Zion (David Bowie song)
Encyclopedia
Zion is a David Bowie
bootleg. It is most commonly said to be from his Aladdin Sane
period, recorded at Trident Studios
in 1973.
playing piano, Mick Ronson
playing guitar, and Mellotron
(using the "flute" tapes, similar or identical to those used by the Beatles on "Strawberry Fields Forever
") by someone unknown (probably Bowie). There are also Mellotron
"string" parts, probably also played by Bowie. Bowie played similar Mellotron
parts on Diamond Dogs
. This would evolve into the passage from "Sweet Thing (Reprise)" to "Rebel Rebel
" on Diamond Dogs
.
(a lad insane,) by changing the last word to Vein. (A lad in vein) The other name, "Tragic Moments," was named after an act in the aborted 1984 musical Bowie was creating during the Diamond Dogs
sessions.
that had Bowie play Zion and said it was a demo for the next album (Diamond Dogs
) and was going to be used in the new 1984 musical which Bowie was planning at the time.
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
bootleg. It is most commonly said to be from his Aladdin Sane
Aladdin Sane
Aladdin Sane is the sixth album by David Bowie, released by RCA Records in 1973 . The follow-up to his breakthrough The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, it was the first album Bowie wrote and released as a bona fide rock star...
period, recorded at Trident Studios
Trident Studios
Trident Studios was a British recording facility, originally located at 17 St. Anne's Court in London's Soho district. It was constructed in 1967 by Norman Sheffield a drummer of former 1960's group The Hunters and his Brother Barry....
in 1973.
Music and Lyrics
Zion consisted of Bowie's "la las" with Mike GarsonMike Garson
Mike Garson is an American pianist, most notable for his work with David Bowie, Nine Inch Nails, Billy Corgan, Free Flight, and The Smashing Pumpkins.- Early career :...
playing piano, Mick Ronson
Mick Ronson
Michael "Mick" Ronson was an English guitarist, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, arranger and producer. He is best known for his work with David Bowie, as one of The Spiders from Mars...
playing guitar, and Mellotron
Mellotron
The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical, polyphonic tape replay keyboard originally developed and built in Birmingham, England in the early 1960s. It superseded the Chamberlin Music Master, which was the world's first sample-playback keyboard intended for music...
(using the "flute" tapes, similar or identical to those used by the Beatles on "Strawberry Fields Forever
Strawberry Fields Forever
"Strawberry Fields Forever" is a song by The Beatles, written by John Lennon and attributed to the Lennon–McCartney songwriting partnership. It was inspired by Lennon's memories of playing in the garden of a Salvation Army house named "Strawberry Field" near his childhood home."Strawberry Fields...
") by someone unknown (probably Bowie). There are also Mellotron
Mellotron
The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical, polyphonic tape replay keyboard originally developed and built in Birmingham, England in the early 1960s. It superseded the Chamberlin Music Master, which was the world's first sample-playback keyboard intended for music...
"string" parts, probably also played by Bowie. Bowie played similar Mellotron
Mellotron
The Mellotron is an electro-mechanical, polyphonic tape replay keyboard originally developed and built in Birmingham, England in the early 1960s. It superseded the Chamberlin Music Master, which was the world's first sample-playback keyboard intended for music...
parts on Diamond Dogs
Diamond Dogs
Diamond Dogs is a concept album by David Bowie, originally released by RCA Records in 1974. Thematically it was a marriage of the novel Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell and Bowie's own glam-tinged vision of a post-apocalyptic world...
. This would evolve into the passage from "Sweet Thing (Reprise)" to "Rebel Rebel
Rebel Rebel
"Rebel Rebel" is a song by David Bowie, released in 1974 as a single and on the album Diamond Dogs. Cited as his most-covered track, it was effectively Bowie's farewell to the glam movement that had made him a star.-Music and lyrics:...
" on Diamond Dogs
Diamond Dogs
Diamond Dogs is a concept album by David Bowie, originally released by RCA Records in 1974. Thematically it was a marriage of the novel Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell and Bowie's own glam-tinged vision of a post-apocalyptic world...
.
Other Names
Other names for this track are "Aladdin Vein," "Love Aladdin Vein," "A lad in vein," and "Tragic Moments." The first three are meant to recreate the pun that was Aladdin SaneAladdin Sane
Aladdin Sane is the sixth album by David Bowie, released by RCA Records in 1973 . The follow-up to his breakthrough The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, it was the first album Bowie wrote and released as a bona fide rock star...
(a lad insane,) by changing the last word to Vein. (A lad in vein) The other name, "Tragic Moments," was named after an act in the aborted 1984 musical Bowie was creating during the Diamond Dogs
Diamond Dogs
Diamond Dogs is a concept album by David Bowie, originally released by RCA Records in 1974. Thematically it was a marriage of the novel Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell and Bowie's own glam-tinged vision of a post-apocalyptic world...
sessions.
When It Was Recorded
It is said that Bowie recorded it at Trident Studios in 1973 during the Aladdin Sane sessions. Although there was an interview by Martin Hayman at the end of the Pinups sessions at the Château d'HérouvilleChâteau d'Hérouville
The Château d'Hérouville is a French château of the 18th century located in the village of Hérouville, in the Oise valley near Paris. The castle was built in 1740 by Gaudot, an architect of the school of Rome. In the 19th century, it was used as courier relay station and stabled a hundred...
that had Bowie play Zion and said it was a demo for the next album (Diamond Dogs
Diamond Dogs
Diamond Dogs is a concept album by David Bowie, originally released by RCA Records in 1974. Thematically it was a marriage of the novel Nineteen Eighty-Four by George Orwell and Bowie's own glam-tinged vision of a post-apocalyptic world...
) and was going to be used in the new 1984 musical which Bowie was planning at the time.