To Celebrate David Bowie, who passed away today in 2016, we have selected various 80s or 90s artists who have, during the last century, covered famous Bowie songs.
They are . George Michael, Boy George, Culture Club, Rickie Lee Jones, Nina Hagen, Natalie Merchant, Dana Gillespie, Seu Jorge, Momus, Christopher Walken
Here, they are reunited in one glorious playlist. Enjoy!
Tracklist
1 . George Michael . FameIn January 1991, during the Rock in Rio II festival at Rio de Janeiro’s Maracanã Stadium, George Michael delivered a rendition of David Bowie’s “Fame.” This performance was part of his “Cover to Cover” tour, where he showcased his favorite songs by other artists. Michael’s interpretation of “Fame” highlighted his vocal versatility and ability to honor Bowie’s original while infusing it with his unique style. The Rock in Rio II festival was a significant event, attracting massive audiences, and Michael’s set included a mix of covers and his own hits. Notably, during his second concert on January 27, he was joined on stage by his former Wham! partner, Andrew Ridgeley, for the encore. The “Cover to Cover” tour spanned multiple continents, including performances in Europe, South America, Asia, and North America, further cementing Michael’s status as a global music icon 
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2 . Boy George . Suffragette CityBoy George’s rendition of *Suffragette City* feels like a glam rock fever dream filtered through a synth-pop prism, paying homage to Bowie while unapologetically making it his own. Released in 1991 as part of *Ruby Trax: The NME’s Roaring Forty*, the track shuffles into Bowie’s 1972 original with a synth-driven swagger that trades the gritty downtown rebellion for a slicker, almost camp sheen. The production, while somewhat of its time, leans heavily into synthetic textures, a decision that feels both inspired and inevitably divisive, especially for purists of the Ziggy Stardust era. What’s striking is the shift in tone: Bowie’s jagged edges are softened, yet the unapologetic energy remains intact, hinting—rather cheekily—at Boy George’s knack for toeing the line between reverence and irreverence. While the original doubled as a sly love letter to urban chaos and youthful rebellion, George’s take reframes it as a polished ode to Bowie rather than an outright reinvention.
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3 . Culture Club . StarmanDavid Bowie’s “Starman” casts a glittering shadow over the glam-rock pantheon, perched as both an anthem of escapism and a signpost for a generation disillusioned by the mundane. Released in 1972, its arrival onto the UK Singles Chart at number 41 was humble, but its cultural footprint was anything but. In the Club’s 1999 album *Don’t Mind If I Do*, a rendition of “Starman” showcases Boy George’s soulful vocals, offering a fresh perspective on Bowie’s classic. The album, marking Culture Club’s return after a 13-year hiatus, includes original songs and select covers, reflecting the band’s musical influences. Critics have noted that while Boy George’s soulful interpretation brings a unique flavor to “Starman,” the song’s composition may not fully align with his vocal style. Nonetheless, the cover stands as a testament to Culture Club’s admiration for Bowie’s work and their willingness to explore diverse musical landscapes.
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4 . Rickie Lee Jones . Rebel Rebel“Rebel Rebel” isn’t just a song; it’s an electric jolt of glam history, originally David Bowie’s cheeky nod to rebellious youth. Rickie Lee Jones’s rendition of David Bowie’s “Rebel Rebel” is a testament to her versatility and deep appreciation for Bowie’s work. Released in 1993 on her album “Traffic from Paradise,” this cover stands out for its unique interpretation and the collaboration with notable musicians. Jones’s soulful and distinctive vocal delivery brings a fresh perspective to the glam rock classic, infusing it with her signature style. The track features Brian Setzer on electric guitar and backing vocals, adding a rockabilly flair to the arrangement. Syd Straw also contributes backing vocals, enhancing the song’s rich texture. The production, led by Jones herself, was recorded in top-tier Los Angeles studios, ensuring high-quality sound that complements the intricate instrumentation. Critics and fans alike have praised this cover for its inventive approach, with some considering it one of the standout tracks on the album. Notably, before his passing, David Bowie expressed admiration for Jones’s version, reportedly calling it his favorite cover of his work
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5 . Nina Hagen . Ziggy StardustSome songs don’t just reinterpret a classic—they hijack it, slap it with Day-Glo makeup, and hurl it into a new dimension, and “Ziggy Stardust” by Nina Hagen fits that category perfectly. Hagen’s 1982 rendition, nestled awkwardly into her chaotic *NunSexMonkRock* album, is less a tribute to David Bowie’s glam-rock opus and more an unhinged reimagining from a parallel universe. To call it “punk” or “new wave” feels like trying to label a cyclone as “windy”—it’s experimental, bizarre, and utterly Hagen. Though the song borrows its lyrical backbone from Bowie, its snarling delivery and erratic, almost contorted production make it feel more like a noisy séance than homage. Hagen slips snippets of Bowie’s Ziggy character into her track “Iki Maska” too, giving obsessive Bowie fans additional reasons to squint sideways at her creative choices. And yet, that’s where Hagen thrives—in the tension between reverence and anarchy. Performing Bowie’s works sporadically during her live concerts, including a 1978 *Rockpalast* gig, Hagen conjures up a version of “Ziggy Stardust” that’s feral and unapologetically her own.
