Woody Woodmansey and David Bowie

It began with choices on the factory floor and ended with an infamous split on-stage at Hammersmith.

Ian Harrison

HELLO FEBRUARY 1970 Myself, Mick Ronson [guitar] and Trevor Bolder [bass] had a band in Hull called The Rats, who became The Spiders From Mars. I was working in this spectacles factory in Driffield. I was like, 18, and this particular Friday, the manager called me and said, “We want you to be the foreman.” All my relatives were like, “You’ve made it!” But he also said, “You won’t be able to play any more.” The same day I got a call from Bowie saying, “Mick Ronson says you’re a really good drummer, come down to London, stay at my place, we’re going to be rehearsing for the next album…” He sounded like a nice guy. So I had a decision to make. I basically spent the weekend thinking, Go…

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MOJO (Digital) - 1 Issue, April 2025

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