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austinkleon:

David Bowie, “Kooks,” off Hunky Dory (1971)

I nominate this as the best song ever written for a newborn:

Will you stay in our Lovers’ Story
If you stay you won’t be sorry
‘Cause we believe in you
Soon you’ll grow so take a chance
With a couple of Kooks
Hung up on romancing

We bought a lot of things
to keep you warm and dry
And a funny old crib on which the paint won’t dry
I bought you a pair of shoes
A trumpet you can blow
And a book of rules
On what to say to people
when they pick on you
‘Cause if you stay with us you’re gonna be pretty Kookie too

And if you ever have to go to school
Remember how they messed up
this old fool
Don’t pick fights with the bullies
or the cads
‘Cause I’m not much cop at punching other people’s Dads
And if the homework brings you down
Then we’ll throw it on the fire
And take the car downtown

I’ve listened to Hunky Dory a hundred times, and I’d never listened to the lyrics before. Then, I was listening to Bowie At The Beeb, and before the song, Bowie says “I’d been listening to a Neil Young album, and they phoned through and said my wife had had a baby on Sunday morning, and I wrote this about the baby.” How wonderful.

(Source: supahappyfuntime)

• david bowie
• hunky dory
• kooks
• parenting
• neil young
• lyrics
• music
• my listening year 2011

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