🔘 Can't Help Thinking About Me – Single: Jan. 1966

In the bitter cold of January 1966, a young David Bowie (then still known as Davy Jones) made one of his earliest attempts at solo stardom. Backed by his band The Lower Third, he released “Can’t Help Thinking About Me” — a punchy, mod-influenced pop-rock track with a strong, urgent chorus.

Released on January 14, 1966, the single appeared on Pye Records. This 7-inch release was Bowie’s first single under his own name and marked an important early step in his long recording career.

Label: Pye Records

Catalogue Number: 7N 17020

Format: 7" Vinyl Single (Push-Out/Solid Centre)

Released: January 14, 1966 (UK)

🔘 Track List

UK 7" Single — Pye – 7N 17020 — 1966

A. Can't Help Thinking About Me

B. And I Say to Myself

Written by: David Bowie (both tracks)

Produced by: Tony Hatch

Recorded: Late 1965

🔘 Key Highlights

• Released January 14, 1966

• David Bowie’s first single released under his own name (with The Lower Third)

• Energetic mod/pop-rock track with a strong, memorable chorus

• Did not chart in the UK

• Very rare and highly collectable early Bowie single

🔘 The Story

At this stage, Bowie was still finding his artistic voice. “Can’t Help Thinking About Me” was a confident, upbeat number with a driving rhythm and a catchy hook, showing clear influences from the British mod and beat scenes. Produced by Tony Hatch, the track was a professional step up from his earlier work.

The B-side “And I Say to Myself” was another original composition with a more introspective tone. Although the single failed to chart, it remains a significant historical piece — the first official release credited to David Bowie.

🔘 Variants (UK)

• 7", 45 RPM, Push-Out Centre — Pye – 7N 17020 — UK — 1966

• 7", 45 RPM, Solid Centre — Pye – 7N 17020 — UK — 1966

• Issued in standard Pye company sleeve

🔘 Chart Performance

UK — Official Singles Chart

Did not chart.

Total Weeks: 0

🔘 Context & Notes

• A-side: “Can't Help Thinking About Me” – upbeat mod/pop-rock track with strong vocal and energetic arrangement.

• B-side: “And I Say to Myself” – more reflective original composition.

• Production: Tony Hatch – polished production typical of mid-1960s Pye pop singles.

• Sleeve notes: Standard Pye company sleeve.

• Historical placement: Released in the mid-1960s beat era, several years before Bowie’s breakthrough with “Space Oddity” and the glam explosion of the early 1970s.

• Reissues / compilation appearances: Features on Bowie early career rarities compilations and box sets.

🔘 Related Material

• I Pity the Fool (1965, as The Manish Boys)

• The Laughing Gnome (1967)

• Space Oddity (1969)

🔘 Discography

Can't Help Thinking About Me – Single: 1966

The Laughing Gnome – Single: 1967

Space Oddity – Single: 1969

🔘 Mini‑Timeline

✦ Late 1965 — Recorded with The Lower Third

✦ January 14, 1966 — UK single released

✦ Did not enter UK Singles Chart

🔘 Glam Flashback

Long before the lightning bolt and Ziggy Stardust, a young David Bowie was already trying to make his mark with “Can’t Help Thinking About Me” in January 1966 — the first sparks of a voice that would eventually redefine British rock.

#ReleaseChronicle #DavidBowie #CantHelpThinkingAboutMe #1966 #PyeRecords

🔘 Sources

Primary reference sources: Pye Records, Discogs, Official Charts Company, contemporary music-press documentation, archival references.

Artist: David Bowie With The Lower Third Label: Castle Music Country: UK Catalogue: ESBO7 765 / 1 Date: 1999

The recording was produced by Tony Hatch, who also played piano. The session occurred on 10 December 1965 at Marble Arch Studios in London. A reworking of Bowie's "The London Boys," the song tells the story of a boy found guilty of an act who decides to leave town for a fresh start. Biographers highlight it as a demonstration of Bowie's development as a songwriter, featuring themes he would use in his later work. Musically, the song delves into the contemporary mod sound of the Who and the Kinks.

"Can't Help Thinking About Me" was unsuccessful as a single like Bowie's earlier releases, but it reached number 34 on the Melody Maker chart due to chart manipulation by Ralph Horton. Disagreements with Horton resulted in Bowie's exit from the Lower Third two weeks after its release. In March 1966, Bowie performed the song on the ATV program Ready Steady Go! with the Buzz. Two months later, it was released in the United States by Warner Bros. Records, marking Bowie's first US release. The original recording later appeared on the compilation albums Early On (1964–1966) (1991) and Nothing Has Changed (2014).

Artist: David Bowie Label: Castle Music Country: UK Date: 1999 Title: I Dig Everything : The 1966 Pye Singles

Format: Box Set 7"

Catalogue: ESBO7 765

More than three decades after its original release, Bowie brought back "Can't Help Thinking About Me" for his 1999 Hours Tour. He re-recorded the song in mid-2000 during the sessions for Toy, alongside other tracks he had written and recorded in the mid-1960s. Although the project was shelved, this remake stayed unreleased until 2021, when Toy was officially included in the Brilliant Adventure (1992–2001) box set. A previously unseen live performance of the song from October 1999 was released on 19 November 2021..