In one of history’s most surreal musical moments, glam-rock titan David Bowie joined forces with the King of Christmas himself, Bing Crosby, to perform a now-iconic mash-up of “Little Drummer Boy” and “Peace on Earth”. Although the general public wouldn’t witness this holiday magic for another several months, it was on this day (September 11) in 1977 that the odd couple filmed their performance at ATV Elstree Studios in Borehamwood, England.
The offbeat yet timeless duet aired as part of Bing Crosby’s Merrie Olde Christmas, which aired on CBS on November 30, 1977. It marked one of the crooner’s final recordings before his sudden death on October 14 of that year. Crosby, 74, died after collapsing from a heart attack on a golf course in Spain.
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Today we’re taking a look at the story behind one of the strangest holiday pairings of all time — and how we were almost robbed of it.
David Bowie Only Agreed to This Bing Crosby Duet on One Condition
When David Crosby walked into the studio fresh off recording his seminal studio album Heroes, the plan was for the “Ziggy Stardust” singer to join Bing Crosby in a rendition of the 1941 standard “Little Drummer Boy”.
However, the Thin White Duke foiled those plans almost immediately. “David came in and said, ‘I hate this song. Is there something else I could sing?’ ” co-writer Ian Fraser recalled in a 2006 interview with the Washington Post. “We didn’t know quite what to do.”
Indeed, Bowie made it abundantly clear that he was only “doing the show because my mother loves Bing Crosby.”
Along with co-writers Buz Kohan and Larry Grossman, Fraser left the set and found a piano in the studios’ basement. About 75 minutes later, they had written the original tune “Peace on Earth,” which they intermingled with “Little Drummer Boy”. Cosby sang the Christmas classic, while Bowie performed “Peace on Earth”.
“Magic Was Made”
According to Bing Crosby’s children, the Grammy Hall of Famer’s meeting with David Bowie started off on shaky ground.
“The doors opened and David walked in with his wife. They were both wearing full-length mink coats, they have matching full makeup and their hair was bright red,” Mary Crosby recalled, according to a 2014 Billboard article. “We were thinking, `Oh my god.’”
According to the crooner’s son, Nathaniel, the performance almost didn’t happen. The producers requested that Bowie remove the lipstick and earring before he joined Crosby at the piano.
“David was a little nervous,” Mary Crosby said. “Dad realized David was this amazing musician, and David realized Dad was an amazing musician. You could see them both collectively relax and then magic was made.”
The two legends nailed the take in less than an hour. Released a single by RCA Records in November 1982, “Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy” reached number three on the UK singles chart.
It was Crosby’s final hit and one of the most successful recordings of Bowie’s career.
Featured image by CBS Photo Archive/Courtesy of Getty Images
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