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  Cover Bowie_MemoryOfAFreeFestivaljpg
  Artist David Bowie
  From Album Space Oddity
  B-side "Memory of a Free Festival Part 2"
  Released 12 June 1970
  Format 7" Single
  Recorded Advision Studios, London <br> 3 , 14 , 15 January 1970
  Genre Folk Rock
  Length 3:59
  Label Mercury <br> <small>6052 026</small>
  Producer Tony Visconti
  Chart Position Did not chart
  Last Single " The Prettiest Star "<br /> (1970)
  This Single "Memory of a Free Festival"<br />(1970)
  Next Single " Holy Holy "<br />(1971)
  Misc {{Extra tracklisting
  Type Studio
  Album Space Oddity
  Prev Track "God Knows I'm Good"
  Prev No 9
  This Track "Memory of a Free Festival"
  Track No 10




"Memory of a Free Festival" is a 1970 single by David Bowie . The song had originally been recorded as a seven-minute opus for Bowie's second self-titled album (reissued as '' Space Oddity '' in 1972). It was reworked at the behest of Mercury Records , the label believing that the track had a better chance of success as a single than " The Prettiest Star ", released earlier in the year.

Bowie and 's studio debut with Bowie's band, bringing together the line-up that would shortly record '' The Man Who Sold The World ''. Biographer David Buckley described "Memory of a Free Festival" as "a sort of trippy retake of The Stones ' ' Sympathy For The Devil ' but with a smiley lyric".David Buckley (1999). ''Strange Fascination - David Bowie: The Definitive Story'': p.98

The single was a commercial disaster on release in America in June 1970, with only a few hundred copies selling. It was also issued in the UK, but was similarly unsuccessful.


TRACK LISTING

# "Memory of a Free Festival Part 1" (Bowie) – 3:59
# "Memory of a Free Festival Part 2" (Bowie) – 3:31


PRODUCTION CREDITS




OTHER VERSIONS

  • Bowie performed the show during a session for radio's ''The Sunday Show'' on 8 February , 1970 . An edited take of this performance was included on the 2000 compilation, '' Bowie At The Beeb .''

  • Bowie also performed the song during the 1973 Ziggy Stardust tour, as the third part of a medley which began with " Quicksand " and " Life On Mars? " (one such performance, from the Glasgow Apollo on 15 May 1973 , has appeared on several bootleg albums).

  • The Mike Garson Band, the name given to Bowie's backing group on his Philly Dogs tour, closed their supporting set with a Soul -influenced version of the song on Bowie's 1974 US tour. The performance from the Radio City Music Hall , New York on 28 October 1974 was included on the bootleg album ''Infected with Soul Love.''



COVER VERSIONS

  • The album version of the song was later sampled for Dario G ’s 1998 UK hit "Sunmachine".

  • E-Zee Possee released a version of the song called "The Sun Machine" on single.

  • Mercury Rev recorded Part 2 of the song as "The Sun Machine" for the tribute album ''Crash Course for the Ravers - A Tribute to the Songs of David Bowie'' in 1996.

  • The Polyphonic Spree used the ending chant of the song "The Sun Machine is coming down and we're gonna have a party" as a closer to their set when they opened up for Bowie during A Reality Tour , and continued to use the chant throughout their tours.

  • Kashmir would cover the song often during their '' No Balance Palace '' tour.



APPEARANCES IN POPULAR CULTURE



NOTES



REFERENCES

Pegg, Nicholas , ''The Complete David Bowie'', Reynolds & Hearn Ltd, 2000, ISBN 1-903111-14-5