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Revision as of 11:02, 10 September 2011

Untitled
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
Robert Christgau(B+)[2]
Rolling Stone(favorable)[3]
RS Album Guide[4]

"Heroes"[5] is an album by David Bowie, released in 1977. The second instalment of his 'Berlin Trilogy' with Brian Eno (the other releases being Low and Lodger) "Heroes" developed the sound of Low in a more positive direction.[6] Of the three albums, it was the most befitting of the appellation "Berlin", being the only one wholly recorded there. The title track remains one of Bowie's best known, a classic story of two lovers who meet at the Berlin Wall. The album is considered one of his best by critics, notably for the contributions of guitarist Robert Fripp who flew in from the U.S. to record his parts in one day.[7] John Lennon was quoted as saying that when making his album Double Fantasy in 1980, his ambition was to "do something as good as "Heroes"."[7][8] It was named NME Album of the Year.

Production and style

Recorded at Hansa Tonstudio in what was then West Berlin, "Heroes" reflected the zeitgeist of the Cold War, symbolised by the divided city. Co-producer Tony Visconti considered it "one of my last great adventures in making albums. The studio was about 500 yards from the wall. Red Guards would look into our control-room window with powerful binoculars."[9] Bowie again paid tribute to his Krautrock influences: the title is a nod to the track "Hero" on the album NEU! '75 by the German band Neu!,[10] while "V-2 Schneider" is inspired by and named after Kraftwerk's Florian Schneider.[11] Earlier in 1977, Kraftwerk had name-checked Bowie on the title track of Trans-Europe Express. The cover photo was inspired by German artist Erich Heckel's Roquairol, as was that of The Idiot, one of Bowie's collaborations with Iggy Pop that was released the same year.[12]

Though "Heroes" included a number of dark and atmospheric instrumentals such as Sense of Doubt and Neuköln, after the melancholy and inward-looking Low it was regarded as a highly passionate and positive artistic statement.[9][11] This was evident not only through "Heroes" the song but in the rocking opener Beauty and the Beast (released as the second single in January 1978), the raucous Joe the Lion and the light-hearted closer The Secret Life of Arabia. The lyrics for Joe the Lion, written and recorded at the microphone "in less than an hour" according to Visconti, typified the improvisational nature of the recording.[13]

Release and aftermath

"Heroes" was marketed by RCA with the catch phrase, "There’s Old Wave. There’s New Wave. And there's David Bowie..."[11] It enjoyed a positive critical reception on release in late 1977,[7] Melody Maker and NME both naming it 'Album of the Year'.[8][14] It made #3 in the UK and stayed in the charts for 26 weeks, but was less successful in the U.S. where it peaked at #35.

A number of the album's tracks were played live at Bowie's concerts the following year, captured on record as Stage (1978). Philip Glass adapted a classical suite, "Heroes" Symphony, based on this album, a companion to his earlier Low Symphony. The title track has been covered by numerous artists, and has been frequently used as an encore by recent incarnations of King Crimson, while The Secret Life of Arabia was sung by Billy Mackenzie in 1982 on the British Electric Foundation LP Music of Quality and Distinction.

Several tracks were used in the film Christiane F. Bowie performed himself in the film.

Track listing

All lyrics written by David Bowie; all music composed by David Bowie except where noted.

Side one
  1. "Beauty and the Beast"  – 3:32
  2. "Joe the Lion"  – 3:05
  3. ""Heroes"" (Bowie, Brian Eno)  – 6:07
  4. "Sons of the Silent Age"  – 3:15
  5. "Blackout"  – 3:50
Side two
  1. "V-2 Schneider"  – 3:10
  2. "Sense of Doubt"  – 3:57
  3. "Moss Garden" (Bowie, Eno)  – 5:03
  4. "Neuköln" (Bowie, Eno)  – 4:34
  5. "The Secret Life of Arabia" (Bowie, Eno, Carlos Alomar)  – 3:46

Reissues

"Heroes" has been rereleased on CD four times to date. The first CD issue was by RCA in 1984. It was reissued in 1991 by Rykodisc (with two bonus tracks). In the late 90's, Ryko released it on a 20-bit SBM Gold numbered edition. It was released again in 1999 by EMI/Virgin (featuring 24-bit digitally remastered sound and no bonus tracks).

1991 reissue bonus tracks

  1. Abdulmajid (previously unreleased track recorded 1976–79) – 3:40
  2. Joe the Lion (remixed version 1991) – 3:08

Personnel

Technical personnel

Charts

Album

Year Chart Position
1977 UK Albums Chart 3
1977 Billboard Pop Albums 35
1977 Norway 13
1977 Austria 22
1977 Sweden 13

Single

Year Single Chart Position
1977 "Heroes" UK Singles Chart 24
1977 "Heroes" Austria 19
1977 "Heroes" Netherlands 9
1978 Beauty and the Beast UK Singles Chart 39

Notes

  1. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. ""Heroes" Overview". Allmusic. Retrieved 18 January 2010.
  2. ^ Christgau, Robert. "David Bowie". Retrieved 18 January 2010.
  3. ^ Testa, Bart (12 January 1978). "Heroes". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 27 March 2011.
  4. ^ "RollingStoneAlbumGuide's music". Retrieved 30 May 2011.
  5. ^ Shaar Murray, Charles (1977). "NME interview". Bowie Golden Years. Archived from the original on 5 October 2009. Retrieved 20 August 2007. I'd felt that the use of quotes indicate a dimension of irony about the word "heroes" or about the whole concept of heroism. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  6. ^ Pegg, Nicholas (2006). The Complete David Bowie (4th ed.). London: Reynolds & Hearn Ltd. p. 312. ISBN 1-905287-15-1.
  7. ^ a b c Pegg, Nicholas (2000). The Complete David Bowie. pp. 307–309.
  8. ^ a b Sandford, Christopher (1996, 1997). Loving the Alien. pp. 182–193. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |year= (help)CS1 maint: year (link)
  9. ^ a b Buckley, David (1999). Strange Fascination – David Bowie: The Definitive Story. pp. 320–325.
  10. ^ Snow, Mat (2007). MOJO 60 Years of Bowie, "Making Heroes". p. 69.
  11. ^ a b c Carr, Roy (1981). Bowie: An Illustrated Record. pp. 91–92. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
  12. ^ "UNCUT interview". Bowie Golden Years. 1999. Archived from the original on 5 October 2009. Retrieved 20 August 2007. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  13. ^ Pegg, Nicholas (2000). The Complete David Bowie. p. 112.
  14. ^ Gittens, Ian (2007). "Art Decade", MOJO 60 Years of Bowie. pp. 70–73.
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