In 1969 David Bowie made a promotional film, “Love You Till Tuesday”, at the prompting of his the manager Ken Pitt, to try and bring him to a wider audience. The half-hour film was intended to showcase seven of Bowie's songs. There were four from his 1967 debut “David Bowie”, two of which were re-recorded for the film, his planned follow-up single "Let Me Sleep Beside You" and two new songs "When I'm Five" and "Ching-a-Ling". Just as filming started Bowie added a new song he’d written, “Space Oddity”. It would also include a mime piece performed and narrated by Bowie. 

Bowie had to wear a wig throughout the filming as he had had his hair cropped for a part in the film “The Virgin Soldiers”. Manager Ken Pitt fell out with the director who wanted to make the “Space Oddity” segment somewhat more risque and the whole film had cost him much more than anticipated. All that combined with no-one wanting to buy it meant that the whole project was shelved. In 1984 Ken Pitt contacted Polygram video who finally released the film, titled on VHS video and Deram released this soundtrack album.

Eight of the songs on this 12 track compilation appeared in the film "Love You till Tuesday”, “Sell Me a Coat”, “When I'm Five”, “Rubber Band”, “Let Me Sleep Beside You”, “Ching-a-Ling”, “Space Oddity” and ”When I Live My Dream”. It was the first time this version of "Space Oddity" had been released. It is Bowie’s original recording of the song and nowhere near as polished as the finally released single version. Bowie’s voice sounds genuinely strange in places too, so much so that I don’t think it’s him and someone else is singing the “Ground Control” parts.

"Ching-A-Ling" and "When I'm Five" were also being issued for the first time. The first of the two is a folky thing with vocals shared between Bowie’s girlfriend at the time, Hermione Farthingale (later the subject of the song “Letter To Hermione”) and his friend John Hutchinson (is it him singing the “Ground Control” parts on “Space Oddity”?) with Bowie on backing vocals (part of the backing vocal melody resurfaced in "Saviour Machine" on the abum "The Man Who Sold The World"). ”When I’m Five” is a trite, slightly silly childlike song in the vein of others from his debut album, but I like it, it’s silly. The versions of "Sell Me A Coat" and "When I Live My Dream" here are different from those found on Bowie’s 1967 debut album.

The track list is rounded out with Bowie’s first ever single “Liza Jane” (I think this was the first time I got to hear it, it being as rare as rocking horse doo-doo), originally released in 1964 under the name of Davie Jones & The King Bees, “The Laughing Gnome” and 1966 B-side (!) “The London Boys” which is one of the young Fabid Bowie’s better songs of the period, the tale of a young Mod coming to the big smoke to hang out with the Faces and the toll trying to keep up with them  takes on him.

This is Bowie in transition between the musical theatre/Anthony Newley style he projected on his 1967 debut album, “David Bowie”, and the singer/songwriter style he would take on with the release of the single “Space Oddity”, songs like “Let Me Sleep Beside You” and his 1970 album, also titled “David Bowie”. It really isn’t a record for the casual Bowie listener but definitely for the Bowie nerd…that’ll be me then.

When I’m Five - https://youtu.be/qLoO9Ek-3FU?si=m4tRT-2e8H_TcNKU