Thursday, January 7, 2016

Major Tom

I was listening to BBC News Hour yesterday morning. It aired a segment featuring one of David Bowie's many lovers. She knew Bowie back in 1968, and they briefly lived together. The segment played a few snippets of Space Oddity. I haven't heard the song in years, so I looked it up today on YouTube. It was like running into an old friend. It's so familiar, but I noticed a whole different song, this time when I listened to it.

The song came out the year men walked on the moon. The words of the song describe something out of an earthbound experience. I can almost feel myself in that orbiting tin can with Major Tom. I'm even more impressed with the lyrics now, than I was back in 1969. Reflecting back on the song and the time, I'm thinking maybe Bowie dropped some acid for his trip. For me, it's still a beautiful song.

Space Oddity (Major Tom)