David Bowie’s handwritten lyrics sell for nearly £60,000 at auction

The words to Jean Genie were given to a superfan in the 1970s

David Bowie’s handwritten lyrics have been sold at auction for £57,000.

The words to Bowie’s song “Jean Genie” were written on a piece of paper and given to a superfan in the 1970s.

Bowie, who died in January 2016 aged 69, released the song in 1972 as part of his Aladdin Sane album.

The song tells the story of Jean Genie who “snuck off to the city, strung out on lasers”. It went on to reach number two in the Official Chart.

The singer had gifted the handwritten words to the founder of the David Bowie Fan Club, Neal Peters, reports the BBC.

Now, the lyrics have been sold off at St Helens auction house after Peters found out that the “Starman” lyrics sold for over £200,000 last year.

The lyrics for “Jean Genie” were given an estimated value of between £50,000 and £70,000, with the firm calling them a “historic set of lyrics”, says the BBC.

The sold treasure showed the lyrics written over 18 lines on a piece of A4 lined paper, which is also titled, signed and dated by Bowie. The sale also included an account of how Peters got the lyrics from the singer.

David Bowie performing in London in 1973 (Getty Images)

Earlier this week, Bowie’s collaborator, Tony Visconti shut down any claims that Harry Styles was the new Bowie.

The producer, best known for his work producing and arranging many of Bowie’s singles and albums, voiced his opinions regarding Sunday (5 February) night’s Grammy Awards.

Reacting to the awards and Styles’ performance on his Facebook page, he wrote: “Someone just told me that Harry Styles is the new Bowie?

“From what I saw tonight, he’s not worthy of shining his shoes,” he added.