When David Bowie pleaded with Lulu to make a record
When David Bowie wanted to work with a certain artist, he almost always had his own way. After all, he was the David Bowie; how could a mere mortal possibly refuse his request? Lulu certainly couldn’t when he came forward with an irresistible proposal in 1973.
The pair were two of Britain’s biggest stars at the time, and by chance, they met each other at a hotel in Sheffield. Bowie was in town to perform at the City Hall, and Lulu came along to watch the performance before they celebrated the night away at the Hallam Tower Hotel. The Scottish singer even performed an impromptu concert in the hotel bar after the show alongside fellow singer Labi Siffre.
It was a memorable meeting and one that led to rumours about a romance between the pair, which Lulu has always kept close to her chest. However, in 2019, she did say on the ITV programme Lorraine they had a “unique relationship,” and revealed: “I had a little bit of a thing about him I would say. And it was reciprocal.”
While the details of their personal relationship remain sparse, under Bowie’s tutelage, Lulu recorded a cover of his song, ‘The Man Who Sold The World’. His original version was unleashed on the world in 1970, and the singer felt Lulu was the perfect person to reimagine his creation.
The session for ‘The Man Who Sold The World’ took place while Bowie was in France at Château d’Hérouville to fittingly record a covers album of his own, Pin-Ups. In 2008, Lulu opened up to Uncut about how the magical cover happened to be and proved why Bowie was the ultimate master of persuasion. “I first met Bowie on tour in the early ’70s when he invited me to his concert,” she recalled.
Adding: “And back at the hotel, he said to me, in very heated language, ‘I want to make an MF of a record with you. You’re a great singer.’ I didn’t think it would happen, but he followed up two days later. He was uber cool at the time and I just wanted to be led by him. I didn’t think ‘The Man Who Sold The World’ was the greatest song for my voice, but it was such a strong song in itself. In the studio, Bowie kept telling me to smoke more cigarettes, to give my voice a certain quality. We were like the odd couple. Were we ever an item? I’d rather not answer that one, thanks!”
Bowie was not only the creative visionary for the track that he produced, but he also oversaw her video. Lulu added: “For the video, people thought he came up with the androgynous look, but that was all mine. It was very Berlin cabaret. We did other songs, too, like ‘Watch That Man,’ ‘Can You Hear Me?’ and ‘Dodo.’ ‘The Man Who Sold The World’ saved me from a certain niche in my career. If we’d have carried on, it would have been very interesting.”
Unfortunately, her other takes on Bowie hits are yet to surface, which is a crying shame judging by the brilliance of her take on ‘The Man Who Sold The World’, which could well be the definitive version of the track.
