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)
Wild Eyed Boy From Freecloud
David Bowie Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Undetected by the stars
And the hangman plays the mandolin
Before he goes to sleep
And the last thing on his mind
Is the Wild Eyed Boy imprisoned
'Neath the covered wooden shaft
Folds the rope into it's bag
Blankets smoke into the room
And the day will end for some
As the night begins for one
Staring through the message in his eyes
Lies a solitary son
From the mountain called Freecloud
Where the eagle dare not fly
And the patience in his sigh
Gives no indication
For the townsmen to decide
So the village dreadful yawns
Pronouncing gross diversion
As the label for the dog
Oh, "It's the madness in his eyes"
As he breaks the night to cry:
It's really me really you and really me
It's so hard for us to really be
Really you and really Me
You'll lose me, though I'm always
Really free
And the mountain moved it's eyes
To the world of realize
Where the snow had saved a place
For the Wild-Eyed Boy from Freecloud
And the village dreadful cried
As the rope began to rise
For the smile stayed on the face
Of the Wild-Eyed Boy from Freecloud
And the women once proud clutched
The heart of the crowd
As the boulders smashed down
From the mountain's hand
And the Magic in the stare
Of the Wild Eyed Boy said "Stop, Freecloud
They won't think to cut me down"
But the cottages fell
Like a playing card hell
And the tears on the face of the Wise Boy
Came trembling down to the rumbling ground
And the missionary mystic of peace love
Stumbled back to cry among the clouds
Kicking back the pebbles
From the Freecloud mountain track
The song "Wild Eyed Boy From Freecloud" by David Bowie is a story about a man who is imprisoned and sentenced to death. The song is set in a village where the hangman is solemnly preparing to execute the Wild Eyed Boy imprisoned beneath the covered wooden shaft. The Wild Eyed Boy is from a mountain called Freecloud, where the eagle cannot fly. He is staring at the people with a message in his eyes, but nobody can interpret his message. He cries out to the village to recognize his existence, but no one can understand his words.
As the song progresses, the mountain from which the Wild Eyed Boy comes seems to sense his impending death. The Wild Eyed Boy believes that the village people will not cut him down, but this is not the case. The boulders from the mountain's hand start to fall, and the cottages collapse like a house of cards. The missionary mystic of peace and love stumbles to cry, and the pebbles from the mountain track are kicked back. The song is rich in metaphor, and it describes the plight of the Wild Eyed Boy who wants to be free.
The song was released on Bowie's album, Space Oddity, in 1969. The album was released in the UK as David Bowie and in the US as Man of Words/Man of Music. The song was never released as a single but was included in other compilations later on. It was Bowie's second studio album, and it showcased his developing skills as a songwriter.
Line by Line Meaning
Solemn faced
With a serious expression
The village settles down
The village becomes quiet and still
Undetected by the stars
Not noticed by the stars (no special event or change in the sky)
And the hangman plays the mandolin before he goes to sleep
The executioner plays a musical instrument before sleeping
And the last thing on his mind
The thing he thinks about just before sleeping
Is the Wild Eyed Boy imprisoned
He is thinking about the boy who is imprisoned with wild eyes
'Neath the covered wooden shaft
Under the wooden beam used for hanging people
Folds the rope
He puts away the rope used for execution
Into its bag
He puts the rope in its bag
Blows his pipe of smolders
He smokes a pipe filled with ashes and embers
Blankets smoke into the room
The smoke fills the room like a blanket
And the day will end for some
Some people's day will come to a close
As the night begins for one
But for the hangman, his night is just beginning
Staring through the message in his eyes
Looking intently at the message conveyed by his eyes
Lies a solitary son
There is a lonely young man
From the mountain called Freecloud
This young man is from a mountain named Freecloud
Where the eagle dare not fly
This mountain is so high that even eagles are afraid to fly there
And the patience in his sigh
He is patient, as evidenced by his sigh
Gives no indication
Does not signal or show anything
For the townsmen to decide
This offers no hint or clue for the townspeople to make a decision
So the village Dreadful yawns
The 'dreadful' village let out a collective yawn in boredom or tiredness
Pronouncing gross diversion
Declaring it to be a big distraction or disturbance
As the label for the dog
Like giving a name or title to a dog
Oh "It's the madness in his eyes"
The townspeople think it's madness in the young man's eyes that is the cause of concern
As he breaks the night to cry:
As he cries out loudly during the night
"It's really Me
This is really me
Really You
And this is really you
And really Me
Again, this is really me
It's so hard for us to really be
It's difficult for us to truly exist
Really You
Once more, this is really you
And really Me
Again, this is truly me
You'll lose me though I'm always
You will still lose me even though I am always
Really free"
Truly free
And the mountain moved its eyes
The mountain seems to be alive and focused on something
To the world of realize
It moves its gaze to the world of reality (the village and its people)
Where the snow had saved a place
The snow covered an area that was later revealed to be significant
For the Wild Eyed Boy
This area was waiting for the boy with wild eyes
From Freecloud
The same one from earlier
And the village dreadful cried
The village became very afraid and upset
As the rope began to rise
As the hangman began his execution
For the smile stayed on the face
The young man remained calm and even smiled
Of the Wild Eyed Boy
The boy with the wild eyes
From Freecloud
Same one from earlier
And the women once proud
The previously proud women
Clutched the heart of the crowd
Became emotional and grabbed the attention of everyone watching
As the boulders smashed down from the mountain's hand
The mountain began throwing rocks down (perhaps in response to the young man's execution)
And the magic in the stare
The intense gaze of the young man
Of the Wild Eyed Boy said
Seemed to say (perhaps non-verbally) something to the people
"Stop, Freecloud
Perhaps pleading for them to stop the violence
They won't think to cut me down"
The villagers will not try to save him
But the cottages fell
The homes of the villagers began to be destroyed
Like a playing card hell
It seemed like a chaotic and terrible game of cards where everything was being lost
And the tears on the face
The young man began to cry
Of the Wise Boy
This time, he is called wise
Came tumbling down
His tears flowed incessantly
To the rumbling ground
To the sounds and movement of the destruction happening around them
And the missionary mystic of peace/love
Perhaps this refers to Bowie himself, as someone who promotes love and acceptance
Stumbled to cry among the clouds
He is so distraught that he collapses and begins to scream out for justice
Kicking back the pebbles
As he falls, he kicks up pebbles (perhaps a sign of his anger or frustration)
From the freecloud mountain track
He is still on the mountain, but everything around him has changed drastically
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Stuart Barrett
youve got to admit from this came a star we will never see again in our life time
Clark Nova
Incredibly beautiful & moving version. Thank you really for this gem.
Timothy Goyer
Genius song from a true genius. Thank you, David. Peace.
Isabelle ELIAS
Quelle magnifique version... <3
Thommy Harmand
Love this version, not drowned out by the orchestra.This simple cello accompaniment is perfect!
etmeyutub
I wish there was a recording of the full song live like he did it on Ziggy Stardust the movie. That was the first time I heard it. Loved it. Yeah, disappointed with the album version with the orchestra. This one is cool though. Stripped down like the demo versions of Ziggy and Lady Stardust that were on the Ryko reissues 1990
Cella Dore
This is a beautiful version... Thank you!
Lieve De Groef
A more naked version of this song! Simply brought with voice and cello! 🧡
paddy plage
Love this song one of the great man's best.
Mary Price
WOW! Beautiful.... Been a fan since 1973 ....Never heard the B side.... I miss him so much.