10 Weirdest David Bowie Songs

Perhaps the most experimental songs from the black sheep of the Berlin trilogy, 1979's Lodger, African Night Flight was Bowie's first venture in to world music with collaborator Brian Eno.

Inspired by a chance encounter with a group of German pilots in Kenya, the song explores David and Eno's fascination with world music and African rhythms. The resulting piece is also a product of Brian Eno's oblique strategies cards, a set of cards which the session musicians picked up at random and contained suggestions such as switching instruments or keeping and using any errors as if they were intentional.

Coming in at just under three minutes in length, this composition features a very unusual selection of sound effects created by Eno on his synthesisers over a simple piano riff and an African-inspired drum groove along with various percussion elements.

To complement the oddball instrumentation, Bowie's vocal over the top is largely spoken word, even containing elements of rap. The backing vocals on the track from Eno and Tony Visconti enhance the mood creating an oddly spooky chant halfway through the piece.