Original Performance: David Bowie
Written by: David Bowie
Written by: David Bowie
Versions:
- Diamond Dogs (4:30)
Available on Les Inrockuptibles Présentent: Initials BO and 1 other release.
CreditsJimmy Douglas: Engineer
Mickey Petralia: Engineer
Timbaland: Producer
Beck Hansen: Vocals - Diamond Dogs (Al Jolson at the Rave Tent)
a.k.a. Diamond Dogs (Beck Circus Performance)
Available on Moulin Rouge.
CreditsBeck Hansen: Producer, Vocals
Lyrics:
Diamond Dogs [Version (a)]:
As they pulled you out of the oxygen tent, you asked for the latest party
With your silicone hump and your ten inch stump
Dressed like a priest, you was
Tod Browning's freak, you was
Crawling down the alley on your hands and your knees
I'm sure you're not protected, for it's plain to see
The diamond dogs are poachers and they hide behind trees
Hunt you to the ground, they will, mannequins with kill appeal
Here they come... I'll keep a friend serene
Here they come... oh baby, come on to me
Here they come... well she's come and been gone
Come out of the garden baby, you'll catch your death in the fog
The girls call them the Diamond Dogs
In the year of the scavenger, the season of the bitch
Sashay on the boardwalk, scurry to the ditch
Just another future song, lonely little kitsch
There's gonna be sorrow, try and wake up for tomorrow
Halloween Jack is a real cool cat
He lives on top of Manhattan Chase
The elevator's broke so he slides down a rope
Onto the street below, oh Tarzan, go man go
Here they come... I'll keep a friend serene
Here they come... oh baby, come on to me
Here they come... well she's come and been gone
Come out of the garden baby, you'll catch your death in the fog
The girls call them the Diamond Dogs
The girls call them the Diamond Dogs
Oo-oo-ooh, oo-oo-ooh, oo-oo-ooh
Oo-oo-ooh, call them the Diamond Dogs
Oo-oo-ooh, call them the Diamond Dogs
Oo-oo-ooh, call them the Diamond Dogs, Dogs
Oo-oo-ooh, call them the Diamond Dogs, Dogs
Oo-oo-ooh, call them the Diamond Dogs, Dogs
As they pulled you out of the oxygen tent, you asked for the latest party
With your silicone hump and your ten inch stump
Dressed like a priest, you was
Tod Browning's freak, you was
Crawling down the alley on your hands and your knees
I'm sure you're not protected, for it's plain to see
The diamond dogs are poachers and they hide behind trees
Hunt you to the ground, they will, mannequins with kill appeal
Here they come... I'll keep a friend serene
Here they come... oh baby, come on to me
Here they come... well she's come and been gone
Come out of the garden baby, you'll catch your death in the fog
The girls call them the Diamond Dogs
In the year of the scavenger, the season of the bitch
Sashay on the boardwalk, scurry to the ditch
Just another future song, lonely little kitsch
There's gonna be sorrow, try and wake up for tomorrow
Halloween Jack is a real cool cat
He lives on top of Manhattan Chase
The elevator's broke so he slides down a rope
Onto the street below, oh Tarzan, go man go
Here they come... I'll keep a friend serene
Here they come... oh baby, come on to me
Here they come... well she's come and been gone
Come out of the garden baby, you'll catch your death in the fog
The girls call them the Diamond Dogs
The girls call them the Diamond Dogs
Oo-oo-ooh, oo-oo-ooh, oo-oo-ooh
Oo-oo-ooh, call them the Diamond Dogs
Oo-oo-ooh, call them the Diamond Dogs
Oo-oo-ooh, call them the Diamond Dogs, Dogs
Oo-oo-ooh, call them the Diamond Dogs, Dogs
Oo-oo-ooh, call them the Diamond Dogs, Dogs
The Song:
Beck released his cover of the David Bowie classic, "Diamond Dogs" on the soundtrack to the film, Moulin Rouge. Discussing why the song was chosen, Beck explained, "Well, that was part of the movie. There are these characters in the film called the Diamond Dogs. This is their theme song." The song was an assignment from the film's director, Baz Luhrmann. Initially, Beck was going to help Baz write the music for the film, but then Baz changed his mind and ended up using songs that already existed, like "Diamond Dogs." Beck, coming off Midnite Vultures, said he was attracted to the "dystopia, gleeful, wild imagery" of the lyrics.
Beck actually did two versions of the song, the first without Timbaland. He remembers that, "The one I did on my own is sort of 'Al Jolson at the rave tent.' With Kurt Weill playing the pump organ." This version can be heard in the film, but is not on the soundtrack. It can be heard in Chapter 7 on the DVD, but unfortunately it is cut-off, obscured by dialogue, and at times muffled in the background. On the DVD commentary director Baz Luhrmann describes it:
This version is definitely accurately described as a "circus performance"! It would be great to someday hear this in full, clear quality.
Then when Beck got together with Timbaland, who was unfamiliar with the song, he played it for him on the piano. Timbaland was still unconvinced about the song's prospects, but once they got started, the song began to change and become a bit more "contemporary."
Producer Timbaland and Beck worked together, basically out of mutual admiration. "I met Beck at [a taping of the TV show, 'Jimmy And Doug's] Farmclub.com'," Timbaland remembered. "Jay-Z said [Beck] wanted to meet me, and I came up there with Jay and I hooked up with him [there]." A few months later, during the first week of September 2000, Beck went into the studio with Timbaland to work on "Diamond Dogs." Beck recalled their work together:
While working with Timbaland on this track, Beck also made a guest appearence on a song called "I Am Music" which was to be released on Timbaland's album, Indecent Proposal. Unfortunately, in the end, Tim decided not to use Beck's contribution to the song in the final edit of the album. Timbaland also had at one point expressed an idea to get together with Beck and record covers of Devo songs. Beck said he was willing, but alas -- it never happened.
