Five Years

About Five Years

"Five Years" is a song written by David Bowie, recorded on 15 November 1971, and released as the opening track on the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars in 1972. The song tells of an Earth doomed to destruction in five years and the aftermath of this knowledge. Bowie is rumoured to have chosen the length of time, five years, as a result of a dream in which his deceased father told him he must never fly again and would die in five years. The "market square" referred to in the opening line is Aylesbury market square in Buckinghamshire, England. Bowie debuted both Hunky Dory and The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars albums at Friars Club in the town, and is reputed to have formed the Spiders there, following the "Hunky Dory" gig. AllMusic describe the track as "easily one of the greatest album-opening songs ever". more »