The Peter Plan

While numerous new wave artists in the early '80s tried to imitate David Bowie, Peter Schilling went a step further. In 1983, Schilling released "Major Tom (Coming Home)," a synth pop retelling of Bowie's 1969 classic "Space Oddity." It became Schilling's first and only entry in the U.S. charts, a song that eventually stigmatized him as a one-hit wonder in America. Schilling was born in Stuttgart, Germany, on January 28, 1956. As a teen, Schilling couldn't decide on whether to be a soccer player or a singer. He chose music and his debut album, Error in the System, appeared in 1983. The single "Major Tom (Coming Home)" wasn't just popular in the U.S., it was a worldwide smash.

AFTER ITS RENEWED EXPOSURE AS THE OPENING THEME SONG TO DEUTSCHLAND ’83, PETER SCHILLING’S MAJOR TOM IS COMING HOME AGAIN… By the early 1980s, new wave had edged closer to bombastic pop than its punk origins, no doubt influenced by David Bowie’s shift from new wave pioneer of the 1970s to his New Romantic pop of 1980. Furthermore, the song was an answer to Bowie’s Space Oddity. Peter Schilling’s debut album ERROR IN THE SYSTEM actually arrived a year earlier in Germany (FEHLER IM SYSTEM) (1982) before Elektra released the record in English. What is even more surprising is the durability the record had given how fleeting new wave pop could be in terms of commercial presence. ‘MAJOR TOM’ may have provided Peter with the best hook to gain an international audience but the album boasted even more melodic (and melancholic) anthems. ‘ONLY DREAMS’, ‘LIFETIME GUARANTEE’ and ‘I HAVE NO DESIRE’ are also highlights.