🔘 Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) – Single: Jan. 1981

Label: RCA Records

Catalogue Number: BOW 9

Format: 7" Vinyl Single

Released: January 2, 1981 (UK)

A jagged, post‑punk Bowie single — backed with the driving Because You’re Young.

Issued on RCA, the release continued the Scary Monsters era’s sharp, angular sound.

🔘 Overview

Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) was released on January 2, 1981 as a UK 7" single on RCA Records. Taken from Bowie’s acclaimed 1980 album Scary Monsters, the track fused post‑punk tension, fractured guitar textures, and Bowie’s theatrical vocal delivery.

The B‑side, Because You’re Young, also from the album, offered a more anthemic, melodic counterpoint while retaining the era’s stark, modernist production. BOW 9 arrived in an RCA company sleeve and stands as one of the defining singles of Bowie’s early‑’80s transition.

🔘 Track List (Common Configurations)

7" Vinyl — BOW 9

A. Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)

B. Because You’re Young

Written by: David Bowie

Produced by: David Bowie, Tony Visconti

🔘 Release Details

Label: RCA Records

Formats: 7" Vinyl

Country: UK

Year: 1981

Notes:

- From the album Scary Monsters

- B‑side also from the album

- Issued in RCA company sleeve

- Part of Bowie’s acclaimed 1980–81 post‑punk period

🔘 Variants (Discogs‑Verified)

Variant 1

UK – RCA – BOW 9 (1981)

Format: 7" Vinyl (Paper Label)

Variant 2

UK – RCA – BOW 9 (1981)

Format: 7" Vinyl (Injection‑moulded label, select pressings)

🔘 Chart Data (BBC / Official Charts Company)

Peak Position: UK — No. 20

Weeks on Chart: 7

Chart Run (Official Charts):

10 Jan 1981 — No. 33

17 Jan 1981 — No. 20

24 Jan 1981 — No. 24

31 Jan 1981 — No. 29

07 Feb 1981 — No. 36

14 Feb 1981 — No. 44

21 Feb 1981 — No. 56

🔘 Context & Notes

Recording Notes

A tense, angular production — Robert Fripp’s cutting guitar lines paired with Bowie’s sharp, character‑driven vocal.

Collector Notes

Paper‑label BOW 9 copies are the most desirable. Early RCA sleeves add value.

Legacy

A standout single from Bowie’s post‑punk masterpiece — modernist, abrasive, and artistically fearless.

🔘 Related Material

Previous Single

Fashion (1980)

Next Single

Up the Hill Backwards (1981)

🔘 Discography (Selected, Chronological)

Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) — 1981

Because You’re Young — 1980

🔘 Mini‑Timeline

Jan. 2, 1981 — UK single released

🔘 Glam Flashback

Bowie sharpens the edges — fractured guitars, stark rhythms, and fearless reinvention.

🔘 Sources

RCA Records

Discogs

Official Charts Company

Bowie archival documentation