Soul Love

When you dive into *Soul Love*, you encounter a piece that, beneath a sweet surface, hides a rather clinical look at love. The lyrics, written by David Bowie, feature several characters grappling with affection at a moment of imminent catastrophe for Earth, as described in "Five Years", the song that opens the album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. The melody is said to have a quality reminiscent of "Stand by Me" by Ben E. King, and the instrumentation layers harmonies, a saxophone solo by Bowie, and Mick Ronson's guitar. The rhythmic structure of the verses can feel a bit unusual, shifting between 7/4 or 2/4 time signatures, and Bowie plays with major and minor chords, similar to what is heard in "Ziggy Stardust".

The recording of *Soul Love* took place on November 12, 1971, at London's Trident Studios, with David Bowie and Ken Scott producing. The band backing Bowie, known as The Spiders from Mars, consisted of Mick Ronson on guitar, Trevor Bolder on bass, and Mick Woodmansey on drums. The full album, The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars, was released on June 16, 1972. Although the song wasn't performed frequently live, it did feature in tours like the Isolar II Tour. In 2012, the song, along with the album, was remastered to mark its 40th anniversary, and in 2015 it was reissued as part of the box set Five Years (1969–1973).