“Over the Wall We Go” (1966)

A strong contender for the worst song Bowie ever wrote, let alone performed, “Over the Wall We Go” is better known as a version performed by Oscar, whose real name was Paul Nicholas. It’s a supposedly comedic song about a prison break. I’m posting Bowie’s demo version for… April Fool’s Day, because it is a foolish song. (Also, I understand the meaning of, “nana,” a British slang word used prominently in the song, essentially means, “fool”).

That said, I used the occasion to learn a little more about Oscar. Paul Nicholas, who is still alive, has a Wikipedia page that reviewed his genuinely extensive career as an actor and singer. Here’s what’s in there about his Oscar phase:

“After taking a new stage name, Oscar, he began a long association with the Australian-born entrepreneur, Robert Stigwood. In 1966, Nicholas signed with Stigwood’s Reaction Records label and his first single under his new name, “Club of Lights”, scraped into the lower reaches of the Radio London Fab Forty chart. The second Oscar single was a version of a Pete Townshend song “Join My Gang”, which The Who never recorded. His third single, a novelty song called “Over the Wall We Go” (1967) is notable for being written and produced by a young David Bowie (Nicholas at this time was managing the band The Sweet and recommended them to record producer Phil Wainman whom he worked with at Mellin Music Publishing). After settling on the stage name Paul Nicholas, he found success in the UK in musicals, beginning with the leading role of Claude in Hair (which Stigwood produced) before winning the title role in the original London production of Jesus Christ Superstar.”

The good news for both Nicholas and Bowie is that they both would go on to long, successful careers, leaving “Over the Wall We Go” as a forgettable footnote of their past.