D.J. (David Bowie song)

"D.J."
A man from the back grasping window blinds with the giant green letters "DJ" to the right.
Single by David Bowie
from the album Lodger
B-side"Repetition"
Released29 June 1979 (1979-06-29)
RecordedSeptember 1978; March 1979
Studio
GenreNew wave[1]
Length
  • 3:59 (album)
  • 3:20 (single)
LabelRCA
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
David Bowie singles chronology
"Boys Keep Swinging"
(1979)
"D.J."
(1979)
"Yassassin"
(1979)
Music video
"D.J." on YouTube

"D.J." is a song by English musician David Bowie, released on 29 June 1979 as the second single from his 1979 album Lodger. It was written by Bowie, Brian Eno and Carlos Alomar and recorded in Montreux and New York City in September 1978 and March 1979. A cynical comment on the cult of the DJ, the track includes a guitar solo by Adrian Belew, which was recorded in multiple takes, and then mixed back together for the album track. Bowie mimics David Byrne of Talking Heads in his vocal performance. Its accompanying music video, directed by David Mallet, features Bowie casually walking down London's Earl's Court Road as passersby recognise him and follow him, interjected with Bowie as the tortured DJ destroying his studio. The single charted at number 29 in the UK and has received positive reviews.

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