Girl Loves Me

"Girl Loves Me"
"Girl Loves Me"
Song by David Bowie
from the album Blackstar
Released	8 January 2016
Recorded	2015
Studio	Magic Shop, New York City; Human Worldwide, New York City;
Genre	Art rock; experimental rock; Jazz rock;
Length	4:51
Label	ISO
Songwriter(s)	David Bowie
Producer(s)	David Bowie; Tony Visconti;
Blackstar track listing
	7 tracks "Blackstar"; "'Tis a Pity She Was a Whore"; "Lazarus"; "Sue (Or in a Season of Crime)"; "Girl Loves Me"; "Dollar Days"; "I Can't Give Everything Away";

"Girl Loves Me" is a song by English musician David Bowie. It is the fifth track on Bowie's twenty-sixth and final studio album, Blackstar, released on 8 January 2016, Bowie's birthday and two days before his death. The track was written by Bowie and produced by Bowie and Tony Visconti. "Girl Loves Me" peaked at number 87 on the Dutch Top 100 and number 146 on the UK Singles Chart.

Composition

"Girl Loves Me" is notable for its usage of Polari and Nadsat in its lyrics, the latter of which is a fictional slang created by Anthony Burgess which was used very often in his 1962 novel A Clockwork Orange.^[1]^{[circular reference]}^[2]

The song also includes a reference to the Chestnut Tree, a bar in the final part of the dystopian novel 1984 by George Orwell. This is partly used because the Chestnut Tree is a place in the novel where the protagonist goes to find he no longer feels emotions for his love, and this song's lyrics have obvious references to love, hence the title.

Critical reception

Rolling Stone calls "Girl Loves Me" their favourite moment from Blackstar, labelling it as "dark, trippy and sexy in ways only the late, great icon could pull off."^[3] NME labels the song as a "menacing, militaristic tattoo," and suggests that Bowie was possibly influenced by rappers Future and Young Thug on the song.^[4]

Charts

"Girls Loves Me" chart performance
Chart (2016)	Peak position
Netherlands (Single Top 100)^[5]	87
Portugal (AFP)^[6]	70
Sweden Heatseeker (Sverigetopplistan)^[7]	2
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)^[8]	146
US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)^[9]	40

References

^ Greenman, Kyle (9 January 2016). "The Beautiful Meaninglessness of David Bowie". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on 12 January 2016. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
^ Eastmond, Dean (30 September 2016). "Remembering Polari, the Forgotten Language of Britain's Gay Community". Vice. Vice Media.
^ "David Bowie, "Girl Loves Me"". Rolling Stone. 18 January 2016. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
^ Richards, Sam (8 January 2016). "NME Reviews – David Bowie – 'Blackstar'". NME. Retrieved 28 January 2016.
^ "David Bowie – Girl Loves Me" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
^ "David Bowie – Girl Loves Me". AFP Top 100 Singles. Retrieved 23 April 2020.
^ "Veckolista Heatseeker, vecka 2, 2016" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 2 May 2021.
^ "Chart Log UK - New Chart Entries - 16.01.2016". zobbel.de. Retrieved 27 January 2016.
^ "David Bowie Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 27 January 2016.

[1] Greenman, Kyle (9 January 2016). "The Beautiful Meaninglessness of David Bowie". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on 12 January 2016. Retrieved 27 January 2016.

[2] Eastmond, Dean (30 September 2016). "Remembering Polari, the Forgotten Language of Britain's Gay Community". Vice. Vice Media.

[3] "David Bowie, "Girl Loves Me"". Rolling Stone. 18 January 2016. Retrieved 28 January 2016.

[4] Richards, Sam (8 January 2016). "NME Reviews – David Bowie – 'Blackstar'". NME. Retrieved 28 January 2016.

[sc_Dutch100_David_Bowie-5] "David Bowie – Girl Loves Me" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 27 January 2016.

[sc_Portugal_David_Bowie-6] "David Bowie – Girl Loves Me". AFP Top 100 Singles. Retrieved 23 April 2020.

[7] "Veckolista Heatseeker, vecka 2, 2016" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved 2 May 2021.

[8] "Chart Log UK - New Chart Entries - 16.01.2016". zobbel.de. Retrieved 27 January 2016.

[sc_Billboardrocksongs_David_Bowie-9] "David Bowie Chart History (Hot Rock & Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 27 January 2016.

