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Music

What I Learned about Style from Bowie and Jagger's "Dancing In The Street"

In 1985, Bowie and Jagger joined forces to create this low budget video. It's rife with erratic dance maneuvers, billowing fabric, and sexual tension, and it is totally worthy of exhaustive dissection.

The biggest lesson I learned about style and possibly, the universe, from Bowie and Jagger's seminal 1985 cover, was that as long as you fully commit to something, you can probably sell it with jazz hands. Take two aging rock icons, mix in some PJs, some alarming dance maneuvers and, just for spice, a spritz of sexual frisson and you have their promo for "Dancing In The Street."

No matter how rushed the production was, and it was—after four hours spent recording the song, they went to shoot this video, wrapping at dawn—Bowie and Jagger's commitment to their performance transcends the lack of planning and costume changes.

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By 1985, musicians of their era were starting to show definite signs of ageing. They had kids, financial advisors, and MTV was pumping out younger, faster rockstars each and every day. So when Bob Geldof put together the Greatest Hits Collection Of Extremely Wealthy Musicians™ at Live Aid (kind of like the Justice League, but instead of Superman you had Sting), it was a chance for the great and good to promote their music across the planet, hoiking up their own record sales in the process raise a ton of money to help those suffering from starvation in Ethiopia.

To further this cause, Bowie and Jagger—longtime friends and alleged sometime bedmates—decided to cover Martha & The Vandellas' smash, "Dancing In The Street." The Marvin Gaye-penned song seemed appropriate because it mentioned lots of cities around the world (Live Aid was inclusive), and talked about good times and "a chance for folks to meet."

They probably ignored the fact that the song, with its "invitation across the nation," was accused of inciting riots back in the 60s. If only this was a real protest song where B&J took the opportunity to stick it to the man, fight yuppies, and stir up discontent. But by 1985, they both kinda were the man.

Nevertheless, I have to give them props, particularly in the era of big budget promos, for keeping this video stripped back and DIY. The video's wardrobe concession consisted of one outfit per singer and the plot involved them camping around an abandoned building before finishing things off dancing, by themselves, in the street.

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CHECKLIST TO BE LIKE BOWIE/JIG LIKE JAGGER

1. A kimono/bathrobe/trench hybrid.

2. High visibility sneakers.

3. Slow motion leaping through the air.

4. Extemporaneous dance moves, largely gesture-based, from behind doorways or in unison with your partner. Ideal.

5. Do not care two craps about what anyone thinks of said dance moves, kimono, sneakers, or almost-kissing moments.

Initially, the main star of the video appears to be Mick Jagger's washed-out highlighter pen kicks; a sort of early DIY rave shoe. These shoes take up at least 18 seconds of this video. That's about 9.56% of the entire run-time. They look comfortable, like the shoes you decide to buy when you know, deep down, that this decision is the first of many leading to the grave.

On another note, Jagger's frenzied, on-the-spot sprinting is also a reminder that keeping fit is important. Raising your knees up to your chest is a great work out for your rear. In fact, I'm not completely convinced that Jagger realizes this is a music video and not an aerobics demonstration.

When Jagger eventually swings round a pole and into shot, I'm instantly struck with the wish that my family get-togethers were populated by eccentric characters who I could now compare to Mick Jagger. As in: "He's just like my weird crazy uncle." He's like that guy in your family who used to play bass in a funk band, and now has a much younger, not very bright girlfriend, and wears wacky shirts to Thanksgiving, which in turn, inspire disapproving looks from his siblings.

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Well, that's Mick Jagger. Trying so hard that his eyes are constantly trying to escape their sockets, meanwhile his hair is a glorious bouffant–mullet hybrid. A brave mutant just trying to stay alive in a world rife with glinting steel scissors.

On another note, his green silk blouse is absolutely the kind of thing Equipment sells to girls right now for over $200 a pop. So he's clearly doing something right.

There are those shoes again. By this point, the dye is cast; we're watching a video made by dads, for dads. Jagger is dressed like Jeremy Clarkson from Top Gear.

But Bowie's here to save the day! He appears resplendent in… patterned PJs. I bet at the time Jagger was rather nonplussed by Bowie's PJ-and-flowing-overcoat combo, but actually Bowie predicted and sported the bedwear-as-daywear trend 25-plus years ahead of everyone else.

Here's a bunch of recent shots of Marc Jacobs (pic stolen from Red Carpet Fashion Awards). He's all about it. The lesson here is that clothes don't always have to be constrictive to be cool. And David Bowie is always right.

One more thing on form versus function. If you can't jump sky-high and do the splits easily and without splitting the crotch, then your clothes are no good for you.

Unfortunately, watching this video at a young age completely ruined my game. It warped my rhythm. It warped my brain. I would go to gatherings, identify a potential make out partner and dance like these two, thus instantly diminishing my ability to score. My moves would wither away my tongue-on-tongue chances from 75%-hey-he's-kinda-dreamy, down to 7.5%-do-I-know-this-freakshow-no-I-do-not. Thanks to this video, my go-to party move is the old "stand behind the door and wiggle your hands dance." This is one lesson about style and dancing and LIFE that I could have done without.

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A few years ago, I was in a restaurant in New York, where a few tables down, was a man talking too loudly, but in the wrong way. At his quietest, he discussed subjects that were boring and banal, like how upset he was about the man at the dry cleaners shrinking his cashmere cardigan. But he switched up a gear when the topic turned to gossip. So it was, that in a busy restaurant, this man loudly proclaimed that with his years as a prominent music industry publicist to back him up, Bowie and Jagger had "certainly, certainly slept together."

This video doesn't prove his claim either way, but the pair are certainly not shy about singing directly into each other's faces. What's great about this moment is it's a reminder that having a close buddy is really wonderful and that if you're lucky, your friend will love you even when you look like a 103-year-old trout. Bromance never dies.

The whole video ends here. I know it looks like I've cack-handedly screengrabbed a couple of crappy quality YouTube clips. And I have. Throughout this whole article. But this is the money-shot to end it all. Mick Jagger and David Bowie's butts, booty-tooched with conviction. Yet another schooling in style. A maxim to tattoo on your inner thigh: a well-cut pair of pants does a lot for your ass. Thanks guys.

Style Stage is an ongoing partnership between Noisey & Garnier Fructis celebrating music, hair, and style.