 The track contains a repeated diatonic chord progression, resembling early 1950s rock and roll music.Biographers Nicholas Pegg and Peter Doggett both note the track's building intensity, especially in Bowie's vocal performance – moving from calm to screaming, as reminiscent of English musician John Lennon's 1970 solo album "John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band", particularly on its opening track "Mother".The lyrics break the news that the Earth only has five years left before it gets destroyed by an impending apocalyptic disaster.