Tuesday 21 October 2008

Killer Opening Songs (David Bowie - Unwashed and Somewhat Slightly Dazed)

What happens when a Killer Opening Song is not a Killer Opening Song? No, no, K.O.S. is not trying to confuse you my dear reader, but recently K.O.S. felt at a loss after listening to a particular record: David Bowie's 1969 'Space Oddity'. Our Weekly Section on Great Introductory Album Tracks was already familiar with the record from its days in uni, yet its attention had always been captured, not by the title track with its famous 'Ground control to Major Tom' line, but by the second tune 'Unwashed And Somewhat Slightly Dazed', a raw rock'n'roll affair that threw K.O.S. off its stride the first time it heard it. K.O.S. has already blogged about this particular song before (you can read the article here) but in essence it can be summed up as terrestrial bedlam of the good kind.

This conundrum put K.O.S. to think of all those tracks that deserve to be in pole position in a record and yet end up being number five, eight or last. K.O.S. is aware that this opinion is completely subjective. After all its own definition of a Killer Opening Song is 'Composition at the beginning of an album whose aim is to make a strong and vivid impression on the listener, thus encouraging him/her to continue to listen to the record until the end'. So, is giving priority to musical numbers whose authors deemed not worthy enough to be placed at the beginning of their record contradictory? Yes, but by now you should be used to K.O.S.'s occasionally wilful and capricious ways. That's why, for the next few weeks it will be uploading tracks that it believes should have been Killer Opening Songs but never made the cut. Think of it as a way to redress the balance and right a wrong. You could also (unfairly, K.O.S. hastens to add) think of it as a way of K.O.S. uploading clips of songs that are very dear to it and whose position in an album disqualifies them from being included in a weekly section that it is all about Killer Opening Songs. For the time being, here's David Bowie with 'Unwashed and Somewhat Slightly Dazed'. And also for good measure, K.O.S. included the video of 'Space Oddity', too.

Note: The link below will take you to last.fm. It's a fantastic website and I can't recommend it highly enough. Download your own scrobbler, sit back and enjoy the lovely surprises last.fm will throw at you. Thanks.

'Unwashed and Somewhat Slightly Dazed'



Copyright 2008

19 comments:

  1. I can't remember a David Bowie song but I know he had one in the eighties which had a catchy tune and I danced to it at Studio 54. That tells you pretty much how old I am. :)

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  2. I look forward to hearing to more K.O.S. wannabe's. Your first choice is a great one! David Bowie is truly unique!

    BTW, I really like the video clip on your profile. May I ask who the father and son are?

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  3. 1969? Gasp. I had no idea that album had been around so long.

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  4. I hope everything is ok with you and your family my friend.

    I love David Bowie.

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  5. I look forward to hear and read the analysis of the frustrated K.O.S :)

    BTW, justo hoy le comentaba a mi esposo que soy de la opinion que "Space Oddity" es una de las mejores canciones JAMAS!!! Nunca me canso de escucharla.

    Lena

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  6. I have all "vinyls" of David Boowie !

    I like this singer...

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  7. Oh oh oh oh.

    Cuban, you have sent me into total reveries.

    I would have to offer Heroes as my personal KOS (not that you asked) but really any Bowie song could be a KOS in my book.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZlTrFcoHn0

    I saw him a few years ago in concert and screamed my little head off. Oh oh oh.

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  8. Oh, thank you very much, my dear fellow bloggers for your kind comments. TB, 'Heroes' is one of those unsung K.O.S. 'heroes' that never made it to number one in an album.

    Ces, I know the song you're on about, I was listening to it on Radio Paradise the other day.

    Lena, me encanta 'Space Oddity', por eso fue que tuve que ponerla al final.

    webradio, I am green with envy!:-)

    yoli, thanks, it was nothing major, fortunately.

    Greetings from London.

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  9. David Bowie is one of best pop musical icon to emerge from Britain and is widely regarded as one of the most influential writers of pop music.
    Me gusta, "the man who sold the world" por el cover de NIRVANA.


    oye cuban, ya colgamos lo del Dago.

    un abrazo, tony.

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  10. Voy pa' alla enseguida. 'The Man Who Sold the World' es una de mis canciones de Bowie preferidas y por supuesto que la tengo en mi scrobbler.

    Saludos desde Londres.

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  11. 1969, seriously? Where did the time go? And thanks for the trip down the 80's memory lane. :^)

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  12. I love David Bowie’s music, but I'm glad that he moved beyond the glam-rock look. Are there still K.O.S’s after i-Tunes?

    I really liked your Schadenfreude post below, especially that final quotation. It’s good to find some humor in these times. I find myself retreating into fiction.

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  13. Thanks, willow, yup, 1969, wow, what a year, uh!

    Sarah, what a good question! And maybe a whole post about itunes murdering Killer Opening Songs forever. In fact, when I have my CD player on I play the album tracks randomly most of the time.

    Thanks for popping by.

    Greetings from London.

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  14. Greetings from Michigan and thanks for stopping by!

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  15. Thanks to you, changes, for returning the visit. I take it that you're a Bowie fan, after all he has a song called 'Cha-cha-changes...'

    Greetings from London.

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  16. love the bowie-

    when my mom was prego she went to a bowie concert the day i was supposed to get ears according to her baby book, so i'm predisposed.

    shows what a baby i am : )

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  17. Oh, draftdragon, that's so sweet! Your Mum even had a chart to map your development as a baby! I bet she planned the Bowie concert on purpose so that you'd be exposed to music from the word go.

    Greetings from London.

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  18. Coincidences:
    Today I posted something on computers that reminded me of this line form SO:
    "And I think my spaceship knows wich way to go"
    Bowied Rocks!

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  19. Al, I'm headed your way, sir!

    Greetings from London.

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