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)
Red Money
David Bowie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That a man is not a man?
Can you see it in the sky
That the landscape is too high?
Like a nervous disease
And it's been there all along
It will tumble from the sky
Project cancelled
Tumbling central
Red money
Can you hear it fall
Can you hear it well
Can you hear it at all
I was really feeling good
Reet petite and how d'ya do
Then I got the small red box
And I didn't know what to do
'Cause my fingers could not grope
And I could not give it away
And I knew I must not drop it
Stop it, take it away
Project cancelled
Tumbling central
Red money
Can you hear it fall
Can you hear it well
Can you hear it at all
Project cancelled
Tumbling central
Red money
Can you hear it fall
Can you hear it well
Can you hear it at all
Can you hear it at all
Can you hear it at all
Red money
Red money
Red money
Red money
Such responsibility
It's up to you and me
In David Bowie's song "Red Money," the lyrics paint a picture of uncertainty and unease, with references to a man not being a man and a landscape being too high. The repeated line "It's been there all along" adds to the sense of something lurking in the background, like a nervous disease. The chorus of "Project cancelled, tumbling central, Red Money" implies a sense of failure or collapse, with the central project that was in motion now halted and falling apart. The use of the color red throughout the lyrics adds to the ominous tone and suggests danger or warning.
The second verse brings in an element of personal struggle, with the singer feeling good but then receiving a small red box that they don't know what to do with. The inability to give the box away or even hold onto it safely adds to the sense of uncertainty and unease already established. The repetition of the chorus with the line "Can you hear it fall, can you hear it well, can you hear it at all" reinforces the idea that something is happening, something is falling apart or tumbling down, but it may not be immediately noticeable.
Overall, "Red Money" is a song that explores themes of unease, failure, and uncertainty. The sense that something is not quite right is prevalent throughout the lyrics, with the repeated chorus acting as a warning or alarm that something is falling apart.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh, can you feel it in the way
That a man is not a man?
Can you sense the societal pressures that strip men of their humanity and reduce them to objects?
Can you see it in the sky
That the landscape is too high?
Can you observe the distance and disconnection between humans and the natural world?
Like a nervous disease
And it's been there all along
It will tumble from the sky
It's been there all along
These problems have been present for a long time and are pervasive, like a sickness that will soon reach its climax.
Can you hear it fall
Can you hear it well
Can you hear it at all
Are you attuned to the imminent collapse of society and environment?
I was really feeling good
Reet Petite and how d'ya do
Then I got the small red box
And I didn't know what to do
'Cause my fingers could not grope
And I could not give it away
And I knew I must not drop it
Stop it, take it away
The artist encounters a mysterious object that they cannot handle and is overwhelmed with the responsibility of dealing with it.
Such responsibility
It's up to you and me
The burden of preserving humanity and the natural world falls on all of us, as individuals and as a collective.
Project cancelled
Tumbling central
Red Money
The collapse of society and environment has reached its climax, and the signs of this disintegration are everywhere, including the financial system.
Red Money
Red Money
Red Money
Red Money
The repeated use of the phrase 'Red Money' serves as a grim reminder of how money has corrupted society and has contributed to its downfall.
Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: CARLOS ALOMAR, DAVID BOWIE
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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