About
Viva Life on Mars was written by Robbie Williams, Kelvin Andrews and Danny Spencer, and produced by Soul Mekanik. It appeared on Rudebox in 2006, blending country, electronic and pop elements in one of the album’s most distinctive genre shifts. A short film inspired by the track was later created as part of the *Rudebox Shorts* visual series.
The song opens with banjo and harmonica before evolving into a layered electro-western groove. Lyrically, it explores ideas of faith, alien life and cosmic curiosity. Williams mixes humour with philosophical musing, referencing both religion and science fiction in lines such as “Take a ride on your high horse, if the horse is blind then use the Force.” Its title nods to the fascination with extraterrestrial existence that has recurred throughout his work.
Williams said the track reflects his interest in “doing away with all I have been taught” and finding new meaning outside religion, describing it as “Oh Brother, Where Art Thou meets Primal Scream when they were good.” The result is a surreal and playful song that pairs folk imagery with digital production, reflecting the hybrid character of Rudebox.
Though not released as a single, Viva Life on Mars gained a reputation among fans for its eccentric charm and lyrical wit, marking one of Williams’s most unusual creative departures.
Lyrics
I just wanna be
I just wanna be
I just wanna be
I lost all faith in what I know
The future doesn't need me
So I kick a ball against a wall and hit it till it don't hurt no more.
Use my cuts and lacerations, feed myself a new sensation woah woah
Take a ride on your high horse
If the horse is blind, use the force
The falcon flies in two straight lines
Red five standing by
It's not a moon it's a space station
It feels good the good vibration woah woah
I know that you know some lovely people.
Send them all an invitation, party to a segregation woah. Woah
Viva life on mars I'm calling
Sending my frequency to the galaxy so you can see people down here
They don't want us to discuss the picture in the caves of us.
A nosebleed and a bag of coal then they put you in a hole.
We're knee deep in information
And they can't stop this conversation. Woah woah
I know that you know some lovely people.
Send them all an invitation, party to a segregation woah. Woah
Viva life on mars I'm calling
Sending my frequency to the galaxy so you can see we're all down here
I just wanna be
I just wanna be
I just wanna be
I just wanna be
I just wanna be
I just wanna be
I just wanna be
I just wanna be
Love is natural love is good
Not everybody does it but everybody should.
With them and us we've made a mess,
till they decide which god is best.
Free yourself from liberation from lake Geneva to the freeland station woah woah
I know that you know some lovely people.
Send them all an invitation, yer party to a segregation woah woah.
Viva life on mars I'm calling
Sending my frequency to the galaxy so you can see people down here
Viva life on mars I'm calling
Viva life on mars I'm calling
Viva life on mars I'm calling
Viva life on mars I'm calling
Credits
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Vocalist
Robbie Williams -
Songwriter
Robbie Williams, Kelvin Andrews, Danny Spencer