Lust for Life

Pop and Bowie wrote the song on a ukulele. It is known for its opening drumbeat, played by Hunt Sales, which was based on the call signal of the American Forces Network. The two picked it up while waiting for a broadcast of Starsky & Hutch. On the record Pop sings, Bowie plays piano, Ricky Gardiner plays lead guitar, Carlos Alomar plays rhythm guitar, Tony Sales plays bass and Hunt Sales plays drums. Pitchfork's Sasha Geffen later described it as driven by Sales's animated and playful live drumming. The lyrics refer to William S. Burroughs's novel The Ticket That Exploded, including the name Johnny Yen.

In October 1977 it came out as a single in the Netherlands and Belgium, with Success on the B-side, and reached number 3 on the Dutch chart. A TopPop appearance in which Pop wrecked part of the set helped. Its second life began with the 1996 film Trainspotting. Reissued as a single on November 11, 1996, it reached number 26 in the United Kingdom. In 1999 Pop said he had thought America would rock to it on release and that it took twenty years. Rolling Stone ranked it number 149 in its 2004 list of the 500 greatest songs. Kay Hanley covered it for the 2005 film Just Like Heaven.