewrote the song as Even a Fool Learns to Love and was thoroughly shot down. Paul Anka bought the rights to Comme d'habitude and rewrote it as well. He offered it to a man named Frank Sinatra (who you may be familiar with) over dinner, and it became the classic hit song My Way. David was so disappointed his version didn't become a hit that he decided to write a better song, so he used the same chords to write Life on Mars?, and Rick Wakeman, who played mellotron on Space Oddity and joined the progressive rock band Yes, embellished the piano parts and recorded them for this song. The part at the end is very special. If you listen closely, you can hear David's guitarist Mick Ronson shouting because someone made a phone call while he was in the middle of another piano take. This song was one of David's absolute favorites, and he opened up his self-chosen compilation album iSelectBowie with it. He wrote the lyrics in one afternoon. It's a very special song, and I'm glad you've heard it. ❤

[@markpalmer8083]

Bloody Hell. What was he on when he wrote that in one afternoon?

[@chrismeadows4216]

@@markpalmer8083 Surprisingly, nothing. He hummed the main melody while he was shopping for clothes, got home, and started writing on his grand piano.

[@karenleedom3354]

Thank you, Chris, so satisfying an answer💝

[@chrismeadows4216]

@@karenleedom3354 my pleasure. David's music is always so deep. I find it helpful to share everything I can so there's a better understanding of his work. 🥰💙

[@kelvinbiehler708]

Bonjour Ayanna Cymone, je ne connais pas cette chanson de David Bowie mais je serai très content de la découvrir grâce à votre réaction !

[@AYANNACYMONE]

Bonjour! Comment allez-vous? Oui! On peut le découvrir ensemble :) 🤍

[@kelvinbiehler708]

@@AYANNACYMONE Je vais bien merci et vous ? Oui on va découvrir cette chanson, je serai au rendez-vous le 18 janvier ! J'apprécie toutes vos réactions de Madonna ce sont les meilleures et j'aime aussi vos autres réactions car elles me font découvrir d'autres chansons que je ne connais pas 🙂

[@AYANNACYMONE]

@@kelvinbiehler708 💓💓💓

[@kelvinbiehler708]

@@AYANNACYMONE merci, j'attends votre nouvelle réaction avec impatience, bonne soirée 🙂

[@IshwaraYogaNET]

Nice, great vibe/energy ... maybe some Led Zeppelin, John Coltrane, Bach, Nina Simone 💕

[@castilloanayabrayanisaac724]

I fckng love this soooooooong

[@nathcascen473]

he s not pupil size different ,it calls eterochromia ^^

[@hamlord8912]

You should do the Stars are out tonight a Bowie song from 2013

[@AYANNACYMONE]

Okay! 🤍

[@klaudia1405]

David Bowie was so special for this world You should react to space oddity and heroes

[@AYANNACYMONE]

Absolutely agree! I acually did react to Space Oddity! Here's a link if you wanna check it out! kzbin.info/www/bejne/iZ7Oc6h7g8eqp7c I'll also definitely be reacting to Hereos at some point, I hear it's epic! 🖤

[@klaudia1405]

@@AYANNACYMONE it is 😌

[@phohead]

Bowie's childhood friend hit him in the eye damaging his pupil. He was jealous over a girl he liked that wanted Bowie instead. This happened, in what would be elementary school in the states.

[@pyrmontbridge4737]

I don't think you need to look at the camera when commenting during the song. Just keep watching the video, otherwise you miss bits.

[@Vana1970]

Its good what you're used to hearing are bad covers. This is the God called Bowie. Its also Ziggy not Bowie you're seeing.

[@augustodutra3839]

Hey, I think you would like to react to Aurora's version of this song. Checkout Aurora - Life on Mars Live in nidarosdomen

[@SilentAssassin01234]

His pupils are like that from a fight in high school.

[@johnmannymoo8626]

He used the cut up method for this song. Words, phrases written down, cut up and pulled out of a hat at random

[@judleym5877]

You got it!

[@marcosruiz1709]

best song ever

[@dr.winstonoboogie7302]

Hope you are enjoying your life on Mars with the Spiders! Goodbye,Blind Prophet👨🏻‍🎤

[@TheWizardOfEgo]

Great reaction -

[@davidknizner3773]

BOWIE = Rock god!

[@grant7345]

there is an unbleached version online which I like better

[@bigs1546]

you need to watch the British series "Life on Mars"

[@coyoteken1000]

Saying that David Bowie is different is like saying water is wet.

[@jefmay3053]

Ashes to Ashes...sequel to Space Oddity

[@johnbarrett9673]

Proper music .... 🇬🇧

[@VIDSTORAGE]

David was a bunch of wild guys and aliens

[@davidenders9282]

He has a glass eyeball from losing it as a child.

[@jsan3743]

There is so much Bowie.... how about Fame, Golden years, Sound and Motion.... if you want to dive deeper hit Time, Five Years, Heroes, Ashes to Ashes

[@jsan3743]

Also, he was punched when he was young resulting in one pupil forever dilated

[@mjp3186]

The video distracks from the music

[@classiccomedycinemaprogram1640]

First time I saw that video - it's very interesting but distracting from the great song

[@rubyhewitt1]

I swear if this is your first time hearing it then, wow.

[@turkishwarriormapper7641]

My first time i heard it on The Nasa Perseverance Rover landing Live stream.

[@leonline3424]

what's so scary?

[@AYANNACYMONE]

Not literally scary. I was more so saying the general eeriness of the video was a bit unnerving in the way that Bowie is in a blank room with no features. The contextual unknowingness presented was 'frightening' in a sense.

[@kevindobson6568]

Can you please react to. Peter Gabriel song called Darkness Live performance 2003 Please

[@rubyhewitt1]

Yungblood really stole a dead man's song jeez.

[@karenhaney9431]

Pretty sure the pupil is permanently dilated from a fight he had with a friend.

[@seanie002]

“Remember how they messed up this old fool...” 🎵

[@KALINGANJA007]

ok kids..im officially fukn old..

[@somerville_official8120]

Thanks for uploading! If you have a minute, we posted a cover of Van Halen. As fellow music lovers, we'd love if you would check it out. It's on our channel. Don't be too tough on us :)

[@alisonquick7881]

All rhis tells me is that she doesn;t know what the word imfamous means.

[@tobiasisback4605]

It's funny how the theatricality of European pop sensibility is anathema to Puritan America - it disturbs and repulses.

[@58andyr]

too many pauses. goodbye.