Space Oddity
Astronaut's lonely broadcast
Space Oddity is a 1969 song by David Bowie that tells the story of a fictional astronaut, Major Tom, who becomes disconnected from ground control and drifts into space.
The song's title plays on the phrase "space odyssey," referencing Stanley Kubrick's film released the year before.
It established Bowie's reputation for theatrical, conceptual songwriting and introduced Major Tom, a character he would revisit throughout his career.
The term sometimes describes anyone who seems mentally adrift or disconnected from reality.
Fictional stranded spaceman
- lonelinessState of lacking companions
- solitudeState of being alone
- disconnectionState of being severed
- driftingMoving without purpose
detachment · alienation · void · silence · floating · unreachable · lost contact · separation
Starman glam rocker
- Major TomFictional stranded spaceman
- StarmanExtraterrestrial being or visitor
- BlackstarDying sun phase
- glam rockFlamboyant seventies musical style
Ziggy Stardust · Rebel Rebel · Ashes to Ashes · art rock · chameleon · reinvention
Enclosed dose container
- orbitCurved celestial path
- spacecraftVehicle for outer space
- rocketPropulsion-driven spacecraft
- liftoffMoment of ascent
countdown · zero gravity · floating · stars · Earth · satellite · mission control · reentry
Pleasing sequence of notes
- acoustic guitarUnplugged stringed instrument
- balladNarrative poem or song
- lyricsWritten words for music
- countdownBackward enumeration to zero
fade out · 1969 · single · rerecording · arrangement · strings · production · folk rock
Resembling a hallucination
- surrealDreamlike and strange
- kaleidoscopicShowing constantly changing patterns
- mind-expandingBroadening one's awareness
- hallucinatorySeeming falsely perceived
dreamlike · otherworldly · altered states · distortion · echo · reverb · swirling · hypnotic
Major Tom
Fictional stranded spaceman
- lonelinessState of lacking companions
- solitudeState of being alone
- disconnectionState of being severed
drifting · detachment · alienation · void · silence · floating · unreachable · lost contact · separation · abandonment
David Bowie
Starman glam rocker
- Major TomFictional stranded spaceman
- StarmanExtraterrestrial being or visitor
- BlackstarDying sun phase
Ziggy Stardust · glam rock · Rebel Rebel · Ashes to Ashes · art rock · chameleon · reinvention
capsule
Enclosed dose container
- orbitCurved celestial path
- spacecraftVehicle for outer space
- rocketPropulsion-driven spacecraft
liftoff · countdown · zero gravity · floating · stars · Earth · satellite · mission control · reentry · astronaut
melody
Pleasing sequence of notes
- acoustic guitarUnplugged stringed instrument
- balladNarrative poem or song
- lyricsWritten words for music
countdown · fade out · 1969 · single · rerecording · arrangement · strings · production · folk rock · haunting
trippy
Resembling a hallucination
- surrealDreamlike and strange
- kaleidoscopicShowing constantly changing patterns
- mind-expandingBroadening one's awareness
hallucinatory · dreamlike · otherworldly · altered states · distortion · echo · reverb · swirling · hypnotic · sixties
- Space SongsStarman
- 1969 HitsAquarius, Come Together, Suspicious Minds, Proud Mary, Bad Moon Rising
- David BowieZiggy Stardust, Starman, Rebel Rebel, Ashes to Ashes, Modern Love
Space OddityHomeward Bound
Destined for home
Sweet Home Alabama · American Pie · Proud Mary · Route 66 · Galveston
Space OddityJohnny B. Goode
La Bamba · Hound Dog · roots rock · rockabilly · traditional country
space, oddity, spaces, spaced, spacing, spacer, spacious, spatial, spatially