David Bowie was broke. It’s 1971. He’s living in a drafty, sprawling Victorian house called Haddon Hall, and he’s just starting to play around with an old grand piano. He’s not a "piano player" yet. Not really. But he’s obsessed. He wakes up at 4:00 AM with a melody ringing in his skull—a jaunty, music-hall riff that sounds like something your grandma might hum while hanging laundry.
Then he adds lyrics about a master race of aliens coming to replace humanity.
Basically, that's Oh! You Pretty Things. It’s the second track on Hunky Dory, and honestly, it’s one of the strangest "pop" songs to ever hit the mainstream. Most people hear that catchy "Don't believe in yourself" chorus and think it’s a sweet tribute to the youth. It isn't. Not even close.
The Homo Superior is Moving In
If you actually listen to what Bowie is singing, it’s kinda terrifying. He’s talking about a "crack in the sky" and a hand reaching down. This isn't just hippie-dippie flower power stuff. Bowie was deep into some heavy reading at the time. We’re talking Friedrich Nietzsche’s Übermensch (the Superman) and Aleister Crowley’s occultism.
He was also obsessed with Edward Bulwer-Lytton’s 1871 novel The Coming Race, which features a subterranean master race called the Vril-ya.
The song basically says: "Hey, parents. You're obsolete. Your kids aren't even yours anymore. They’re a new species."
He calls them the Homo Superior.
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It’s a direct reference to the idea that humans have outgrown their use. We’re the "Homo Sapiens" who are "finished with our news." It’s an apocalyptic vision wrapped in a bouncy, honky-tonk piano melody. Bowie later admitted that many of these songs dealt with "alternating id problems" and a sort of psychic schizophrenia. He felt the world was ending, and the "pretty things"—the teenagers—were the only ones equipped to survive the transition because they weren't bogged down by old-world morality.
The Peter Noone Twist
Here is the part most casual fans get wrong. David Bowie wasn't the first person to make this song a hit.
In fact, he gave it away.
Mickie Most, a legendary producer, heard the demo and decided it was the perfect solo debut for Peter Noone. If that name sounds familiar, it’s because Noone was the frontman of Herman's Hermits. You know, "I'm Henry the Eighth, I Am." Total bubblegum pop.
Bowie actually played piano on Noone’s version. Imagine being in the studio watching this weird, androgynous guy from Beckenham play a "loony" piano riff for a teen idol.
- Release Date: June 1971 (Noone’s version)
- UK Chart Peak: Number 12
- The Title: Noone’s version was often listed as "Oh! You Pretty Thing" (singular)
Bowie reportedly said, "I don't know if Peter knows what it means." He wasn't being mean; he just knew the lyrics were about the end of the human race, and Noone was singing it like a cheery lunchtime singalong. It worked, though. The royalty checks from that cover literally saved Bowie’s finances and allowed him to keep recording.
That Piano Riff: Who Actually Played It?
For decades, everybody assumed Bowie played the piano on the Hunky Dory version. He’s the one in the music video, right? He’s the one who wrote it on that "stuck key" piano at Haddon Hall.
But then Rick Wakeman entered the chat.
The legendary Yes keyboardist was a session musician back then. In recent years, Wakeman revealed that while Bowie played the iconic intro, he kept "cocking up" the more complex parts of the riff during the actual recording. Wakeman stepped in and finished the take.
It’s a subtle distinction, but it matters. The piano on Oh! You Pretty Things has this specific, "lolloping" weight to it. It sounds like a cabaret singer at the end of the world. It’s got that descending major progression that Bowie would later recycle for "Changes" and "All the Young Dudes." It’s the sound of a man discovering his true voice by leaning into the theatrical.
Why It Still Matters (The "Discover" Factor)
So why is this song popping up on everyone’s feeds in 2026?
Because we’re living in it.
Bowie’s 1972 interview with Melody Maker feels almost psychic now. He talked about creating a "new kind of person" who would be so exposed to media that they’d be lost to their parents by age 12. "All the things we can't do, they will," he said.
Look at Gen Alpha. Look at the way digital native generations communicate. They basically are a different species compared to Boomers or Gen X. The "crack in the sky" is the internet. The "Homo Superior" is the kid who can edit a 4K video on their phone before they can drive a car.
Bowie wasn't just writing a song; he was writing a forecast.
Actionable Insights for the Bowie Obsessed
If you want to go deeper into the Hunky Dory era, don't just stop at the hits.
- Listen to "Quicksand" right after: It’s the dark twin to "Pretty Things." While "Pretty Things" is the outward-facing prophecy, "Quicksand" is the internal crisis. It mentions Crowley and Himmler—it's the heavy, terrifying reality behind the "pretty" facade.
- Watch the 1972 BBC "Old Grey Whistle Test" performance: It was recorded in February '72 but not broadcast for a decade. You can see Bowie’s transition. He’s got the spiked hair. He’s becoming Ziggy, but he’s still playing the Hunky Dory songs.
- Check out the "Glastonbury Fayre" version: If you can find the 1971 live recordings, you’ll hear how he performed it solo on acoustic guitar. It changes the vibe entirely. It becomes less of a pop song and more of a folk warning.
The song is a bridge. It’s the bridge between the hippie folk-singer of the 60s and the alien rock star of the 70s. It’s the moment David Bowie realized he didn't have to choose between being a pop star and being a philosopher. He could just be both.
The earth is a bitch, as one critic put it, but at least we have the music. Make way.