Johnny Cash Lyrics And Chords

Johnny Cash Lyrics And Chords

Johnny Cash Lyrics And Chords

The early seventies saw David Bowie being propelled towards superstardom, particularly after his exploits with the alien rock-star character Ziggy Stardust. But even before the Ziggy period, Bowie had wowed the critics with a gem of an album in Hunky Dory, which yielded the hit single "Changes". It wasn’t until 1973 that his record company decided to release "Life On Mars?" from the same album, which would become one of his most loved songs by fans and critics alike.

Opening with Rick Wakeman’s trademark fancy piano flurrying, the tune is soon carried by Bowie’s emotional vocals and use of surreal imagery. Groups of descending chords accompany the main melody, which is repeated a step higher on the second descent, and then harmonised in thirds. This makes for a slow, tense build up to the chorus, where the listener knows all the emotion will be unleashed. The lyrics in this first verse are as minimalistic as the instrumentation, describing "the girl with the mousy hair" whose parents argue with her, leading her to go and watch a movie. Perhaps she is in trouble, maybe pregnant; she walks through her "sunken dream" sad and isolated.