David Bowie - Life On Mars Chords & Tabs

LIFE ON MARS? from Hunky Dory


F      F/E                    F7
It's a God awful small affair
       D7
To the girl with the mousy hair
Gm      Gm7
But her mummy is yelling no
C       C7                    F
And her daddy has told her to go
        F/E                     F7
But her friend is nowhere to be seen
        D7
Now she walks through her sunken dream
Gm     Gm7
To the seat with the clearest view
C         C7
And she's hooked to the silver screen
Ab/Eb      Ab#5/E
But the film is a saddening bore
Fm        Ab7
For she's lived it ten times or more
Db        A
She could spit in the eyes of fools
Bb      B
As they ask her to focus on


CHORUS 1:
Bb      Eb
Sailors fighting in the dance hall
Gm     F#aug5                F
Oh man look at those cavemen go
Fm                 Cm7
It's the freakiest show
Ebm7               Bb     Eb
Take a look at the lawman beating up the wrong guy
Gm     F#aug5                   F
Oh man wonder if he'll ever know
Fm                       Cm7
He's in the best selling show
Ebm7             Gm    F#aug5  Bb  Em7dim5
Is there life on mars?


SOLO:  F  F#dim  Gm  G#dim  Am  Bb 
Bbm


F        F/E                   F7
It's on Americas tortured brow
            D                        Gm
That Mickey Mouse has grown up a cow
        Gm7                          C
Now the workers have struck for fame
    C7
Cos Lennon's on sale again
F       F/E                          F7
See the mice in their million hoards
      D                       Gm
From Ibiza to the Norfolk Broads
         Gm7                     C
Rule Brittannia is out of bounds
      C7
To my mother my dog and clowns
Ab/Eb      Ab#5/E
But the film is a saddening bore
Fm      Ab7
Cause I wrote it ten times or more
Db    A
It's about to be writ again
Bb      B
As they ask her to focus on

[ Tab from: https://www.guitartabs.cc/tabs/d/david_bowie/life_on_mars_crd_ver_4.html ]
CHORUS 2:
Bb      Eb
Sailors fighting in the dance hall
Gm     F#aug5                F
Oh man look at those cavemen go
Fm                 Cm7
It's the freakiest show
Ebm7               Bb     Eb
Take a look at the lawman beating up the wrong guy
Gm     F#aug5                   F
Oh man wonder if he'll ever know
Fm                       Cm7
He's in the best selling show
Ebm7             Gm    F#aug5  Bb  Em7dim5
Is there life on mars?


OUTRO:  F  F#dim  Gm  Bb  Bb  Bb  
 Ebm  Bb

-----------------------------------------
NOTES:
This is very much a piano song and is quite difficult to get a good sounding
version on guitar. Pay careful attention to the chord shapes at the top. It
sounds awful if the wrong strings ring out. For the first four chords of every
verse, F F/E F7 D, try to only play the B, G and D strings of the guitar.
Picking is the best way to get it across nice and subtle. For the chorus you may
want to play the Bb up at the 6th fret so it's easier to get to the Eb:

    EADGBE
    ------
Bb  688766


SOLO:
             F  F#dim Gm G#dim Am 
 Bbm        F
        E------8---------7P4----78-78-8P6-----------|
        B---68B-8B-8B68-----6------------9P68P68910-|
        G-57-----------------7-5--5-----------------|
        D-------------------------------------------|
        A-------------------------------------------|
        E-------------------------------------------|

Outro:
                   F  F#dim      Gm     Bb    
Ebm Bb
        E----------------------------------------------|
        B---68B868-8B-----10------------3-3-3-8--7---3-|
        G-57----------799B--9B97-5P3-3/-3-3-3-8--8---3-|
        D---------------------------5---3-3-3-8--8---3-|
        A-------------------------------1-1-1-6--6---1-|
        E----------------------------------------------|

-----------------------------------------
CHORDS:  EADGBE
         ------
F        133211
Am       X02210
F7       XX121X
Gm7      353333
Ebm7     X68676
C        X32010
Bb       X13331
Gm       355333
Ab7      464544
F#dim    XX2212
D7       XX0212
Eb       X68886
C7       X32310
Cm7      X35343
Ab#5     XX211X
B        X24442
Fm       133111
Ab       XX111X
Ebm      X68876
G#dim    XX4434
A        X02220
Db       X46664
F/E      XX221X
Bbm      X13321
F#aug5   XX4332
Em7dim5  010030