Kooks (song)

"Kooks" is a song written by the English singer-songwriter David Bowie, which appears on his 1971 album Hunky Dory. Bowie wrote this song to his newborn son Duncan Jones. The song was a pastiche of early 1970s Neil Young because Bowie was listening to a Neil Young record at home on 30 May 1971 when he got the news of the arrival of his son.

Live versions

 * Before the studio recording of the song was made, it was recorded for the BBC In Concert radio show with John Peel, on 3 June 1971 (broadcast on 20 June 1971). In 2000 this recording was released on the Bowie at the Beeb album.
 * The song was recorded again for the BBC "Sounds of the 70s" radio show with Bob Harris on 21 September 1971 (broadcast on 4 October 1971).

Personnel

 * David Bowie: lead and backing vocals, acoustic guitar, alto sax
 * Mick Ronson: string arrangement
 * Trevor Bolder: bass, trumpet
 * Mick Woodmansey: drums
 * Rick Wakeman: piano

In popular culture

 * The first three lines of the song ("Will you stay in our lovers' story / If you stay, you won't be sorry / 'Cause we believe in you") are used as a repeated motif in Miranda July's 2015 novel The First Bad Man
 * The British indie band The Kooks named themselves after the song.
 * The song appears in the Futurama episode "Children of a Lesser Bog".

Other sources

 * Pegg, Nicholas (0200), The Complete David Bowie, Reynolds & Hearn Ltd, ISBN 1-903111-14-5