Beck released his cover of the David Bowie classic, "Diamond Dogs" on the soundtrack to the film, Moulin Rouge. Discussing why the song was chosen, Beck explained, "Well, that was part of the movie. There are these characters in the film called the Diamond Dogs. This is their theme song." The song was an assignment from the film's director, Baz Luhrmann. Initially, Beck was going to help Baz write the music for the film, but then Baz changed his mind and ended up using songs that already existed, like "Diamond Dogs." Beck, coming off Midnite Vultures, said he was attracted to the "dystopia, gleeful, wild imagery" of the lyrics.
Beck actually did two versions of the song, the first without Timbaland. He remembers that, "The one I did on my own is sort of 'Al Jolson at the rave tent.' With Kurt Weill playing the pump organ." This version can be heard in the film, but is not on the soundtrack. It can be heard in Chapter 7 on the DVD, but unfortunately it is cut-off, obscured by dialogue, and at times muffled in the background. On the DVD commentary director Baz Luhrmann describes it:
This track that you hear by Beck - I mean it is actually Beck singing in the background but it doesn't appear on the album it's only in the film and we call it the circus, the Beck circus performance of David Bowie's "Diamond Dogs".
This version is definitely accurately described as a "circus performance"! It would be great to someday hear this in full, clear quality.
Then when Beck got together with Timbaland, who was unfamiliar with the song, he played it for him on the piano. Timbaland was still unconvinced about the song's prospects, but once they got started, the song began to change and become a bit more "contemporary."
Producer Timbaland and Beck worked together, basically out of mutual admiration. "I met Beck at [a taping of the TV show, 'Jimmy And Doug's] Farmclub.com'," Timbaland remembered. "Jay-Z said [Beck] wanted to meet me, and I came up there with Jay and I hooked up with him [there]." A few months later, during the first week of September 2000, Beck went into the studio with Timbaland to work on "Diamond Dogs." Beck recalled their work together:
We got in the studio and we were just foolin' around. Tim wanted it to sound darker. I think we kind of turned it into a completely different song; we just kept the lyrics. There's a coolness in our version that it doesn't release. It just builds and it never lets go. Always holding something back, you know. It doesn't have the big payoff. Which is something I like about Tim's music, that it's always holding something back. It hints at more than it's giving. That minimalism, I really respect, 'cause I tend to go way over the top, and try to do too many things at once, and cram too much in one space.
While working with Timbaland on this track, Beck also made a guest appearence on a song called "I Am Music" which was to be released on Timbaland's album, Indecent Proposal. Unfortunately, in the end, Tim decided not to use Beck's contribution to the song in the final edit of the album. Timbaland also had at one point expressed an idea to get together with Beck and record covers of Devo songs. Beck said he was willing, but alas -- it never happened.
Live:
Played live 14 times:
Earliest known live version: June 23, 2001
Latest known live version: August 19, 2001
In his first tour after Moulin Rouge and the song were released (the June/July 2001 tour of Europe), Beck performed "Diamond Dogs" on stage regularly. They played the song almost every night of the short tour.
The live performance of the song is somewhat different from the one on the soundtrack. It has more piano and a huge bassline, it's much more new wave/rock.
After that tour, Beck dropped the song and hasn't played it since.
Played live 14 times:
June 23, 2001
June 25, 2001
June 26, 2001
June 27, 2001
June 29, 2001
June 30, 2001
July 1, 2001
July 4, 2001
July 9, 2001
July 11, 2001
...and 4 more.
June 25, 2001
June 26, 2001
June 27, 2001
June 29, 2001
June 30, 2001
July 1, 2001
July 4, 2001
July 9, 2001
July 11, 2001
...and 4 more.
Earliest known live version: June 23, 2001
Latest known live version: August 19, 2001
In his first tour after Moulin Rouge and the song were released (the June/July 2001 tour of Europe), Beck performed "Diamond Dogs" on stage regularly. They played the song almost every night of the short tour.
The live performance of the song is somewhat different from the one on the soundtrack. It has more piano and a huge bassline, it's much more new wave/rock.
After that tour, Beck dropped the song and hasn't played it since.
Notes:
- "Diamond Dogs" was on David Bowie's album of the same name from 1974. More info about his song here.
- Beck, of course, by all appearances is a huge David Bowie fan. Other Bowie-related tracks he has done: on stage, Beck has covered Across The Universe," "Fame," and "Win" (all 3 from Young Americans), as well as "Under Pressure" and "All The Young Dudes." In the studio, he released a version of Bowie's Diamond Dogs." David Bowie also asked Beck to remix his song "Seven."
- Timbaland further explained what he likes about Beck, "He's diverse, so he's just like me. He's in a whole different league and a whole different category. It makes me [get back] into a highly creative mode...and he makes me feel like he's with me. He likes the stuff I like, the ill stuff that goes all different."
"He has his own sounds," Timbaland added. "I'll be freakin' off his sound. Beck has a lot of sound, and his sound library is just ridiculous. His guitar sounds are just retarded to me." - The snippet of the song actually in Moulin Rouge is different from the one released on the soundtrack. It is the above-mentioned "Al Jolson at the rave tent" version.