10 Great Songs Never Released As Singles
5. Hang On To Yourself - David Bowie
In the 1970's, David Bowie seemed to be revolutionizing the rock landscape with every subsequent release. With his 1972 album, Bowie fashioned an epic story based around the character of Ziggy Stardust. As Ziggy wanders about town trying to fulfill his dream of being a rock and roll star, "Hang On To Yourself" comes in as a sample of Ziggy's band, the Spiders From Mars.
The song has a brash swagger to it but also a frantic energy as it careens its way through power chords in the chorus. This compliments the vocal perfectly as the singer seems to be at the end of his rope with his love and is almost at the edge of sanity.
While helping define glam rock, Bowie was on the cusp of another genre when creating this song: punk rock. The way the guitar riffs play off the vocals in the chorus would go on to be used in many punk acts from the Ramones to more modern bands like Green Day.
There are many highlights to be found on Ziggy Stardust, but "Hang On To Yourself" showed the real power that Bowie's band possessed at their greatest moments.