The Man Who Polled the World, aka DAVID BOWIE POLL RESULTS

(jk)

the last 6 or 7 seem like they all should've been top 20, but I guess he just has that many amazing songs

is it any wonder

28. "Let's Dance" (from Let's Dance) - 422 points/22 votes/0 first-place votes

Official video: http://youtu.be/N4d7Wp9kKjA
Album: http://youtu.be/Af6jOq0dWqo
Live By Request, 2002: http://youtu.be/c4O6l6O-tgA

I voted for 3 post LD songs.... two of which were mentioned above, but seems a lost cause at this point.

Nothing's a lost cause imo. Up is down. Black is white. Fame is 33.

when an incongruous group of musicians make music together and it's bad, people just talk about how odd it is that they collaborated at all. when David Bowie, Nile Rodgers and Stevie Ray Vaughan made "Let's Dance," it just sounded so perfect that nobody really cared that much how improbable it was.

Nile is great on Let's Dance in his book. The incredible sense of freedom he got from being able to throw all this avant-garde playing into the song and, more prosaically, finally as a black dude being able to make a song with 'dance' in the title that that you didn't have to be able to dance to.

I wish it didn't have the lame twist & shout intro, because otherwise it's nothing but stunning

intro is great

I love the two rehearsal bootlegs of SRV playing old songs for the Serious Moonlight tour. Shame his manager canned his involvement at the last minute.

♪♫ the serious moonlight ♫♪

eeriah oooaaahhh

27. "Drive-In Saturday" (from Aladdin Sane) - 441 points/20 votes/0 first-place votes

Album: http://youtu.be/HAqUDDMhfA0
LWT, 1973: http://youtu.be/MfsN8UH8p1Q

so far, i've only placed "cat people", "all the young dudes", "fashion", "diamond dogs" and "let's dance". should have probably voted for "aladdin sane" and "fame", but didn't. assume all the good songs will be tomorrow?

and when you say run, i'll run with you
and when you say hide, we'll hiiiiiiiiiiiide hiiiiiiiiiiiiiide hiiiiiiiiiiiiiide hiiiiiiiiiiiiiide

^^ i always wait the whole song for this part

not so much "TREMBLE LIKE A FLOOOOOOOOOWER" but really that's ok too

let's dance is all-time great

Top 5 prediction:

Heroes
Ashes to Ashes
Sound and Vision
Life on Mars
Station To Station

that would be a grody top five

if neither "rebel rebel" nor "suffragette city" make the top five, then this whole poll is invalid

the laughing gnome is surely a lock

I love how Bowie also appears with a clipboard as the supervisor in the let's dance video for a .5 second appearance. It's so unnecessary.

I think Drive-In Saturday was the song that changed from a casual Bowie fan who only owned a greatest hits album to a fan who seeks out all of his albums. The first time I heard it I was like whoa I need to check out what else this guy has done.

Drive In my number 2. Love sad sci fi Bowie best of all.

Drive-In Saturday is my favorite song of Aladdin Sane. Love his vocals.

I love how Bowie also appears with a clipboard as the supervisor in the let's dance video for a .5 second appearance. It's so unnecessary.

(My wife and I watching this video recently.)

ME: "Hey! This video was filmed in Sydney!"
SS: *pause* "So you caught on to that, did you?"

Wow, feeling like "Let's Dance" should have made my ballot. Out-thought myself on that one I think.

the "Let's Dance" video is better art than the song imo. I'm a sucker for Buñuel adapted for Aussie ends.

26. "Quicksand" (from Hunky Dory) - 451 points/19 votes/0 first-place votes

http://youtu.be/nrptumUcv8E

ooh, didn't expect this one

Think my attitude on Let's Dance changed from merely liking the song (as a radio single) to loving it after actually dancing to it (on a crowded dancefloor) with a hot girl I was lusting after.

Pour me out another phone
I'll ring and see if your friends are home
Perhaps the strange ones in the dome
Can lend us a book we can read up alone
And try to get it on like once before
When people stared in Jagger's eyes and scored
Like the video films we saw

poss. my favourite Bowie lyric. But what are these "video films" of which you speak?

Trying to do this results stuff and anything else is tricky! Post a result; wash the dishes; post a result; prep the chicken; post a result; mix the marinade; post a result; put the chicken in the marinade; post a result; make some lunch.

Don't forget to eat the chicken. That's the key, I find.

"Quicksand" first of mine to place in quite a while. It's possible I heard the J. Mascis cover before the original, but regardless I love this song, such a strange feel to it.

That's going on the grill this evening, awwwyeah. xp

Wish Bowie had done a couple D&D modules, or maybe Gamma World.

This was my 21st, replaced at the last minute by Bewlay Brothers.

Top 5 prediction:

Heroes
Ashes to Ashes
Sound and Vision
Life on Mars
Station To Station

Space Oddity instead of Sound and Vision and that's probably it

Think my attitude on Let's Dance changed from merely liking the song (as a radio single) to loving it after actually dancing to it (on a crowded dancefloor) with a hot girl I was lusting after.

same here. it happened the night before I sent my ballot (which now had Let's Dance as an honorable number 20)

I just checked back in on this thread after eating dinner, so I'm late with this, but 'Rock'N'Roll Suicide' was my #1 selection. As a kid I was familiar with DB's early/mid 80's SM/LD/Labyrinth/etc. period, but I didn't know about anything before. Then by chance I heard R'n'RS and was like "WTF was THAT?!?!". The DJ back-announced the title of the track, and the next day I went to the record store to pick up a copy of whatever album it was the track appeared on (ZS of course). I'd been a massive Hendrix fan but pretty much knocked that on the head and started buying all the DB stuff I could get my hands on.

Also now thinking about how Bowie fandom can lead to more sublime enjoyment of the Church, especially their lyrics.

25. "Queen Bitch" (from Hunky Dory) - 467 points/21 votes/0 first-place votes

Album: http://youtu.be/S5P63qGTm_g
The Old Grey Whistle Test, 1972: http://youtu.be/O8oGyGo1q-k

OH YEAH

I know it's kind of a stupid song but it's a really good one for strutting.

My #8!

#10 for me

so glad "quicksand" made it, one of my very favorite bowie songs, though i ranked it too low on my ballot. "knowledge comes with death's release ah ah ah ah..."

Also now thinking about how Bowie fandom can lead to more sublime enjoyment of the Church, especially their lyrics.
totally

Also now thinking about how Bowie fandom can lead to more sublime enjoyment of the Church, especially their lyrics.

I dunno why this has happened to me :(

*HASN'T