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Little Wonder (David Bowie song)

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"Little Wonder"
Single by David Bowie
from the album Earthling
Released27 January 1997
Recorded1996
StudioLooking Glass (New York City)
Genre
Length
  • 3:40 (single version)
  • 6:02 (album version)
LabelParlophone
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • David Bowie
  • Reeves Gabrels
  • Mark Plati
David Bowie singles chronology
"Telling Lies"
(1996) 		"Little Wonder"
(1997) 		"Dead Man Walking"
(1997)
Music video
"Little Wonder" on YouTube

"Little Wonder" is a song by English musician David Bowie, released as the second single from his 21st album, Earthling (1997). "Little Wonder" backed by three remixes,[1] was issued on 27 January 1997.[2] The single was a success, peaking at number 14 in the UK and topping the chart in Japan.[3] The accompanying music video was directed by Floria Sigismondi and depicts Bowie at three different ages. Biographer David Buckley considers it a dance-oriented video rather than a rock one, reminiscent of Orbital's "The Box" (1996).[4]

"Little Wonder" was one of the first tracks Bowie and Reeves Gabrels wrote for the album.[5] Bowie called writing the track a "ridiculous" exercise in pure stream of consciousness: "I just picked Snow White and the Seven Dwarves and made a line for each of the dwarves' names. And that's the song [laughs]. And then I ran out of dwarves' names, so there's new dwarves in it like 'Stinky'."[6] Originally set to be a "nine-minute jungle electronic epic",[4] the song was trimmed to six minutes for the album.[3] Described by biographer Chris O'Leary as a combination of arena rock and electronica,[2] it utilises percussion and power chords from the Prodigy's "Firestarter", a 1996 UK number one that assisted in bringing drum and bass rhythms to the mainstream.[3]

Background

[edit]

The sampled spoken line "If it's good to ya, it's gotta be good for ya" during the instrumental break, comes from the spoken intro of a live Steely Dan song called "Bodhisattva" from the Citizen Steely Dan box.

Two main interpretations to the lyrics are given by James E. Perone, who writes that the song may simply represent some characteristics of Bowie's own personality or, in another case, an alien observing aspects of the life on Earth.[7] Bowie uses the names of all seven dwarfs in the lyrics.[6]

The drum break is sampled from The Winstons instrumental, "Amen, Brother", a popular drum solo and sample commonly referred to as the "Amen break,"[8] while the chord progression is similar to an early David Bowie song, "Can't Help Thinking About Me."[citation needed]

Title Mix and additional production Duration Additional credits and notes
Album Version Mark Plati 6:02
Edit Mark Plati 3:40
Censored Video Edit Mark Plati 4:09 Released on 2004 Earthling 2 CD.
Ambient Junior Mix Junior Vasquez 9:55 Programmed by Frederick Jorio.
Club Dub Junior Mix Junior Vasquez 8:10 Programmed by Frederick Jorio.
4/4 Junior Mix Junior Vasquez 8:10 Programmed by Frederick Jorio.
Juniors Club Instrumental Junior Vasquez 8:14 Programmed by Frederick Jorio.
Danny Saber Mix Danny Saber 3:06 Cello by David Coleman, sonic hair and make up by John X.
Danny Saber Dance Mix Danny Saber 5:30 Cello by David Coleman, sonic hair and make up by John X.

Critical reception

[edit]

British magazine Music Week rated the song three out of five, adding, "The idea of giving Bowie a drum & bass makeover sounds slightly absurd but, though disconcerting, it seems to work. The central song, however, is a little understated and something a little more bold might have worked better."[9] David Sinclair from The Times wrote, "Racing jungle beats and strafing bursts of ultra-distorted guitar underpin the first taster from Bowie's new album, Earthling. Quite a grower even if it does sound, in places, disconcertingly like Babylon Zoo."[10]

Christopher Sandford calls "Little Wonder" Bowie's "most exciting and upbeat single since 'Blue Jean' [1984]".[11]

Live versions

[edit]

Bowie performed "Little Wonder" as the opening song at his fiftieth birthday celebration concert in New York City on 9 January 1997. This performance was included on the Earthling in the City CD. Bowie played the song live (along with "Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps)") on the 8 February 1997 episode of Saturday Night Live.[12] A July 1997 performance at the Phoenix Festival was released in 2021 on Look at the Moon! (Live Phoenix Festival 97). The song was performed at the GQ Awards in New York City on 15 October 1997, later released on the live album LiveAndWell.com in 2000. Bowie's 25 June 2000 performance of the song at the Glastonbury Festival was released in 2018 on Glastonbury 2000. A live version recorded at BBC Radio Theatre, London, on 27 June 2000 was released on the bonus disc accompanying the first releases of Bowie at the Beeb in 2000.

Other releases

[edit]
  • The "Danny Saber remix" appeared on the soundtrack for the European release of The Saint as well as the second soundtrack for the movie Hackers. This remix also appeared on the four-track bonus disc that followed the live album LiveAndWell.com in 2000.
  • A video edit was released on a Jukebox 7" release of the single "Dead Man Walking" in 1997.
  • Three remixes, "Censored Video Edit", "Junior Vasquez Club Mix" and "Danny Saber Dance Mix", also appeared on the bonus disc of the Digibook Expanded Edition of Earthling from 2004.
  • The single version has been included on compilation albums: some editions of Best of Bowie (2002), the 3-disc and 2-disc versions of Nothing Has Changed (2014), and the 2-disc edition of Bowie Legacy (2016).
  • A new 'Unplugged' Danny Saber Mix was released on streaming services to commemorate Earthling's 25th anniversary in February 2022.

