Editing Diamond Dogs (section)

===Side one===
{{quote box
| quote = They were all little [[John Lydon|Johnny Rottens]] and [[Sid Vicious]]es really. And, in my mind, there was no means of transport{{nbsp}}... So there were these gangs of squeaking, roller-skating, vicious hoods, with Bowie knives and furs on, and they were all skinny because they hadn't eaten enough, and they all had funny-coloured hair. In a way, it was a precursor to the punk {{no wrap|thing.{{sfn|Pegg|2016|pp=74–75}}}}
| source = —David Bowie describing the Diamond Dogs
| width = 25%
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The opening track, "Future Legend", is a spoken word track that depicts a post-apocalyptic urban landscape.{{sfn|Perone|2007|pp=41–46}} The writings of Burroughs, especially ''[[The Wild Boys (novel)|The Wild Boys]]'' (1971) inspire the visions of decay. The author [[Peter Doggett]] notes that unlike the opening of ''[[The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars|Ziggy Stardust]]'', which announces the world will end in [[Five Years (David Bowie song)|five years]], the apocalypse of "Future Legend" could happen at any time.{{sfn|O'Leary|2015|loc=chap. 8}}{{sfn|Buckley|2005|pp=184–189}}{{sfn|Doggett|2012|pp=243–245}} Bowie begins the title track by announcing, "This ain't rock'n'roll – this is ''genocide''". The track introduces Bowie's newest persona, Halloween Jack, described as "a real cool cat" who "lives on top of Manhattan Chase" in the urban wasteland depicted in "Future Legend".{{sfn|Pegg|2016|pp=74–75}} He rules the "diamond dogs", who O'Leary describes as "packs of feral kids camped on high-rise roofs, tearing around on roller skates, terrorizing the corpse-strewn streets they live above".{{sfn|O'Leary|2015|loc=chap. 8}} Although Jack is commonly identified as one of Bowie's "identities" like Ziggy Stardust and Aladdin Sane, Doggett notes that Jack occupies "little more than a cameo role".{{sfn|Doggett|2012|pp=243–245}} The riff and saxophone are inspired by the Rolling Stones.{{sfn|Pegg|2016|pp=74–75}} The biographer [[Marc Spitz]] notes that it is the same "jaded commentator's voice" Bowie had used on ''Aladdin Sane''.{{sfn|Spitz|2009|pp=231–232}}

Multiple biographers cite the suite of "Sweet Thing/Candidate/Sweet Thing (Reprise)" as the album's highlight.{{sfn|Pegg|2016|pp=276–277}}{{sfn|Buckley|2005|pp=184–189}}{{sfn|O'Leary|2015|loc=chap. 8}} Pegg describes Bowie's vocal performance, which he believes to be one of his finest,{{sfn|Pegg|2016|pp=276–277}} as a croon.{{sfn|Spitz|2009|pp=231–232}}{{sfn|Doggett|2012|pp=236–239}} "Sweet Thing" paints pictures of decay, with sex being a "drug-like commodity" while "Candidate" contains references to [[Charles Manson]] and [[Muhammad Ali]], with Bowie being "consumed by the fakery of his own stage creations".{{sfn|Pegg|2016|p=485}} "Rebel Rebel", cited by Pegg as Bowie's most covered track, is based around a distinctive guitar riff reminiscent of the Rolling Stones and was his farewell to the glam rock era.{{sfn|Pegg|2016|pp=221–223}}<ref>{{cite web|last=Thompson|first=Dave|author-link=Dave Thompson (author)|url=https://www.allmusic.com/song/rebel-rebel-mt0054050633|title='Rebel Rebel' – David Bowie|publisher=AllMusic|access-date=15 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190531183640/https://www.allmusic.com/song/rebel-rebel-mt0054050633|archive-date=31 May 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> According to Pegg, Parker "added the three descending notes at the end of each loop of the riff".{{sfn|Pegg|2016|pp=221–223}} The song features a character who predates 1970s punk rock and gender-bending lyrics ("You got your mother in a whirl / She's not sure if you're a boy or a girl").{{sfn|Perone|2007|pp=41–46}}{{sfn|Buckley|2005|pp=184–189}} Some commentators praised the song itself but felt it did not contribute to the overall theme of the album.{{sfn|Perone|2007|pp=41–46}}<ref name="Erlewine AllMusic" /> Doggett, however, writes that the song acts as the "musical continuation" of the "Sweet Thing" suite.{{sfn|Doggett|2012|pp=236–239}}