David Bowie & Morrissey
Photo: Man Alive! / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY 2.0 (editorial use) (license)
On 2 June 1991, David Bowie made a legendary and unexpected guest appearance during a concert by Morrissey at the Great Western Forum in Inglewood, California.
During the encore of Morrissey’s Kill Uncle tour, Bowie joined him on stage to perform a live duet of “Cosmic Dancer”, the 1971 classic by T. Rex.
- Date: 2 June 1991
- Venue: Great Western Forum, Inglewood (California, USA)
- Tour: Morrissey – Kill Uncle Tour
- Song: “Cosmic Dancer” (T. Rex)
- Performance: Live duet (guest appearance)
A moment of disbelief
The appearance of David Bowie came without prior announcement and immediately became one of the most talked-about moments of Morrissey’s early solo career.
Morrissey later described the experience in his autobiography as something beyond belief — a moment where his lifelong admiration for Bowie suddenly materialised on stage.
“Cosmic Dancer”
“Cosmic Dancer” was originally written and recorded by Marc Bolan for T. Rex in 1971. Both Bowie and Morrissey had long expressed deep admiration for Bolan and his work.
Their joint performance of the song carried strong symbolic weight: a shared lineage of British outsider pop, glam heritage, and emotional theatricality.
Clarifying the date
For many years, the performance circulated in bootleg form with incorrect dates attached — most commonly 1 June 1991 or 6 February 1991.
Subsequent research and cross-referencing of tour schedules confirmed that the duet took place on 2 June 1991 at the Great Western Forum. The 1 June date corresponds to a Morrissey performance in Costa Mesa, where Bowie did not appear.
From bootleg to official release
For decades, the recording circulated exclusively as a bootleg, contributing to confusion and debate about its authenticity.
In 2020, the performance was officially released by Parlophone as a remastered digital single and as a limited 7-inch vinyl, finally confirming its status as a documented and canonical collaboration.
A unique collaboration
Unlike many of Bowie’s collaborations, this was a one-off moment, never repeated and never expanded into a studio partnership.
Its power lies precisely in that singularity: a brief intersection between two major British artists, united by a shared musical ancestry and mutual respect.
David Bowie & Morrissey in Bowie’s creative universe
Within Bowie’s creative universe, the Morrissey duet stands as a rare example of Bowie stepping into another artist’s world as a guest rather than a leader.
The performance of “Cosmic Dancer” remains a symbolic passing of influence between generations of British pop iconoclasts.