Babylon Zoo’s 1996 song “Spaceman” made the British group a one-hit wonder.
The song was written and performed by Jas Mann, who founded Babylon Zoo in Wolverhampton. Its best-known version opens with heavily processed, distorted vocals and a dramatic electronic sound before shifting into a more conventional rock-pop section. The unusual structure helped it stand out immediately on radio and television.
“Spaceman” became famous after appearing in a 1995 Levi’s television advertisement. The exposure created enormous demand when the single was released in January 1996. It debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart and became the fastest-selling debut single in Britain at that time.
Babylon Zoo released the album The Boy with the X-Ray Eyes later that year, but the group did not reproduce the single’s international chart impact. The song is sometimes confused with David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” or “Starman,” which have different performers and subjects.