"HEROES"

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ROBERT FRIPP. JUST FOR ONE DAY.

This album is the most "Berlin oriented" of the whole trilogy. Fully recorded on site. A famous guest guitarist will come over for one day and record all his parts. Mr. Robert Fripp himself! So, now we have both Fripp and Eno on a single album. Not too bad, right?

This album is almost a commercial failure in the US (not reaching the top thirty) but it was well received in the UK (Nr. 3). One of the RCA executive (Stephen Weltman) will find the best words to promote the album: "There is new wave, there is old wave, and there is Bowie".

Some reminiscence of prior albums are noticeable on "Heroes". "Black Out" for instance which reflects the daunting New York black out which left the city in the dark for almost twenty-four hours in July 1977.

The best song of this album is without any doubt the title track. A love story, which is very rare during Bowie's career (the previous one being "Letter To Hermione" on his second album ("David Bowie/Space Oddity).

"I can remember, Standing by the wall. And the guns shot above our heads. And we kissed as though nothing could fall. And the shame was on the other side"

My second fave from this album is the oppressive "Sense Of Doubt". A wonderful replica of "Subterraneans" from "Low". A wonderfully icy mood extricates itself from it. A highlight simply based on a few and repetitive notes but again so desperate, so emotional, so moving.

It flows nicely into the ambient "Moss Garden" during which David is playing a Japanese traditional instrument (the koto). A tranquil piece of music, a fine transition to another highlight and again, very much "Subterraneans" oriented song. The magnificent "Neuköln". The final sax part is incredibly sad and touching. A desperate call. Wonderful.

The closing number is a more traditional Bowie song. "The Secret Life of Arabia" could have sit on "Station To Station". Bowie said afterwards, that this last song was a filler. Maybe because it breaks the global mood of the album.

This album doesn't have the same taste than "Low". I was disappointed at the time of release and I still have a mixed bag feeling about it. Definitely a good album, on the edge of three/four stars. Seven out of ten, if I could. But I'll upgrade it.

If "Low" had taken some fans and music critics by surprise, "Heroes" had the advantage of building up on that same surprise and display an elaborated approach to the new musical pursuits traced by David Bowie in communion with Brian Eno. The "Heroes" album, when compared to "Low", features a more robust and fuller approach to the rocking numbers, as well as a less deep approach to the ambient- oriented compositions. It is, in few words, a bit more architectonical and a bit less varied regarding textures, but all in all, a logical continuation of the sonic framework pursed in "Low" without reaching for formula repetition. The opener and track 2, 'Beauty and the Beast' and 'Joe the Lion', very much instill stamina and good vibrations with a reasonable portion of neurotic energy: the use of a female chorale helps to introduce a certain R'n'B vibe into them, in this way exploring the celebratory side of rock'n'roll and perpetuating the glam standards that Bowie never really got rid of in the 70s throughout his musical reinventions. The title track is one of the most distinctive Bowie anthems ever: the solid riffs, Fripp's soaring guitar leads that cut through the air with hopeless melancholy, the subtle harmonic adornments, all of them are conjured to express the immense sadness of two lovers separated by political tragic, pointless circumstances (in this particular case, the Berlin Wall). This is a real gem of rock's history, so nothing that I can say about 'Heroes' in this review can really add anything new. But if I can say anything meaningful here, I will say that it is great and majestic like only Bowie at his best can be. Another majestic track is 'Sons of the Silent Age', whose sense of drama is even more oppressive (if not as majestic) than the previous song: the sad melodies are treated in a way that the overall sound feels really claustrophobic. 'Blackout' reinstates the rocking vibe of tracks 1 and 2, but with a more aggressive attitude and a bigger sense of tension regarding the instrumental elaboration. This is the sort of thing that I found missing most of the rockers included in "Low". The album's second half is mostly devoted to the sort of instrumental explorations that had made the best of the legendary "Low": in "Heroes", they also work as especially valuable items, although they fail to match that deep eeriness of the "Low" counterparts. 'V-2 Schneider' is a high-spirited homage to the rock side of krautrock, sounding pretty much in the mould of Neu!, despite the fact that it was written as a thankful tribute to Kraftwerk (Bowie was mentioned in the electronic classic 'Trans-Europe Express' one year before). After this uplifting piece comes a trilogy of exercises on introspective ambiences. 'Sense of Doubt' delivers a manifestation of doom through the caustic grave piano chord and unearthly synth layers. 'Moss Garden' sounds like something out of a Vangelis' album recycled reshaped by the people of Cluster: the sonic dewdrops incarnated on the koto's strings and the liquid allusions played on synth work out their intended meditative mood. Meditation goes and sadness comes in the mysteriously disturbing 'Neuköln', which in many ways recaptures the yearning unease of 'Subterraneans' (from "Low") - as always, Bowie's sax lines fill the air in a robust fashion. The albums is closed down by the catchy 'The Secret Life of Arabia', which states a weird yet appealing mixture of exotic Eastern and Latin-jazz over a solid funky-rock pace. When the fade-out arrives, I usually regret that this track isn't a bit longer, but I equally feel thankful for the introduction of an ethereal wall of sound during the repetitive instrumental interlude. With "Heroes", David Bowie gives us yet another excellent opus that deserves a mandatory place in any good art-rock collection.

