Bowie developed an interest in music from an early age. He studied art, music and design before embarking on a professional career as a musician in 1963. "Space Oddity", released in 1969, was his first top-five entry on the UK Singles Chart. After a period of experimentation, he re-emerged in 1972 during the glam rock era with his flamboyant and androgynous alter ego Ziggy Stardust. The character was spearheaded by the success of Bowie's single "Starman" and album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, which won him widespread popularity. In 1975, Bowie's style shifted towards a sound he characterised as "plastic soul", initially alienating many of his UK fans but garnering him his first major US crossover success with the number-one single "Fame" and the album Young Americans. In 1976, Bowie starred in the cult film The Man Who Fell to Earth and released Station to Station. In 1977, he again changed direction with the electronic-inflected album Low, the first of three collaborations with Brian Eno that came to be known as the "Berlin Trilogy". "Heroes" (1977) and Lodger (1979) followed; each album reached the UK top five and received lasting critical praise.
After uneven commercial success in the late 1970s, Bowie had three number-one hits: the 1980 single "Ashes to Ashes", its album Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps), and "Under Pressure" (a 1981 collaboration with Queen). He achieved massive commercial success in the 1980s starting with Let's Dance (1983). Between 1988 and 1992, he fronted the hard rock band Tin Machine before resuming his solo career in 1993. Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, Bowie continued to experiment with musical styles, including industrial and jungle. He also continued acting; his roles included Major Jack Celliers in Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence (1983), Jareth the Goblin King in Labyrinth (1986), Pontius Pilate in The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), and Nikola Tesla in The Prestige (2006), among other film and television appearances and cameos. He stopped touring after 2004 and his last live performance was at a charity event in 2006. In 2013, Bowie returned from a decade-long recording hiatus with The Next Day. He remained musically active until his death from liver cancer at his home in New York City. He died two days after both his 69th birthday and the release of his final album, Blackstar (2016).
During his lifetime, his record sales, estimated at over 100 million records worldwide, made him one of the best-selling musicians of all time. In the UK, he was awarded ten platinum, eleven gold and eight silver album certifications, and released 11 number-one albums. In the US, he received five platinum and nine gold certifications. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996. Rolling Stone ranked him among the greatest artists in history. As of 2022, Bowie was the best-selling vinyl artist of the 21st century.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Bowie
Studio albums
David Bowie (1967)
David Bowie/Space Oddity (1969)
The Man Who Sold the World (1970)
Hunky Dory (1971)
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (1972)
Aladdin Sane (1973)
Pin Ups (1973)
Diamond Dogs (1974)
Young Americans (1975)
Station to Station (1976)
Low (1977)
"Heroes" (1977)
Lodger (1979)
Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) (1980)
Let's Dance (1983)
Tonight (1984)
Never Let Me Down (1987)
Black Tie White Noise (1993)
The Buddha of Suburbia (1993)
Outside (1995)
Earthling (1997)
Hours (1999)
Heathen (2002)
Reality (2003)
The Next Day (2013)
Blackstar (2016)
Breaking Glass
David Bowie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Breaking glass in your room again
Listen
Don't look at the carpet
I drew something awful on it
See
But you got problems, oh-oh-oh-oh
I'll never touch you
without
Oh-oh-oh-oh
My little china girl
Breaking Glass is one of David Bowie's most confessional songs. It is an exploration of the signals of his collapse during the period he was working on the album Low. The lyrics depict a scene where Bowie is nervously causing chaos in someone's room, symbolizing his mental breakdown. The lines "Baby, I've been breaking glass in your room again, Listen," signify that he had done something that had caused trouble and damage. "Don't look at the carpet, I drew something awful on it, see," is Bowie's admission of guilt and further illustrates that he was in a fragile emotional state. He describes the person as "such a wonderful person, but you got problems," indicating that while the person is not to blame, Bowie's instability is creating issues in the relationship. He could not touch the persona without his "little china girl," which is a metaphor for his inability to connect emotionally with another person due to his experiences.
This song is said to be Bowie's nod to Talking Heads, who he helped produce during their Fear of Music album. But it's most likely he was influenced by the legend of Frank Woosey, a Welsh musician whose stage act involved smashing up glass sheet music. Also, it is one of the few songs that Bowie played electric guitar on himself.
Line by Line Meaning
Baby
Affectionate term for the person being addressed.
I've been
Acknowledging past actions.
Breaking glass in your room again
Referring to destructive behavior that has previously occurred in the room of the person being addressed.
Listen
Requesting the attention of the person being addressed.
Don't look
Advising the person being addressed not to view something.
At the carpet
Identifying the specific thing the person being addressed should not view.
I drew something awful on it
Explaining the reason why the person being addressed should not look at the carpet.
See
Requesting confirmation that the person being addressed understands the message.
You're such a wonderful person
Complimenting the person being addressed.
But you got problems oh-oh-oh-oh
Acknowledging that the person being addressed has difficulties.
I'll never touch you
Assuring the person being addressed that the destructive behavior will not harm them physically.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: David Bowie, Dennis Davis, George Murray
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
DrJKintobor
on I Can't Give Everything Away
I can totally imagine this being the end theme of Sabrina Online, when Sabrina marries Richard and they drive off into the sunset...
Peter Bonney
on Diamond Dogs
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