 The song is long thought to be about Bowie's glam rival Marc Bolan, with the lyrics "long black hair" and "make-up on his face", and evidenced by the early working title "Song for Marc"; another working title was "He Was Alright".According to Pegg, Bowie alludes to Lord Alfred Douglas's famous phrase "I smiled sadly for a love I could not obey".An early lyric for the track, "Lady Stardust sang his songs of rebels, kings and queens", alluding to a medieval quality to the Lady.