Let me preface this review by stating that I'm not much of a Bowie fan. I received this disk as a promo, and kept it because of the appearance of Robert Fripp & Brian Eno. I never believed Bowie was a trendsetter, but more like a revivalist, seeming to take a musical style a few years after it was popular, and make it his own.

That said, this album has a few nice pop tunes, that often to me sound like glam with a disco beat, and a new-agey interlude near the end. And while you can hear Eno voice here and there throughout the album, Fripp, other than the sustained notes on the title track, seems to blend into the background.

Three stars musically, but only one or two for prog.

Secon "Berlin Trilogy"step is for sure better, than the "Low ". Main difference - this album is much more focused, now it's album, not the collection of Eno dark ambient pieces with some Bowie vocals.

I think important role there got Robert Fripp with his guitar. Yes, you have there both dark ambient/sounscapes masters, Eno and Fripp, and happily they balanced each other much better!

I can say, that on that album I can hear mature "Berlin trilogy"sound, the ideas,which were represented on "Low "in blueprint forms only. It still very dark ambient - oriented, but more structurised songs gave to all album well-finished product feeling.

Now, you can like it or not, but at least it is some way in music of it time. I can't agree with some reviewers, who tryied to name the music of this album "new wave". No way!

For sure, because of strong influence of Eno (who was one of persons who builded the sound of such"new wave" leaders as "Ultarvox"), there are some sound similarities. But the song structure and construction is much more deep and innovative.In fact, you have here the mix of ambient sound of Eno earlier solo albums, fashionable "new wave "atributes and Bowie's glam rock.

I can really recommend this album for anyone who is interested in Bowie's "Berlin period ".

"HEROES" is one of those albums that just carry you along; its sweep is relentless. It may take you a couple of spins before you get into its spirit, though, since much of the original A-side emits an atmosphere of panic and confusion. If the A-side of its predecessor, LOW, sounded neat, symmetrical and depressed, typical "HEROES" tracks like "Blackout" and "Joe the Lion" are full of tension and fear. It is well known Bowie recorded this album from the base up, i.e. he first recorded all the instruments; he then went back to the studio and more or less improvised the vocals. It may be for this reason that the album sounds so spontaneous and wild, and that most of the lyrics sound incoherent! The album's dark and experimental mood had a considerable influence on New Wave bands like XTC and Wire, as did Iggy Pop's LUST FOR LIFE and THE IDIOT, to which Bowie himself contributed.

