“I gaze in defeat”
Today’s lyrics are track number eleven from The Next Day, How Does The Grass Grow? As you know, we’ve illustrated each set of words with something from the upcoming David Bowie is Exhibition at The V&A. @Victoriaandalbertmuseum
Today is a slight deviation in the shape of last weekend’s Sunday Times Magazine in case you missed it.
Entitled Oh! You Pretty Thing, the text is adapted from Theatre of Gender, by Camille Paglia, which is itself taken from the remarkably good value and absolutely beautiful David Bowie is Exhibition catalogue. (Exclusive online offer here)
The article is peppered with some great, if not slightly eerie, backstage shots of the Bowie mannequins in storage.
The online version of the item also has a fascinating video interview with designer Jonathan Barnbrook.
And so on to the words for How Does The Grass Grow? A song which (despite the cheerfulness of the Jerry Lordan inspired ya ya ya’s), is pretty harrowing stuff.
How Does The Grass Grow? (David Bowie/Jerry Lordan)There’s a graveyard by the stationWhere the girls wear nylon skirts andSandals from HungaryThe boys ride their Riga 1’sUpon the little hillSuch sadness and griefThe trees die standingThat’s where we made our trystsAnd struggled with our gunsWould you still love meIf the clocks could go backwardsThe girls would fill with blood andThe grass would be green againRemember the deadThey were so greatSome of themYa ya ya ya ya ya ya ya ya yaYa ya ya ya ya yaHow does the grass growBlood blood bloodYa ya ya ya ya ya ya ya ya yaYa ya ya ya ya yaWhere do the boys lieMud mud mudHow does the grass growBlood blood bloodBut I lived a blind lifeA white face in prisonBut you made a life out of nothingNow I ride my black horseI miss you moreThan you’ll ever ever knowWaiting with my red eyesAnd my stone heartYa ya ya ya ya ya ya ya ya yaYa ya ya ya ya yaHow does the grass growBlood blood bloodYa ya ya ya ya ya ya ya ya yaYa ya ya ya ya yaWhere do the boys lieMud mud mudHow does the grass growBlood blood bloodI gaze in defeatAt the stars in the nightThe light in my life burnt awayThere will be no tomorrowThen you sigh in your sleepAnd meaning returns with the dayYa ya ya ya ya ya ya ya ya yaYa ya ya ya ya yaWhere do the boys lieMud mud mudHow does the grass growBlood blood blood