3:01 Pick Me Up: David Bowie

Let’s face it: 3 p.m. is the cruellest time of the workday. The morning latte has worn off, and the post-lunch crash has you staggering around like an extra from a George A. Romero flick. That’s why, each weekday at 3:01 p.m., we present you with a video hand-picked to kick-start your heart. If the following clip doesn’t bring you temporarily back to life and help get you through the rest of the afternoon, chances are you’re dead inside.

Today's offering: 2012 marks the 40th anniversary of David Bowie's landmark album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars. Bowie and his band (also called the Spiders From Mars) performed the hit single "Starman" twice on Top of the Pops in 1972 (if you can actually call appearing on TOTP "performing"): first on July 6 and then again on July 20. We're not sure which broadcast the following clip is from, but behold the primordial glam-rock excellence:

The main reason we're posting this clip, though, is because we are in awe of Spiders From Mars bassist Trevor Bolder's glorious mutton chops.

Bolder is also awesome because, according to one Wikipedia editor, at least, he once coloured his face blue for a tour with a band called the Cybernauts. Instead of using makeup, though, he used paint, only to discover that it wouldn't come off. According to Wikipedia, "Bolder had to sell his car to raise the money needed for a specialist skin peeling process at a Swiss clinic. To this day he still has traces of blue paint behind his left ear."

That's dedication! It's also incredibly reckless and, frankly, downright stupid. But it will make for a great story at the rock 'n' roll old-folks home.