Having finished his 1984 album Tonight and being dissatisfied with it, Bowie began a series of soundtrack projects (Labyrinth, Absolute Beginners and When the Wind Blows, all in 1986) that started with this collaboration with the Pat Metheny Group. Recorded in late 1984, "This Is Not America" was released as a single in early 1985 and on the soundtrack to the movie. Metheny had written an instrumental piece for the movie called "Chris" and wanted to turn it into a full-length song; "This Is Not America" was the result of their collaboration. Bowie watched an early screening of The Falcon and the Snowman and took notes on lines and themes that they might use; "This is not America" is a line said by one character to another, and both Bowie and Metheny agreed it was interesting. Bowie does not appear in the corresponding music video for the single as it was made up entirely of clips from the movie.
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