10 Greatest David Bowie Songs

In hindsight, it is quite surprising how popular this song has become when you consider just how truly strange it is, even by David Bowie's standards. The strained delivery of the lyrics, the zany almost cartoonish instrumentation and the dark lyrics, everything about the song signals that it shouldn't be a pop hit. But it is. And it is one of the most unique and inventive pop songs ever recorded.

A quasi-sequel to Space Oddity, Ashes to Ashes has Bowie returning to the Major Tom character. Except he is no longer a heroic figure. His is now a figure riddled with addiction, self doubt and anxiety. It is almost a critique of his own career up to that point, and of course Bowie uses Major Tom as a vessel to explore those themes in an extremely artistic way.

The outro has Bowie singing over and over again "My mama said to get things done/ You'd better not mess with Major Tom". The way Bowie sings it is reminiscent of a nursey rhyme, and solidifies Major Tom's transformation from hero to a much more questionable character. Although this sense of self doubt and self critique can be seen as quite tragic, for someone of such artistic prowess as David Bowie this served to keep any sense of ego firmly in check and continue experimenting with music and moving forward. It's this meta aspect of the song that makes it truly bittersweet when you consider the place it's being written from.

Either way, Ashes to Ashes is an easy standout song to choose from Bowie's catalogue.