The proposition: Bowie and Queen frontman Freddie Mercury would both improvise large parts of their new song “People On The Street.” One singer would head into the studio and howl whatever was in his heart, and then the other would be locked out, unable to hear what was happening. They would improvise, and they’d do it without listening to one another. But Bowie had an idea that seemed interesting enough for Queen to go along with it. Queen were used to running their own show. It had been a spontaneous affair, a hangout session that turned productive and then stressful. David Bowie and Queen, fueled by red wine and cocaine and a general spirit of competition, had been working on a new song together in Queen’s Switzerland studios. They weren’t supposed to be able to hear each other. “People on the streets.” And today, who’s not feeling under pressure?
Lyrically, I find it fascinating, and it feels very apt at this moment. It’s disjointed in a beautiful way, like three different songs smashed together I also read that Queen and Bowie clashed hard, yet they created something transcendent and unforgettable. One of my favorites of all time, by two of the greatest in rock history. Here’s what Shanies writes about his pick: This column is at the request of Stereogum donor David Shanies. SONG AT #1 THAT WEEK: Olivia Newton-John – “ Physical”
We’ll publish those once a week for the next couple of months. To those All Access donors who pledged $1,000, I promised that I’d write a Number Ones-style column on a song of their choosing, as long as that song charted on the Billboard Hot 100. We at Stereogum recently wrapped up our fundraising campaign, and we’d like to thank everyone who donated to support this site and keep it going. Welcome to the Number Ones Bonus Tracks, the addendum to our regular Number Ones column.
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