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"Lady Grinning Soul" is a ballad written by English musician David Bowie, released on the album Aladdin Sane in 1973. It was a last-minute addition, replacing the "sax version" of "John, I'm Only Dancing" as the closing track. The composer's first meeting with American soul singer Claudia Lennear in 1972 is often cited as the inspiration for the song. In 2016, after Bowie's death, an interview with Lennear revealed that Bowie called her in 2014, and told her the song had been written about her.
The style of the piece has been compared to a James Bond theme. Pianist Mike Garson described his own performance as "about as romantic as it gets … French with a little Franz Liszt thrown in there". Rolling Stone's contemporary review called Bowie's singing "the album's most expansive and sincere vocal", while author Nicholas Pegg considers the track "one of Bowie's most underrated recordings … quite unlike anything else he has ever done". Mojo magazine listed it as Bowie's 93rd best track in 2015.
The track was used in the films The Runaways (2010) and Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has to Travel (2012).
Recording
With the release of his album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars and his performance of "Starman" on the BBC television programme Top of the Pops in early July 1972, David Bowie was launched to stardom. To support the album, Bowie embarked on the Ziggy Stardust Tour in both the UK and the US. He composed most of the tracks for the follow-up record on the road during the US tour in late 1972. Because of this, many of the tracks were influenced by America, and his perceptions of the country.
"Lady Grinning Soul" was recorded at Trident Studios in London in January 1973, following the conclusion of the American tour and a series of Christmas concerts in England and Scotland. Like the rest of its parent album, the song was co-produced by Bowie and Ken Scott and featured Bowie's backing band the Spiders from Mars – comprising guitarist Mick Ronson, bassist Trevor Bolder and drummer Woody Woodmansey, as well as pianist Mike Garson and saxophonist Ken Fordham.
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