"Heroes"

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Professional reviews
"Heroes"

Studio album by David Bowie
Released	October 14 1977 Rykodisc Reissue August 27 1991
Recorded	Hansa Studio by the Wall, West Berlin, 1977
Genre	Rock, Krautrock
Length	40:36
Label	RCA Records
Producer(s)	David Bowie, Tony Visconti
All Music Guide Image:5 stars.svg link Robert Christgau (B+) link Rolling Stone (not rated) link
David Bowie chronology
Low (1977)	"Heroes" (1977)	Stage (1978)

"Heroes" (the quotation marks are part of the title, for reasons of irony)<ref>NME interview in 1977 with Charles Shaar Murray. Retrieved from Bowie: Golden Years 2 September 2006</ref> is an album by David Bowie, released in 1977. Serving as the second installment of Bowie and Eno's "Berlin Trilogy" (the other two being Low and Lodger) "Heroes" is similar in sound to Low but more robust and visceral. Of the three albums, it was the most befitting of the appellation "Berlin", being the only one wholly recorded and mixed there. The mood of the record reflected the zeitgeist of the Cold War, symbolised by the divided city.

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 Bowie's best by critics, notably for the contributions of guitarist Robert Fripp (for which he flew in from the U.S. to record in one day).<ref>Nicholas Pegg (2000). The Complete David Bowie: p.307</ref> It was marketed by RCA with the catch phrase, "There’s Old Wave. There’s New Wave. And there's David Bowie…"<ref>Roy Carr & Charles Shaar Murray (1981). Bowie: An Illustrated Record: p.92</ref> The album 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.

With "Heroes", 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! while "V-2 Schneider" is inspired by and named for Kraftwerk's Florian Schneider; earlier in 1977, Kraftwerk had name-checked Bowie on the title track of Trans-Europe Express. The cover photo was inspired by Erich Heckel's Roquairol, as was that of The Idiot, one of Bowie's collaborations with Iggy Pop that was released the same year.<ref>UNCUT interview in 1999. Retrieved from Bowie: Golden Years 2 September 2006</ref>

Though "Heroes" included its share of dark and atmospheric instrumentals such as "Sense of Doubt" and "Neuköln", as well as the sprawling confessional "Blackout", after the melancholy and inward-looking Low it was regarded as a highly passionate and positive artistic statement.<ref>Roy Carr & Charles Shaar Murray (1981). Ibid: p.91</ref><ref>David Buckley (1999) Strange Fascination - David Bowie: The Definitive Story: p.320</ref> This was evident not simply 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".

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, whilst "The Secret Life of Arabia" was sung by Billy Mackenzie in 1982 on the British Electric Foundation LP Music of Quality and Distinction.

1 Track listing
2 Reissues
- 2.1 1991 reissue bonus tracks
3 Personnel
4 Charts
5 Notes

[edit] Track listing

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

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

[edit] Reissues

The album has been rereleased twice to date on CD, the first being in 1991 by Rykodisc (containing two bonus tracks) and the second in 1999 by EMI (featuring 24-bit digitally remastered sound and no bonus tracks).