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v t e David Bowie singles
Discography Songs
1960s	"Liza Jane" "I Pity the Fool" "You've Got a Habit of Leaving" "Baby Loves That Way" "Can't Help Thinking About Me" "Do Anything You Say" "I Dig Everything" "Rubber Band" "The London Boys" "The Laughing Gnome" "Love You till Tuesday" "Space Oddity"
1970s	"The Prettiest Star" "Memory of a Free Festival" "Holy Holy" "Moonage Daydream" "Hang On to Yourself" "Changes" "Starman" "John, I'm Only Dancing" "The Jean Genie" "Drive-In Saturday" "Time" "Life on Mars" "Let's Spend the Night Together" "Sorrow" "Rebel Rebel" "Rock 'n' Roll Suicide" "Diamond Dogs" "1984" "Knock on Wood" "Rock 'n' Roll with Me" "Young Americans" "Fame" "Golden Years" "Station to Station" (French promo) "TVC 15" "Suffragette City" "Stay" "Sound and Vision" "Be My Wife" "'Heroes'" "Beauty and the Beast" "Breaking Glass" "Boys Keep Swinging" "D.J." "Yassassin" "Look Back in Anger" "John, I'm Only Dancing (Again)"
1980s	"Alabama Song" "Crystal Japan" "Ashes to Ashes" "Fashion" "Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps)" "Up the Hill Backwards" "Under Pressure" "Wild Is the Wind" "The Drowned Girl" "Cat People (Putting Out Fire)" "Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy" "Let's Dance" "China Girl" "Modern Love" "Without You" "White Light/White Heat" "Blue Jean" "Tonight" "This Is Not America" "Loving the Alien" "Dancing in the Street" "Absolute Beginners" "Underground" "When the Wind Blows" "Magic Dance" "Day-In Day-Out" "Time Will Crawl" "Never Let Me Down" "Under the God" "Heaven's in Here" "Tin Machine" / "Maggie's Farm (live)" "Prisoner of Love"
1990s	"Fame '90" "You Belong in Rock n' Roll" "Baby Universal" "One Shot" "Real Cool World" "Jump They Say" "Black Tie White Noise" "Miracle Goodnight" "The Buddha of Suburbia" "Ziggy Stardust" "The Hearts Filthy Lesson" "Strangers When We Meet" / "The Man Who Sold the World (live)" "Hallo Spaceboy" "Telling Lies" "Little Wonder" "Dead Man Walking" "Seven Years in Tibet" "Pallas Athena" "I'm Afraid of Americans" "I Can't Read" "Without You I'm Nothing" "Thursday's Child" "The Pretty Things Are Going to Hell"
2000s	"Survive" "Seven" "Slow Burn" "Everyone Says 'Hi'" "I've Been Waiting for You" "Shadow Man" "New Killer Star" "Just for One Day (Heroes)" "Rebel Never Gets Old"
2010s	"Golden Years David Bowie vs KCRW" "Where Are We Now?" "The Stars (Are Out Tonight)" "The Next Day" "Valentine's Day" "Love Is Lost" "'Tis a Pity She Was a Whore" "Sue (Or in a Season of Crime)" "Blackstar" "Lazarus" "I Can't Give Everything Away"
Other songs	"Silly Boy Blue" "Let Me Sleep Beside You" "Karma Man" "Unwashed and Somewhat Slightly Dazed" "Cygnet Committee" "Wild Eyed Boy from Freecloud" "The Width of a Circle" "All the Madmen" "Black Country Rock" "After All" "She Shook Me Cold" "The Man Who Sold the World" "The Supermen" "Oh! You Pretty Things" "Kooks" "Quicksand" "Andy Warhol" "Song for Bob Dylan" "Queen Bitch" "The Bewlay Brothers" "Bombers" "Five Years" "Soul Love" "Lady Stardust" "Velvet Goldmine" "Sweet Head" "Amsterdam" "Round and Round" "Watch That Man" "Aladdin Sane" "Panic in Detroit" "Cracked Actor" "Lady Grinning Soul" "All the Young Dudes" "Future Legend" "Sweet Thing" "Big Brother" "Can You Hear Me?" "Right" "Fascination" "Word on a Wing" "Speed of Life" "What in the World" "Always Crashing in the Same Car" "Warszawa" "Art Decade" "Weeping Wall" "Subterraneans" "Joe the Lion" "Sons of the Silent Age" "Blackout" "V-2 Schneider" "Sense of Doubt" "Neuköln" "Fantastic Voyage" "It's No Game" "Teenage Wildlife" "Scream Like a Baby" "As the World Falls Down" "Girls" "Nite Flights" "I'm Deranged" "Nature Boy" "Cactus" "Pablo Picasso" "The Loneliest Guy" "Try Some, Buy Some" "Fall Dog Bombs the Moon" "Bring Me the Disco King" "Girl Loves Me" "Dollar Days"