David Bowie

A beautifully written song about mental illness – David Bowie has said that the song was written about his half brother, Terry Burns, who had schizophrenia and was an inmate of Cane Hill Hospital (featured on the original U.S.A. cover of “The Man Who Sold The World”). Bowie sings in “All The Madmen” - “I'd rather stay here with all the madmen, than perish with the sad men roaming free, and I'd rather play here with all the madmen, for I'm quite content they're all as sane as me”. At the time of this song’s release, mental illness was a taboo subject. “All The Madmen” features Mick Ronson’s guitar versatility, the infectious percussion of Mick Woodmansey, unusual voice effects, and bass by Tony Visconti. Ronson and Woodmansey would soon become members of the Spiders From Mars. (C.M. 15 June 2023)

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