Song Development
The song was written about the pollution and destruction of the planet by industry (Bowie has cited hearing of the Chernobyl disaster in April 1986 as the genesis of the lyric). In an 1987 interview, Bowie said the song "deals with the idea that someone in one's own community could be the one responsible for blowing up the world." Bowie also stated at the time that it was his favorite song from the album, and later put the song on his list of all-time favorites by including a newly-recorded version of the song (the "MM Remix") on his iSelect album.
Read more about this topic: Time Will Crawl
Famous quotes containing the words song and/or development:
“Turn back,
back
to the lake of Delos;
lest all the song notes
pause and break
across a blood-stained throat....”
—Hilda Doolittle (1886–1961)
“The work of adult life is not easy. As in childhood, each step presents not only new tasks of development but requires a letting go of the techniques that worked before. With each passage some magic must be given up, some cherished illusion of safety and comfortably familiar sense of self must be cast off, to allow for the greater expansion of our distinctiveness.”
—Gail Sheehy (20th century)