Bowie Lends Voice to Scarlett Johansson Album

BY Scott A. GrayPublished Feb 13, 2008

Remember when we reported on the release date and list of collaborators for Scarlett Johansson's debut album of mostly Tom Waits covers? Well, if the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' Nick Zinner and TV On the Radio's David Sitek weren't enough to send your awesome meter crashing into the red, how do a couple of guest vocal performances by David Bowie grab you?

Rolling Stone confirmed today that Bowie has cut vocals for the Waits covers "Falling Down" and "Fannin' Street." And just how did Johansson wrangle in one of the coolest musicians on the planet to participate on Anywhere I Lay My Head? Having a producer who's chummy with the Thin White Duke definitely has its ups.

Apparently, days before recording commenced, Johansson found herself sitting next to Bowie at a party. "He said, 'Hey, I hear you're working with Dave Sitek,'" Johansson says. "I said, 'Yeah, I'm super excited.' In my mind I was thinking, 'If you get a chance come down to Louisiana, we'll be down there for five weeks.'" Bowie didn't show while Scarlett was working on the album, but while she was filming a movie in Spain, she received a call from Sitek saying Bowie had dropped by during mixing to lay down a couple vocal tracks. "It was the best phone call I ever got," Johansson says.

There are currently no plans to support the album with any live shows, but Johansson is very open to the idea. "It would be sad to not get everybody together, whether it's at a festival or somewhere fun," she says.
With Bowie's seal of approval pretty evident, Johansson also has the blessing of Mr. Swordfishtrombone himself. "I've heard through friends that he's very pleased with it and excited about it," Johansson says. "I sent him some of the early, early recordings that we did and he was like, 'Go ahead, go forth with it.'"

Here's the full track listing:

1. "Fawn"
2. "Town With No Cheer"
3. "Falling Down"
4. "Song for Jo" (a Johansson and Sitek original)
5. "Fannin' Street"
6. "Song for Jo"
7. "Green Grass"
8. "I Wish I Was In New Orleans"
9. "I Don't Want to Grow Up"
10. "Who Are You?"

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