RAK114
1971
When Peter Noone's manager Mickie Most heard the gazillion demos Bowie recorded in late 1970/early 1971, he decided that Oh You Pretty Things was the ideal launchpad for the solo career of the erstwhile Herman's Hermits singer and proto-Austin Powers.
With Bowie himself playing piano on this version that predates his own take on Hunky Dory, it's a marvel of clashing worlds.
Never mind that the song is about dark things, primarily the sudden onset of a schizophrenic episode. Paste on yer cheery gameshow host shit-eating grin and sing it for all you're worth, Peter.
Which, in point of fact, is not very much.
[MP3 deleted to make room for new ones. Sorry!]
5 comments:
It is kind of interesting (if predictable) how in Peter Noone's hands this song goes from cabaret into fey music-hall-via-paul-mccartney. More importantly, it's just funny to hear him sing the line "Gotta make way for the homo superior!" with seemingly no grasp of the double entendre.
Peter's follow-up 45 Walnut Whirl (also on RAK) is a lost classic. The flipside Right On Mother is a fantastic Oh You Pretty Things-alike.
Oops- sorry : forgot the "com" bit of my address ! It's :
http://www.livejournal.com/users/steviecat.
Stephen, thanks for posting that. Right On Mother is another Bowie composition, and Bowie plays piano on Noone's version.
Bowie's own demo is available in the Audio section of this fantastic Bowie site
OH MY GOODNESS!
i'd love to have this. :]
elvisneverdies@verizon.net
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