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6 . Natalie Merchant . Space OddityNatalie Merchant’s cover of David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” is an intriguing re-interpretation of a timeless classic—part reverent homage, part personal statement. Performed during her 1999 “Live in Concert” recordings and notably revisited for the Kennedy Center Honors in 2022, the piece demonstrates Merchant’s capacity to inhabit a well-trodden anthem while steering it into uncharted emotional territory. Unlike Bowie’s ethereal, otherworldly delivery, Merchant’s rendition bears a grounded intensity that shifts the song’s narrative from cosmic detachment to meditative introspection. Her 1999 live recording at New York’s Neil Simon Theatre captures this dynamic with remarkable clarity, showcasing her distinct vocal timbre alongside the stripped-down instrumental arrangement that leans more toward storytelling than spectacle. The haunting echoes of “Major Tom” take on an almost existential weight, as if redefining the notion of exploration itself—not into outer space, but into the voids of human vulnerability. Fast forward to 2022, and Merchant’s decision to revisit “Space Oddity” during the Kennedy Center Honors was as much a cultural statement as it was an artistic one—underscoring Bowie’s seismic influence while simultaneously allowing her own interpretive finesse to shine under a national spotlight. It’s worth noting this particular performance was television-only, never finding a home on an official recording or streaming service, which oddly mirrors the transient, fleeting nature of the song’s thematic roots. Merchant’s choice to visually underplay the performance—eschewing theatrical gimmicks for a stark, straightforward delivery—invites the audience to focus less on spectacle and more on the fragile humanity embedded in the lyrics. While her 1999 rendition seemed warmly intimate, this 2022 revival had a sharper cultural resonance, performed in a political and social climate arguably as unsettled as the space Major Tom ventures into.
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7 . Dana Gillespie . Andy Warhol“Andy Warhol” by Dana Gillespie is a fascinating artifact from the early ’70s, a time when folk-pop flirted with glam rock, and artistic tributes seemed to carry a kind of intimate, personal weight. This song, written by David Bowie, represents just such a nod—part homage, part meditation on Andy Warhol’s cultural footprint, with Dana Gillespie’s smoky vocals offering a softer counterpoint to Bowie’s edgier rendition on *Hunky Dory*. The production, helmed by Bowie himself alongside Mick Ronson, leans into simplicity, favoring acoustic textures over bombast, which ironically enhances its thematic relevance to Warhol’s stripped-down aesthetic vision. The presence of Ronson’s guitar work adds a sharp glint to an otherwise subdued arrangement, maintaining a balance that feels introspective without lapsing into monotony. Recorded initially in 1971 and later released on Gillespie’s *Weren’t Born a Man* in 1973, the track doesn’t scream for attention but instead takes a quieter, almost self-effacing route to thematic resonance. It’s a subtle affair, and its nuanced lyricism meshes well with Gillespie’s delivery. It’s worth mentioning that Bowie famously performed the song for Warhol himself at The Factory, a moment steeped in its own meta-awareness—a song about celebrity culture within the heart of an artist’s enclave dedicated to such musings. Gillespie also performed it on Dutch TV’s “TopPop” in 1974, a performance that, much like the song, feels of its time yet avoids being outdated—a curious balance between ethereal and grounded.
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8 . Seu Jorge . Rock N’ Roll SuicideSeu Jorge’s version of “Rock N’ Roll Suicide” offers a haunting reinterpretation of David Bowie’s original, shedding its glam-rock bravado for an acoustic melancholy delivered entirely in Portuguese. Featured in *The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou*, it’s part of a uniquely cinematic experiment where Bowie’s expansive catalog was distilled through the filter of Brazilian *MPB* (Música Popular Brasileira), resulting in renditions that Bowie himself reportedly admired. Here, Jorge’s stripped-back arrangement replaces the theatrical crescendo of strings and electric guitars with a gentle acoustic guitar strum, achieving something both intimate and introspective, as if it was performed not for an audience but for a solitary confessional moment. Recorded against the backdrop of Rome’s Forum Music Village between 2004 and 2005, the song carries the weight of world-weary revelation, yet trades Bowie’s existential drama for a quieter kind of resignation. While not an exact translation of the original, its lyrical adaptability transforms the track into something culturally distinct yet thematically resonant, an ode to unraveling identity that’s simultaneously familiar and foreign.
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9 . Momus . Ashes To AshesMomus’s take on “Ashes to Ashes” is quintessentially peculiar, a curious nod to the David Bowie classic reimagined through his eccentric lens. This electronic/dance interpretation retains an air of the original’s eerie brilliance but swaps Bowie’s cosmic introspection for Momus’s characteristically esoteric flair. Where Bowie’s version sent Major Tom spiraling further into existential dread, Momus seems more preoccupied with transforming the track into an abstracted collage rather than a faithful homage. The production leans heavily on minimalist beats and murmuring synths, a kind of late-night nightclub introspection that resonates less with Bowie’s defiant theatricality and more with a kind of clever, detached irony. Momus has built his reputation on treading the line between reverence and subversion, and his “Ashes to Ashes” continues that balancing act, even if it doesn’t stick its landing for all.
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10 . Christopher Walken . Fashion |
