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Five Years: Bowie-inspired poetry and lyrics
In this 25 poems, B F Jones borrows David Bowie's titles and revisits his themes and obsessions, as a way to honour his memory. The result is beautiful poetry accessible to all, Bowie fans or not.
B F Jones wraps her own poetic Sound & Vision around 25 songs chosen in David Bowie’s massive catalogue.
These are not literal reinterpretations, of course, they are the author’s variations born from a poignant line plucked from the lyrics, like in Heroes, or a fugitive emotion, an unconscious tickle, as in We are the Dead, or a yearning for eternity, in Ashes to Ashes.
There are touches of tenderness, nostalgia, darkness, cruelty, humour, joy in B.F. poems, a range of hues that her inspirator would have smiled at. Maybe he’s smiling now, after Five Years, knowing that we miss him. Forever.
-- M.E. Proctor (author of The Savage Crown Series)
Five Years is a chapbook that really talks to your soul and is an absolute must read for anyone.
Jones borrows the song titles of music icon David Bowie in this stunning collection of poetry and makes them her own. She puts her own spin on the titles, tells her own stories and the result is remarkable. Jones' writing style is gorgeous, and she has this amazing ability to put you right there in the moment.
--Wayne Jermin, author of - Hang The Sad Pictures
B F Jones wraps her own poetic Sound & Vision around 25 songs chosen in David Bowie’s massive catalogue.
These are not literal reinterpretations, of course, they are the author’s variations born from a poignant line plucked from the lyrics, like in Heroes, or a fugitive emotion, an unconscious tickle, as in We are the Dead, or a yearning for eternity, in Ashes to Ashes.
There are touches of tenderness, nostalgia, darkness, cruelty, humour, joy in B.F. poems, a range of hues that her inspirator would have smiled at. Maybe he’s smiling now, after Five Years, knowing that we miss him. Forever.
-- M.E. Proctor (author of The Savage Crown Series)
Five Years is a chapbook that really talks to your soul and is an absolute must read for anyone.
Jones borrows the song titles of music icon David Bowie in this stunning collection of poetry and makes them her own. She puts her own spin on the titles, tells her own stories and the result is remarkable. Jones' writing style is gorgeous, and she has this amazing ability to put you right there in the moment.
--Wayne Jermin, author of - Hang The Sad Pictures
56 pages, Paperback
Published October 30, 2021
3 people want to read
About the author
B.F. Jones
14 books22 followersB F Jones is French and lives in the UK. She is the author of Something Happened at 2am, a collection of interlinked short stories, 5 years, a chapbook inspired by the song titles of David Bowie, and the Edge of Nowhere a poetry collection. Her next collection, Nobody thought to look under the floorboards, will be released in the summer of 2024.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
November 5, 2021
In "Five Years," BF Jones delivers an exciting collection that celebrates the ragged edges of things, deftly exploring themes of alienation and isolation so prevalent in Bowie’s work. The result is a potent tribute to the legacy of one of rock music’s most talented lyricists.
November 10, 2021
Inspired by, and in celebration of, 25 songs from across Bowie’s golden years, B F Jones certainly knows her stuff - both as a writer and fan of her namesake, Davy Jones.
The song titles are the jumping off points rather than the subject matter of the original songs, although many are imbued with Bowie’s own fascinations of alienation, modern love, dark humour and a penchant for the slightly sordid, surreal and speculative.
As a fellow Bowie-obsessive I was intrigued to see what songs Jones would choose from which to craft her own unique response, and the selection doesn’t disappoint. Covering the decades from Memory of a Free Festival to Where Are We Now? Jones even includes some of his covers (Sorrow and Here today, Gone tomorrow) as well as the lesser known track Born In a UFO which appeared on the reissue of The Next Day.
In keeping with Bowie’s own musical collaborations, five of the poems here are poetic partnerships with other writers from the contemporary indie poetry scene.
In all it makes for a worthy and unique poetic exploration and celebration of the Thin White Duke of whom, as she writes in Eight Line Poem: “Five years / is how long / we’ve been / mourning you.”
The song titles are the jumping off points rather than the subject matter of the original songs, although many are imbued with Bowie’s own fascinations of alienation, modern love, dark humour and a penchant for the slightly sordid, surreal and speculative.
