I've listened to many different versions to try and see if it's just on the original, but I keep hearing it even MORE in live versions-- the way Bowie sings "All the corners of the buildings/ Who but we remember these" (and sometimes a few lines following) sounds like he's doing a parody of an Southern American accent.
It kind of sounds to me like he's doing a Bush impression? You can especially hear it when he says "buildings" in live performances; it's just such a weird way to say it, yet he consistently sings it the same way. This combined with things I've read online lead me to believe the song is a criticism on how Bush handled 9/11. Bush was infamous for pronouncing "nuclear" the wrong way, and the title (as people have pointed out) is pretty much a play on this mispronunciation.
The "ready, set, go" lines evoke the image of a race, and could be about what many people believe was Bush's rush to invade Iraq.
"I got a better way" is sung right before "ready, set, go"-- perhaps it's showing that Bush didn't consider other "better" options?
"I discovered a star" could be Bush's claim that there were WMD in Iraq-- a few lines later, the line is swapped with "a new killer star" which probably means nuclear weapons.
"Oh, my idiot trance/ All my idiot questions" I think at this point it's a bit self-explanatory.
It's one of my favourite Bowie songs because its meaning is subtle yet it makes its point.
I've listened to many different versions to try and see if it's just on the original, but I keep hearing it even MORE in live versions-- the way Bowie sings "All the corners of the buildings/ Who but we remember these" (and sometimes a few lines following) sounds like he's doing a parody of an Southern American accent.
It kind of sounds to me like he's doing a Bush impression? You can especially hear it when he says "buildings" in live performances; it's just such a weird way to say it, yet he consistently sings it the same way. This combined with things I've read online lead me to believe the song is a criticism on how Bush handled 9/11. Bush was infamous for pronouncing "nuclear" the wrong way, and the title (as people have pointed out) is pretty much a play on this mispronunciation.
The "ready, set, go" lines evoke the image of a race, and could be about what many people believe was Bush's rush to invade Iraq.
"I got a better way" is sung right before "ready, set, go"-- perhaps it's showing that Bush didn't consider other "better" options?
"I discovered a star" could be Bush's claim that there were WMD in Iraq-- a few lines later, the line is swapped with "a new killer star" which probably means nuclear weapons.
"Oh, my idiot trance/ All my idiot questions" I think at this point it's a bit self-explanatory.
It's one of my favourite Bowie songs because its meaning is subtle yet it makes its point.