Panic in Detroit
Encyclopedia
"Panic in Detroit" is a song written by David Bowie
for the album Aladdin Sane
in 1973. Bowie based it on friend Iggy Pop
's descriptions of revolutionaries he had known as a youth in Michigan
. It is also interpreted as being written about the 1967 Detroit riots
. Rolling Stone
magazine called the track "a paranoid descendant of the Motor City's earlier masterpiece, Martha and the Vandellas
' "Nowhere to Run"".
Musically "Panic in Detroit" has been described as a "Salsa
variation on the Bo Diddley
beat", and features prominent conga
drums and female backing vocals. The lyrics namecheck Che Guevara
and are also said to contain references to John Sinclair
of the White Panther Party
.
Bowie played the song live on tour in 1973, 1974, 1976, 1990, 1997, and 2003-4.
In 2003, Rolling Stone magazine printed its list of "The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time". Mick Ronson
was ranked at #64, and "Panic in Detroit" as his "essential recording".
" in 1974. The same version was also released as the B-side of the US-only single "Rock 'n' Roll With Me
" in 1974, on the compilation album Rare in 1983, and finally on the re-issued David Live
in 2005.
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
for the album Aladdin Sane
Aladdin Sane
Aladdin Sane is the sixth album by David Bowie, released by RCA Records in 1973 . The follow-up to his breakthrough The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, it was the first album Bowie wrote and released as a bona fide rock star...
in 1973. Bowie based it on friend Iggy Pop
Iggy Pop
Iggy Pop is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Though considered an innovator of punk rock, Pop's music has encompassed a number of styles over the years, including pop, metal, jazz and blues...
's descriptions of revolutionaries he had known as a youth in Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
. It is also interpreted as being written about the 1967 Detroit riots
12th Street riot
The 1967 Detroit riot, also known as the 12th Street riot, was a civil disturbance in Detroit, Michigan, that began in the early morning hours of Sunday, July 23, 1967. The precipitating event was a police raid of an unlicensed, after-hours bar then known as a blind pig, on the corner of 12th and...
. Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine called the track "a paranoid descendant of the Motor City's earlier masterpiece, Martha and the Vandellas
Martha and the Vandellas
Martha and the Vandellas were among the most successful groups of the Motown roster during the period 1963–1967...
' "Nowhere to Run"".
Musically "Panic in Detroit" has been described as a "Salsa
Salsa music
Salsa music is a genre of music, generally defined as a modern style of playing Cuban Son, Son Montuno, and Guaracha with touches from other genres of music...
variation on the Bo Diddley
Bo Diddley
Ellas Otha Bates , known by his stage name Bo Diddley, was an American rhythm and blues vocalist, guitarist, songwriter , and inventor...
beat", and features prominent conga
Conga
The conga, or more properly the tumbadora, is a tall, narrow, single-headed Cuban drum with African antecedents. It is thought to be derived from the Makuta drums or similar drums associated with Afro-Cubans of Central African descent. A person who plays conga is called a conguero...
drums and female backing vocals. The lyrics namecheck Che Guevara
Che Guevara
Ernesto "Che" Guevara , commonly known as el Che or simply Che, was an Argentine Marxist revolutionary, physician, author, intellectual, guerrilla leader, diplomat and military theorist...
and are also said to contain references to John Sinclair
John Sinclair (poet)
John Sinclair is a Detroit poet, one-time manager of the band MC5, and leader of the White Panther Party — a militantly anti-racist countercultural group of white socialists seeking to assist the Black Panthers in the Civil Rights movement — from November 1968 to July 1969...
of the White Panther Party
White Panther Party
The White Panthers were a far-left, anti-racist, White American political collective founded in 1968 by Lawrence Plamondon, Leni Sinclair, and John Sinclair. It was started in response to an interview where Huey P. Newton, co-founder of the Black Panther Party, was asked what white people could do...
.
Bowie played the song live on tour in 1973, 1974, 1976, 1990, 1997, and 2003-4.
In 2003, Rolling Stone magazine printed its list of "The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time". Mick Ronson
Mick Ronson
Michael "Mick" Ronson was an English guitarist, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, arranger and producer. He is best known for his work with David Bowie, as one of The Spiders from Mars...
was ranked at #64, and "Panic in Detroit" as his "essential recording".
Live versions
A live version recorded on July 14, 1974 was released as the B-side of the single "Knock on WoodKnock on Wood (song)
"Knock on Wood" is a hit 1966 song written by Eddie Floyd and Steve Cropper and originally performed by Eddie Floyd. The Eddie Floyd version peaked at number twenty-eight on the Hot 100, and spent one week at number one on the soul singles....
" in 1974. The same version was also released as the B-side of the US-only single "Rock 'n' Roll With Me
Rock 'n' Roll With Me
"Rock 'n' Roll With Me" is a song written by David Bowie and Warren Peace that first appeared on the Bowie's Diamond Dogs album in April 1974...
" in 1974, on the compilation album Rare in 1983, and finally on the re-issued David Live
David Live
David Live is David Bowie’s first official live album, originally released by RCA Records in 1974. Recorded on the initial leg of Bowie’s US tour supporting Diamond Dogs in July of that year , it has been cited as one of the best live...
in 2005.
Other releases
- It was released as the B-side of the Japan release of the single "TimeTime (David Bowie song)"Time" is a song by David Bowie. Written in New Orleans in November 1972 during the American leg of his first Ziggy Stardust tour, it was released as the opening track on Side Two of the album Aladdin Sane in April 1973...
" in April 1973. - It was released as picture discs in both the RCARCA RecordsRCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...
Life Time picture disc set and the Fashion Picture Disc Set. - It also appeared in the Sound and Vision box set (1989).
- A new version recorded in 1979 was issued as a bonus track on the RykodiscRykodiscRykodisc Records is an American record label. It is owned by Warner Music Group, operates as a unit of WMG's Independent Label Group and is distributed through Alternative Distribution Alliance.-Company history:...
CD release of Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)Scary Monsters is an album by David Bowie, released in September 1980 by RCA Records. It was Bowie's final studio album for the label and his first following the so-called Berlin Trilogy of Low, "Heroes" and Lodger . Though considered significant in artistic terms, the trilogy had proved less...
in 1992. The same recording appeared on the bonus disc of the Heathen Limited Edition double CD, mislabelled an "outtake from a 1979 recording".
Cover versions
- Christian DeathChristian DeathChristian Death is an American deathrock band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1979. The band was founded and fronted by Rozz Williams. Christian Death is most notable for their first album Only Theatre of Pain....
- The Rage of Angels (1994), Death in Detroit EP (1995), Goth Oddity - A Tribute to David Bowie (1999), and Starman: Rare and Exclusive Versions of 18 Classic David Bowie Songs, CD premium from the March 2003 issue of Uncut magazine - Shadow ProjectShadow ProjectShadow Project were a deathrock band formed in the early 1990s with Rozz Williams, Eva O and Paris Sadonis. The band's first album included bassist Jill Emery and drummer Thomas Morgan....
- In Tuned Out Live 93 (1994) - The Aries Parallel - Diamond Gods: Interpretations of Bowie (2001)
- The Joe Harvard Band - Hero: The Main Man Records Tribute to David Bowie (2007)