Soundtrack Of My Life: Baz Luhrmann

In partnership with Warner Bros.

The song that changed my life

David Bowie – ‘Changes’

“From the moment I first heard this song, I was a huge Bowie fan. I eventually worked with him [on the Moulin Rouge! soundtrack] and then towards the end of his life, he became a very good friend. He used to come round and we’d walk the dogs. We were talking about going to Berlin at one point to do something together. I must have been so stupid, why didn’t I just say yes?”

The song I can no longer listen to

Prince – ‘Sign O’ The Times’ 

“It’s a great song, but when I was younger I used it in a show that was an absolute catastrophe. Every time I hear it now, it takes me back to that.”

The song that reminds me of home

John Farnham – ‘You’re the Voice’ 

“I still go clubbing because I intend to grow old disgracefully: it’s kind of my motto. I was in a nightclub recently and all the kids were singing along to this.”

The first gig I went to

The Police – Sydney, 1980

“I thought: ‘Wow, this is what it means to see a live show!’ It was just fantastic. Some years later I saw Sting at his birthday party and I told him it was the first show I’d ever been to.”

The song I can’t get out of my head

Doja Cat – ‘Vegas’ 

“She made this song for the Elvis soundtrack and it’s already blowing up. I’ve worked with Madonna and Beyoncé and I see something similar in Doja Cat: she’s just a really, really hard worker. And when you see her on stage, my god she’s a good dancer.”

The song that makes me want to dance

Madonna – ‘Like A Virgin’ 

“I think of Madonna like Marlene Dietrich: like Marlene, nothing will stop her from being a provocative artist. I think the younger generation are rediscovering her.”

Take a look at NME’s special film edition Elvis digital magazine right here. Don’t miss Baz Luhrmann’s Elvis starring Austin Butler and Tom Hanks, in cinemas June 24. Book tickets now.

The post Soundtrack Of My Life: Baz Luhrmann appeared first on NME.