Music video

[edit]

The accompanying music video for "Little Wonder" was directed by Floria Sigismondi, an Italian-Canadian photographer and director. It is set in a dystopian world of mutants, depicting rapid-pace shots of Bowie as an aging Ziggy Stardust and Halloween Jack wandering the New York streets and subways. The video includes video sculptures by the artist Tony Oursler. Bowie has said of Sigismondi's work, "I thought she just has a wonderful eye, great textures, fabulous cutting."[13] The video is in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art, New York.[14]

Track listings

[edit]
  • UK CD version one
  1. "Little Wonder" (edit) – 3:40
  2. "Little Wonder" (Ambient Junior Mix) – 9:55
  3. "Little Wonder" (Club Dub Junior Mix) – 8:10
  4. "Little Wonder" (4/4 Junior Mix) – 8:10
  5. "Little Wonder" (Juniors Club Instrumental) – 8:14
  • UK CD version two (limited edition)
  1. "Little Wonder" (edit) – 3:40
  2. "Telling Lies" (Adam F Mix) – 3:58
  3. "Jump They Say" (Leftfield 12" Vocal Mix) – 7:40
  4. "Little Wonder" (Danny Saber Mix)" – 3:06
  • US CD version
  1. "Little Wonder" (Album version) – 6:02
  2. "Little Wonder" (Ambient Junior Mix) – 9:55
  3. "Little Wonder" (Club Dub Junior Mix) – 8:10
  4. "Little Wonder" (Danny Saber Dance Mix) – 5:30
  • European CD version one
  1. "Little Wonder" (Album version) – 6:02
  2. "Little Wonder" (Ambient Junior Mix) – 9:55
  3. "Little Wonder" (Danny Saber Mix) – 3:06
  4. "Little Wonder" (Club Dub Junior Mix) – 8:10
  5. "Little Wonder" (4/4 Junior Mix) – 8:10
  • European CD version two
  1. "Little Wonder" (edit) – 3:40
  2. "Little Wonder" (Junior Club Mix) – 8:10
  3. "Telling Lies" (Adam F Mix) – 3:58
  • European CD version three
  1. "Little Wonder" (edit) – 3:40
  2. "Telling Lies" (Adam F Mix) – 3:58
  • Japanese CD version
  1. "Little Wonder" (edit) – 3:40
  2. "Little Wonder" (Junior Club Mix) – 8:10
  3. "Little Wonder" (Danny Saber Mix) – 3:06
  4. "Little Wonder" (Club Dub Junior Mix) – 8:10
  5. "Little Wonder" (4/4 Junior Mix) – 8:10
  • UK 12" version
  1. "Little Wonder" (Junior Club Mix) – 8:10
  2. "Little Wonder" (Danny Saber Mix) – 5:30
  3. "Telling Lies" (Adam F Mix) – 3:58
  • European 12" version
  1. "Little Wonder" (Junior Club Mix) – 8:10
  2. "Little Wonder" (Danny Saber Mix) – 5:30

An additional three promo CD singles were also released.

Production credits

[edit]
Producer
Musicians

Charts

[edit]
Chart (1997) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[16] 94
Belgium (Ultratip Flanders)[17] 19
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[18] 59
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[19] 10
Ireland (IRMA)[20] 27
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[21] 32
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[17] 50
Scotland (OCC)[22] 14
UK Dance (OCC)[23] 20
UK Singles (OCC)[24] 14

Cover versions

[edit]
  • Haitian Hate Gods – .2 Contamination: A Tribute to David Bowie (2006)
  • Idiots Loop - Cover Ups (2019)

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Pegg 2016, p. 786.
  2. ^ a b O'Leary 2019, chap. 10.
  3. ^ a b c Pegg 2016, p. 166.
  4. ^ a b Buckley 2005, pp. 441–455.
  5. ^ Considine, J. D. (October 1997). "David Bowie: The FI Interview". Fi. pp. 36–41.
  6. ^ a b Kuipers, Dean (March 1997), "David Bowie: Is There Life on Earth?", Raygun Magazine (44)
  7. ^ James E. Perone, The Words and Music of David Bowie, Greenwood Publishing Group, 30 June 2007, p.119.
  8. ^ Otzen, Ellen (29 March 2015). "Six seconds that shaped 1,500 songs". BBC. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
  9. ^ "Reviews: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 11 January 1997. p. 21. Retrieved 5 May 2022.
  10. ^ Sinclair, David (25 January 1997). "The week's top pop releases; Records". The Times.
  11. ^ Sandford 1998, pp. 340–350.
  12. ^ SNL Transcripts: 8 February 1997. Neve Campbell, Host http://snltranscripts.jt.org/96/96l.phtml
  13. ^ Pegg, Nicholas (2011). The Complete David Bowie (6 ed.). London: Titan Books, Titan Publishing Group. p. 147. ISBN 9780857682901.
  14. ^ "David Bowie, Director: Floria Sigismondi, "Little Wonder" 1997". MoMA Collection. Museum of Modern Art, New York. Retrieved 3 December 2018.
  15. ^ Discogs - Zachary Alford - (profile & discography)
  16. ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988-2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
  17. ^ a b Ultratop: David Bowie - Little Wonder, retrieved 9 April 2015
  18. ^ Library and Archives Canada: Top Singles – March 17, 1997, 17 March 1997, retrieved 12 February 2016
  19. ^ Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava.
  20. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Little Wonder". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 7 October 2023.
  21. ^ "David Bowie — Little Wonder". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  22. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100 02 February 1997 - 08 February 1997". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 13 October 2021.
  23. ^ "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved October 7, 2023.
  24. ^ Official singles Chart results matching:LITTLE WONDER, retrieved 9 April 2015
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