David Robert Jones (8 January 1947 – 10 January 2016), known professionally… Read Full Bio ↴David Robert Jones (8 January 1947 – 10 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie, was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, particularly for his innovative work during the 1970s. His career was marked by reinvention and visual presentation, and his music and stagecraft had a significant impact on popular music.

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)

The Prettiest Star
David Bowie Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Cold fire, you've got everything but cold fire
You will be my rest and peace, child
I moved up to take a place
Near you

So tired, it's the sky that makes you feel tried
It's a trick to make you see wide
It can all but break your heat

In pieces

Staying back in your memory
Are the movies in the past?
How you moved is all it takes
To sing a song of when I loved
The prettiest star

One day, though it might as well be someday
You and I will rise up all the way
All because of what you are
The prettiest star

Staying back in your memory
Are the movies in the past?
How you moved is all it takes
To sing a song of when I loved
The prettiest star

One day, though it might as well be someday
You and I will rise up all the way

All because of what you are
The prettiest star

Overall Meaning

David Bowie's The Prettiest Star is a love ballad that expresses a deep yearning for a lover. The poetic lyrics of the song convey that the lover has won over the heart of the singer, and despite everything they have, they are missing that one spark that makes their love complete - the "cold fire" that their lover possesses. The lyrics suggest that the singer's lover brings peace and rest, and it's their presence that completes them.

The imagery used in the song is remarkable, especially in the second verse, where the sky is metaphorically used to represent the agony and weariness that the singer feels without their lover. The lines, "It's a trick to make you see wide, it can all but break your heart in pieces" depicts the singer's struggles against the vast emptiness and their desire for the one thing that will forever light up their life.

The chorus of The Prettiest Star is significant, as it creates a message of hope that the two lovers will rise up together someday because of the beauty of the unnamed lover, who the singer refers to as 'the prettiest star.' The lyrics show that the singer's love is strong enough to withstand the test of time and that the memory of their lover will forever be etched in their mind, keeping them close despite physical distance.

Line by Line Meaning

Cold fire, you've got everything but cold fire
You are everything to me, except for distance and coldness.

You will be my rest and peace, child
I find solace and comfort in your presence.

I moved up to take a place near you
I've put myself in a position closer to yours.

So tired, it's the sky that makes you feel tried
You're exhausted because the vastness of the endless sky dwarfs you.

It's a trick to make you see wide
It's a deception that makes you aware of the immensity of the universe.

It can all but break your heart in pieces
You feel overwhelmed and crushed by the magnitude of it all.

Staying back in your memory, are the movies in the past?
Do you still hold on to memories of our shared experiences?

How you moved is all it takes to sing a song of when I loved the prettiest star
Your way of moving and being is a reminder of a time when I was enamored with you.

One day, though it might as well be someday
At some point in the future, possibly distant.

You and I will rise up all the way
We will ascend together and reach new heights.

All because of what you are, the prettiest star
It's all because of your radiance and magnificence, the most beautiful star.

Lyrics © Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: DAVID BOWIE

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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