David Bowie part 2

Bowie had his breakout Top 5 hit in 1969 with "Space Oddity", inspired by "2001, A Space Odyssey" and helped by the timing coincidence of the first human landing to the moon. His album of the same name followed and it was a good album of hippy folk psychedelia, with an occasional discreet homoerotic image ("Wild Eyed Boy From Freecloud"). The album, however, was not successful. Perhaps because "Space Oddity" was wrongly perceived as a novelty song and novelty acts sold singles, not albums.

A year later, in 1970, recorded the album "The Man Who Sold The World", a dark, hard rocking album with influences from Bowie's then literary interests (philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche, poet Kahlil Gibran and the top names of sci-fi, among others). This album was also not a success, although the title track became a big hit for Lulu (and was later recorded by Nirvana). It was with this album that DB laid down the foundation for his gender fluid persona: he appeared on the record sleeve in a Victorian long floral dress and with long hair, freely flowing to his shoulders. The album also contained possibly his strongest gay-themed song.

The Width Of A Circle, an 8-minute epic that told the story of the self-realization of a young man who grew up in a narrow-minded small town and had to struggle with internalized societal and religious impediments in order to come to enjoy his sex life as a gay man, became one of the most important parts of his live shows. To us gay people its meaning was quite obvious, as well as to the more progressive Rock journalists. An Internet research however indicating that there's a lot of straightwashing going on - and not just for this song. Anyway...

I could analyze for you the song word for word, which would be fun for me, but since it's 8+ minutes it would take too much of your time, I'll just present the last verse: after various attempts to approach life through religion, psychology, literature, mysticism and straight sex, our hero finally finds himself in a gay bar for the first time. There, after the initial trepidation, he hooks up with a leather clad lad and their sexual encounter is so powerful that it's like an ascent to heaven - or a descent to hell. As the prude in himself is telling him to go back, his body demands that he'd do it again. The description of "the money shot" in the final line is the most original that I've ever encountered. Here's the complete last verse, it actually reads like good erotic literature:

He swallowed his pride and puckered his lips

And showed me the leather belt round his hips

My knees were shaking my cheeks aflame

He said you'll never go down to the Gods again

(Turn around, go back)

He struck the ground a cavern appeared

And I smelt the burning pit of fear

We crashed a thousand yards below

I said do it again, do it again

(Turn around, go back)

His nebulous body swayed above

His tongue swollen with devil's love

The snake and I, a venom high

I said do it again, do it again

(Turn around, go back)

Breathe, breathe, breathe deeply

And I was seething, breathing deeply

A spitting sentry, horned and tailed

Waiting for you.