David Bowie - Word On A Wing

About "Word On A Wing"

"Word on a Wing" is a song written and recorded by the English singer-songwriter David Bowie in 1975 for the Station to Station album, where it appears as the closing track of the LP's first side.

Bowie admits that the song was written out of a coke-addled spiritual despair that he experienced while filming The Man Who Fell to Earth. In 1980 Bowie spoke of the song to NME, claiming "There were days of such psychological terror when making the Roeg film that I nearly started to approach my reborn, born again thing. It was the first time I'd really seriously thought about Christ and God in any depth, and 'Word on a Wing' was a protection. It did come as a complete revolt against elements that I found in the film. The passion in the song was genuine... something I needed to produce from within myself to safeguard myself against some of the situations I felt were happening on the film set."

During the time of recording this song Bowie began to wear a silver crucifix given to him by his father, stating in NME in 1980 "I wear it, I'm not sure why I wear it now even. But at the time I really needed this". A Kirlian photograph of this crucifix featured on tour material around the Station to Station album, in art for his 1997 album Earthling, and cover art for "Little Wonder".