Day 150 | All The Madmen

I’ve read that this song was inspired by Bowie’s brother’s experience struggling with mental illnesses. The song itself clearly influenced one of the album covers (three of Bowie’s most iconic album covers are for the same album). Bowie employs the technique of speeding up his voice to sound cartoonish, or surreal, a technique he used for comical effect in his worst ever song, “The Laughing Gnome.” Here the effect is creepy (yes, I will get to “The Laughing Gnome”). Also, the phrase, “Zane, Zane, zane; ouvre le chien” first appears here, later to come back in “The Buddha Of Suburbia.” Album: The Man Who Sold The World