Some musicians grow disheartened or quit altogether when they fail to achieve commercial success, but when a late 1960s David Bowie found himself in a similar situation, he decided to do the opposite and lean into the mainstream, which he called “Top 10 rubbish.” However, his plan ultimately backfired on both counts. The songs weren’t rubbish, and they never made the Top 10.
Despite his plan not working out the way he might’ve liked, Bowie’s goal of making the most universally palatable music kickstarted a relationship with his long-time collaborator, who would later help Bowie create some of his most iconic hits.
Years before David Bowie would become the avant-garde rock icon we know him as today, he was a struggling frontman flitting from one band to the next. By 1967, most of the cuts he released were commercially unsuccessful. Bowie’s manager, Kenneth Pitt, recalled a memory of the singer during this time.
“One evening, David was sitting watching television when, suddenly, he took his eyes from the screen and said to me, ‘I’m going to write some top ten rubbish,’” Pitt said (via BowieBible). “Nothing on television could have prompted this remark, so he must quietly have been pondering the problem of his unsold records, the movements on the screen becoming as flickering flames of a coal fire.”
“‘I don’t think you could ever knowingly write rubbish of any kind,’” I said. He laughed and replied, ‘Wanna bet?’ You’ve seen nothing yet.’” Bowie went on to write “Let Me Sleep Beside You,” “Karma Man,” and “In The Heat Of The Morning.” Bowie recorded these cuts with producer Tony Visconti. While the tracks proved to be neither rubbish nor Top 10 material, Bowie’s rebelliously conformist approach led to what would become one of the greatest musical collaborations of his career.
The Byproduct Of Making Rubbish
David Bowie might not have accomplished what he set out to do when writing his “Top 10 rubbish,” but his process of doing so led to a long-lasting relationship with producer Tony Visconti. Essex Music president David Platz introduced the two artists because, according to Visconti, he had a “way with the weird people.” While Visconti said the recording sessions went well, the songs failed to chart the way Bowie intended.
Nevertheless, Bowie and Visconti continued to work together in the following decades. Visconti produced some of Bowie’s most iconic albums, including his eponymous 1969 release, Young Americans, “Heroes,” and more.
“I met David within 15 minutes,” Visconti recalled of his first interaction with the future rockstar to Music Week. “We were left alone together and got on immediately; we realized we loved the same things, so we spent the day together and talked and talked. We loved the same things like Frank zappa, Mothers of Invention, and an early protest group in America called The Fugs, who actually used profanity in their records. That was pretty radical in those days. We got on like a house on fire.”
The silver lining of Bowie’s failed “Top 10 rubbish” attempt is an inspiring testament to the power creative cohesion can have over attempts at commercial appeal.
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