Music Review: David Bowie "Let's Dance"

David Bowie

Let’s Dance

Album: Let’s Dance

Year: 1983

         David Bowie and his girlfriend forget their troubles in the aspiring “Let’s Dance.”

          After some celebratory “ah’s,” there are shimmery synths which sets a effervescent   tone.

           He hands her the wash cloth to clean the counter and he continues to dust the chimney. In the background, a demure female singer bemoans her loneliness. Outside, the rain is splattering the window. Over his shoulder, he tells her to get her old dance shoes, dyed red to match a costume she wore once. He switches the station, finding a vibrant synth and frantic bass dueling on Top 40. He asks her if he could have this dance. She says yes. He imagines their family room has become a ballroom. He twirls her around, seeing the light line half of her cheek, her eye and forehead. He jokes that they have just run into another couple and must find a private spot. (“Let's dance put on your red shoes and dance the blues/Let's dance to the song /They're playin' on the radio/Let's sway/While color lights up your face/Let's sway /Sway through the crowd to an empty space.”)

              In the chorus, he says he’s willing to escape with her to anywhere she likes. Sometimes, they feel confined to their city, unable to get out from under their debt and violence. It would pain him to see her scared and worried. (“If you say run, I'll run with you/If you say hide, we'll hide/Because my love for you/Would break my heart in two/If you should fall/Into my arms/And tremble like a flower.”)

             “Let’s dance” is repeated two times.

             He asks her if she’s relaxed. She nods yes. He only wants her to enjoy herself. She laughs, something he hasn’t heard in awhile and he tells her they finish the cleaning tomorrow. They can dance right outside with the moon. (“Let's dance for fear/Your grace should fall/Let's dance for fear tonight is all/Let's sway you could look into my eyes/Let's sway under the moonlight/This serious moonlight.”)

               The chorus is sung again.

             The shimmery synths return as “let’s dance” is repeated two more times again.

            Parts of the verses are combined. (“Let's dance put on your red shoes/And dance the blues/Let's dance to the song /They're playin'/Let's sway/Let’s sway/Under the moonlight/This serious moonlight.”)

              The shimmering synths get another chance to shine. An hyperactive saxophone lets loose during a solo, which after Bowie declares “let’s dance, let’s dance.”

              Nonetheless, the electric guitar  blares, determined to get the last note.

               Bowie’s weary vocals try to save his girlfriend any pain, looking for whatever bright spots he may find. His helplessness and anxiousness overcome him and he could just scream.

                   The brilliant “Let’s Dance” (best in its single version) searches for a sliver of hope.