How would you rate "Heroes" (1977) by David Bowie?

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Haristar, May 22, 2017.

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  1. Frosst

    Frosst Vinyl-obsessive kiddo

    Location:
    Sweden
    Beauty And The Beast is a masterpiece, one of my favourite tracks from the album.
     
  2. The Elephant Man

    The Elephant Man Forum Resident

    Rarely.
     
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  3. footprintsinthesand

    footprintsinthesand Reasons to be cheerful part 1

    Location:
    Dutch mountains
    Fresh on your pages here's Nacho's new video for Sense Of Doubt, made using the 1977 Odeon footage.



    Do read his description, it also mentions photos shot of Bowie by Piero Togni which appeared recently in PROG Italia magazine. Anyone have a link to that series ?

    [​IMG]
     
    oldturkey and Haristar like this.
  4. talkradio

    talkradio Faded Primadonna

    Location:
    Cologne, Germany
    Not my favourite Bowie album, but essential for sure.

    I just don't like the song Heroes very much. I'm serious. Never did. And whenever someone covers Heroes, be it in the studio or in concert, that's a major "lame" for me.
     
  5. footprintsinthesand

    footprintsinthesand Reasons to be cheerful part 1

    Location:
    Dutch mountains
    oldturkey, Solace and andrewskyDE like this.
  6. Etienne Hanratty

    Etienne Hanratty Forum Resident

    Location:
    uk
    It’s always been my least favourite of the Berlin albums, but over time I’ve come to appreciate it. I think going to Berlin helped add context, even if it was well after reunification. The title track works much better in the album version than the single.
     
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  7. geddy402

    geddy402 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Mid Atlantic
  8. greenoort

    greenoort Forum Resident

    Location:
    Michigan
    Really great album! Super good, probably my 2nd favorite Bowie release. I have such a strong connection to Low that I prefer it to Heroes, though Heroes is absolutely fantastic.
     
  9. sunking101

    sunking101 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Yorkshire, England
    It's the only proper Berlin album.
    So you prefer Lodger? Interesting. Quite a few people would agree with you.
     
  10. footprintsinthesand

    footprintsinthesand Reasons to be cheerful part 1

    Location:
    Dutch mountains
    No idea, German Sky website mentions Sky Arts HD on Jan 10 2018 @20:15, plus on demand at Sky Go, Sky On Demand and Sky Ticket. US airing of The Last Five Years one year later is silly of course. Just follow the news for this one, might show up on YouTube soon after, so we can post a link here.
     
  11. geddy402

    geddy402 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Mid Atlantic
    Cool, thanks. I feel like I’m always behind on cool music docs.
     
  12. oldturkey

    oldturkey Forum Resident

    Location:
    Gone away.
    Wow! That looks amazing, but I have no idea how I'm going to watch it legally without a subscription to Murdoch Corp.
    I think I saw a tarred and feathered Fad Gadget in there. You can recognise parts of the interior from classic photographs.
    Fantastic!
     
  13. footprintsinthesand

    footprintsinthesand Reasons to be cheerful part 1

    Location:
    Dutch mountains
    Place of magic, one wishes they'd filmed some of the recordings there, maybe Lust For Life most of all. Funny feeling that after airing we might find the doc around that place where DB parked his train ;)
     
    oldturkey likes this.
  14. John DeAngelis

    John DeAngelis Senior Member

    Location:
    New York, NY
    If it's your favorite, why is "Low" pictured above your name? ;-)
     
  15. Vaughan

    Vaughan Forum Resident

    Location:
    Essex, UK
    Having had Low for some time, and grown accustomed to it's sparse arrangements and what amount to track fragments, Heroes was an interesting hybrid of Low and Bowie's rock albums. It shares a structure with Low (Side 1 vocal tracks, Side 2 (mostly) instrumentals) but the songs were longer, more fully arranged, and held up well in and out of context.

    Side 2 was a nice evolution too, with some partial vocals on V2, and of course, the album leaves you with a strong rock song which nicely holds your hand as you (eventually) travel on to Lodger.

    Overall I find Heroes darker, which is strange given the rock moments. Perhaps it's the black and white cover shot after the burst of color from Low, or some of the paranoid lyrics such as those from Beauty and the Beast, and especially Blackout.

    As far as Bowie goes, it's essential. Over the years I have probably dropped into the side of thinking Low is the more important album, and the better one of the two. But that takes nothing away from Heroes.

    Postscript: The title track is very much a mixed blessing, imo. Great song, of course, but for irrational reasons the way it's sung out of context "We can be Heroes", grates a bit. It's also one of the go-to "hits", which again rankles. For me it has always sat in place, on the album, as track three - not as a standalone track, if that makes sense.
     
  16. 131east23

    131east23 Person of Interest

    Location:
    gone
    There are Bowie albums I like better, but Heroes is my favorite Bowie song. I like how the song when played live morphed over time, sounded different, and has been used to accentuate important events: Freddie Mercury Tribute for example.
     
  17. mark e

    mark e Forum Resident

    i know i am relatively new here, but heroes is all time for me.
    second only to lodger.
    i have most of the rykodisc editions (ahh ziggy !!!), and for years i thought i was good to go.
    but then a friend had a complete set of the recent(ish) cd jap minis that he was going to drop on ebay individually.
    now, i know these are cut from the dreaded emi remasters, but i am not an audiophile(ish), and dont recoil if cds are LOUD,
    so i told my friend to make me an offer for the full set.
    needless to say i got them.
    best drunken decision ever.
     
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  18. sparkmeister

    sparkmeister Forum Resident

    Location:
    Abergavenny UK
    Good question. Low is my favourite Bowie record sleeve. In fact it’s one of my favourite sleeves of any artist.
     
    duggan likes this.
  19. sparkmeister

    sparkmeister Forum Resident

    Location:
    Abergavenny UK
    It doesn’t matter that you’re new to the forum. Your opinion is just as welcome as anyone else’s. Welcome to the forum and enjoy.
     
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  20. Hardy Melville

    Hardy Melville Forum Resident

    Location:
    New York
    The high points are great, but there are some rather less than inspiring moments. Rather inconsistent. While I would say a Bowie fan should have this, I could not give it the very top rating.
     
  21. FrixFrixFrix

    FrixFrixFrix Senior Member

    Location:
    Parts Unknown
    The worst of the trilogy.
     
  22. Steve G

    Steve G Senior Member

    Location:
    los angeles
    a true classic.
     
    strummer101 likes this.
  23. Audioresearch

    Audioresearch Forum Resident

    Essential. Low is the better one for me.
    Heroes is easy in my top ten Bowie Albums
     
  24. footprintsinthesand

    footprintsinthesand Reasons to be cheerful part 1

    Location:
    Dutch mountains
    You may pick it up ... on platform 2
     
  25. Interesting. I think Adrian Belew's work on Lodger is far more substantial and memorable.
     
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