Life on Mars?

“Life on Mars?” is a highly acclaimed song by the iconic David Bowie. It was originally released on his 1971 album Hunky Dory and later as a single in 1973. The lyrics are surreal and cinematic, depicting a young girl’s escapist disillusionment with reality and media. Known for its soaring chorus, the song is often cited as one of Bowie’s finest works.

When distilled to a single fingerstyle guitar arrangement — the otherworldly musicianship of David Bowie is laid bare with brilliant melodies and clever chord progressions. I particularly like the way he snakes his way back into the verse from the chorus. It’s mind-blowing.

He was only 24 years old when he recorded Life On Mars?.

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How to play Life on Mars? | fingerstyle guitar

The guitar tab for this piece is beautifully written across 3pages. I definitely recommend this for intermediate guitar players and up. Enjoy, the guitar tab is available below:

My song structure looks like this, in accordance with the guitar tab:

Verse, Chorus, Chorus End

Verse, Chorus, Chorus End (you’ll stop on the Em/C# chord)

[guitar tab] **David Bowie: Life On Mars? | fingerstyle guitar

Life on Mars? is played in standard tuning with a capo on the 2nd fret.