As a fellow Bowie-obsessive I was intrigued to see what songs Jones would choose from which to craft her own unique response, and the selection doesn’t disappoint. Covering the decades from Memory of a Free Festival to Where Are We Now? Jones even includes some of his covers (Sorrow and Here today, Gone tomorrow) as well as the lesser known track Born In a UFO which appeared on the reissue of The Next Day.
In keeping with Bowie’s own musical collaborations, five of the poems here are poetic partnerships with other writers from the contemporary indie poetry scene.
In all it makes for a worthy and unique poetic exploration and celebration of the Thin White Duke of whom, as she writes in Eight Line Poem: “Five years / is how long / we’ve been / mourning you.”
October 31, 2021
Jones channels Bowie to bring us a chapbook that at once is influenced and inspired by the Thin White Duke and has its own voice with Jones looking to make sense of love and life as you approach middle age. It's an entertaining and reassuring read. I've had some of the feelings and emotions evoked throughout and it is good to hear these coming from someone else especially a female to boot.
The collection takes snippets of Bowie's word and wends them into beautiful poems and breathtaking collaborations with other poets including John Bowie, Stephen J. Golds and David Cranmer.
Another great collection from an author who has swiftly become a favourite of mine.
The collection takes snippets of Bowie's word and wends them into beautiful poems and breathtaking collaborations with other poets including John Bowie, Stephen J. Golds and David Cranmer.
Another great collection from an author who has swiftly become a favourite of mine.
November 1, 2021
Poetry inspired by the songs of David Bowie! Sounds great and it is because these poems are written by one of the most talented poets writing on the indie scene currently. BF Jones work is dark, honest and surreal and a perfect match for Bowie’s Greatest Hits.
November 16, 2021
Like Bowie himself, Jones delivers another hit!
Influenced by Bowie and his songs, the talented Jones blends emotions, feelings, and life into the pages.
Jones is certainly one of my go-to writers, consistently she cannot be matched with the quality work she is putting out regularly.
Influenced by Bowie and his songs, the talented Jones blends emotions, feelings, and life into the pages.
Jones is certainly one of my go-to writers, consistently she cannot be matched with the quality work she is putting out regularly.
January 17, 2022
Five Years is a wonderful little book of poems by one of my favourite indie writers. These poems, inspired by Bowie’s song titles and the Starman himself, are so thoughtfully constructed, so beautifully written, that I found myself entirely under Jones’ spell from the first page to the last.
Each poem is relatively short in form, but fraught with emotion. Not a single word is wasted or out of place. ‘Never get old’ is probably my favourite poem that Jones has ever written – I must have read it 50 times by now, it’s just perfect. ‘The width of a circle’ had me in tears, and I also particularly loved ‘We are the dead’ and ‘Time’. The collaborative poems (with some of my other favourite indie poets) add another layer of depth to this collection, but Jones’ distinctive voice and sheer talent shines through on every page. Jones’ ability to capture specific feelings, significant situations, poignant memories, and translate them into images that every reader can relate to and feel pain from is mind-blowing. And while the Bowie influence is undeniable, Jones’ work is entirely her own, these are poems that only she can write.
This collection is a joy to experience. I re-read it recently on Bowie’s birthday and was just as taken with it than I was the first time I read it. I know I’ll return to it again. Stunning, poignant, masterfully created, Five Years is essential reading for Bowie fans and poetry lovers alike.
Each poem is relatively short in form, but fraught with emotion. Not a single word is wasted or out of place. ‘Never get old’ is probably my favourite poem that Jones has ever written – I must have read it 50 times by now, it’s just perfect. ‘The width of a circle’ had me in tears, and I also particularly loved ‘We are the dead’ and ‘Time’. The collaborative poems (with some of my other favourite indie poets) add another layer of depth to this collection, but Jones’ distinctive voice and sheer talent shines through on every page. Jones’ ability to capture specific feelings, significant situations, poignant memories, and translate them into images that every reader can relate to and feel pain from is mind-blowing. And while the Bowie influence is undeniable, Jones’ work is entirely her own, these are poems that only she can write.
This collection is a joy to experience. I re-read it recently on Bowie’s birthday and was just as taken with it than I was the first time I read it. I know I’ll return to it again. Stunning, poignant, masterfully created, Five Years is essential reading for Bowie fans and poetry lovers alike.
December 23, 2021
Jones borrows the song titles of music icon David Bowie in this stunning collection of poetry and makes them her own. She puts her own spin on the titles, tells her own stories and the result is remarkable. Jones' writing style is gorgeous and the result of this unique mash-up is unmatched.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews