"I Pity the Fool" is a song originally recorded by Bobby Bland in 1961 for Duke Records. The song was credited to Deadric Malone, a pseudonym of Duke Records owner Don Robey. David Bowie covered it under the name The Manish Boys in 1965 and it was released as his second single. According to author Charles Farley, the song was actually written by Joe Medwick (born Joseph Medwick Veasey), who would regularly sell his completed songs, which also included "Farther Up the Road", to Robey for small sums (recollections of the sum vary between $5 and $100).