Few musicians have better-suited a collaboration than David Bowie and The Rolling Stones’ Mick Jagger. In August of 1985, the famous rock star pairing released their cover of a Martha And The Vandellas tune, titled “Dancing In The Street”. And by this very day, September 7, 1985, the song catapulted up the charts to hit No. 1 on the UK Singles chart.
The hitmakers managed to take a classic R&B song from the early 1960s and turn it into a pop-rock gem that suited the mid-1980s. The song also peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the US, and charted even higher on the dance and mainstream rock charts. Naturally, the song topped the charts across Europe as well, landing at No. 1 in Canada, Ireland, Australia, and other countries.
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It’s undeniable that this cover was a success. And yet, some fans look back at the song (and its famous music video) with a bit of cringe.
David Bowie and Mick Jagger’s “Dancing In The Street” Was a Playful Romp, and Some People Found That Embarrassing
David Bowie and Mick Jagger were not the first musicians to cover the Marvin Gaye-penned “Dancing In The Street” by Martha And The Vandellas. The Kinks, The Mamas & The Papas, Tages, Grateful Dead, and even Van Halen had covered the song before Bowie and Jagger got their paws on it. And yet, Bowie and Jagger’s version of the song might just be the most memorable cover.
Despite the song and music video doing so well chart-wise, retrospective reviews of Mick Jagger and David Bowie’s “Dancing In The Street” have been quite mixed. More than a few critics referred to the music video as “campy.” Though, I’d say that is fair and not entirely a negative criticism. One critic in the 2010s described it as “embarrassing.” Martin O’Gorman of RadioX had this to say about the famous MV:
“It’s this playful irreverence that causes many people to cringe. Two hugely-successful musicians that influenced successive generations are captured looking like embarrassing dads.”
To be honest, I don’t entirely understand why this song and music video have been so divisive. David Bowie and Mick Jagger, respectively, have made careers of prancing around on stage and having fun. What were people expecting, exactly? If anything, this was the collab of the century. The music video was quite delightful, and their cover of “Dancing In The Street” was a solid pop-rock gem. Perhaps we define far too many things as “embarrassing” nowadays.
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