There's not a single uninspired track on the A-side, which distinguishes "HEROES" from its lacklustre successor LODGER. Most people, of course, will be familiar with the glorious title track, which can be found smack-dab in the middle of the side. Throughout the years I've had to cope, first with a girlfriend who thought the live version on STAGE sounded superior (it does not) just because she owned a copy of STAGE, and now with three daughters who think nothing beats Ewan McGregor's performance in MOULIN ROUGE! I'd like to think "Heroes" is one of those tracks nothing can destroy. I heard Nico do her live version in the early eighties, and there was no climax worth speaking of but it was still a great song.

The album's B-side must be just about the proggiest sequence of music Bowie ever recorded, with its explicit homage to Krautrock bands like Neu and Kraftwerk, and with various electronic keyboards producing lots of nicely floating sounds! "Moss Garden" was probably meant to evoke the gardens Bowie visited in Kyoto, and I must say Bowie uses the Japanese koto in a highly imaginative way. For an artist who tends to leave guitar solos to various members of his band, he expresses himself very eloquently, movingly even. The album closer, "The Secret Life of Arabia", is a hoot. Out of the darkness, into the light, as Indonesian proggers Discus would have it.

"HEROES" is one of the indisputable highlights of the Bowie canon. Of all of his albums it's the only one that is indisputably "a masterpiece of progressive rock". Bowie has taken on styles first developed by renowned progressive musicians like Eno and Can, he has succeeded in giving them a twist of his own, and he has made excellent use of some of prog's most original artists (Robert Fripp, Eno himself) in the process. Five stars may seem like an underestimate.

Bowie's Heroes is one of those rock classics where it keeps surprising me why they are considered anything special. I fail to see it as anything more then an average album with the name of well known artist on the cover and blessed with the luck to be released at a perfect moment. As to its quality, I can't say much positive at all. This is one of those albums you would even try to play backwards to make sure you didn't miss anything. Nope.

As it often goes with Bowie, his hits are his best songs. And so fares this album, the moment of excellent is the title track, a very fine pop song indeed. Not in the least due to the surprising flippertronics arrangement from mr. Fripp. Apart from that track, there's the pleasant rocking opener Beauty And The Beast and a couple of sonic Eno-isms on the second side that are listenable. Unfortunately, most of the tracks are bland rock songs that are dressed up to sound artsy and smart but end up contrived and self-important. The worst are Sons of the Silent Age, Blackout and V-2 Schneider. I would list those amongst the dullest and most conceited of Bowie's career.

I've given this album multiple tries over the course of my life but it has always failed on all accounts. It doesn't impress me as an art-rock album nor as a regular pop album. That one hit not withstanding; I'm really clueless as to why this album should feature in anyone's collection. I'd like to give 3 stars but really wouldn't see why. The man has much better music.

It took me about two listens to decide that this was going to be my favorite Bowie album for the rest of time. This is the second entry in Bowie's late-70's collaboration with Brian Eno, and for whatever it may have in common with Low and for whatever may be an advancement in the production and general approach, the biggest thing that sets this album apart from Low for me is that it actually has classics. Whereas Low simmered at a solidly very good level without contributing (in my opinion) a single all-time great Bowie track, this album maintains the same baseline quality at worst while throwing out peaks repeatedly. Eno and Bowie brought out the best in each other with this album, and when the contributions of Robert Fripp (in his first recording appearance since he'd temporarily decided to abandon the music industry and find life meaning in The Fourth Way, a system of spiritual thought taught by a man named Gurdjieff) are accounted for, it's pretty much impossible for me not to love this album more than anything else with Bowie's name on it.

As with Low, this is an album that sounds to me like the color scheme of the album cover. Yup, if you can possibly understand the idea of sounds having color associated with them, then you should know that while the majority of Low sounds like orange and brown and various light human skin tones to me, "Heroes" is all about striking, powerful mixes of black, white and grey to me. This probably wouldn't sound like a compliment to many people, since it would seem that color would indicate a more vibrant and lively approach than would lack of it. For me, though, the concept works in the album's favor not only because of how the instrumental textures paint images in my mind (the entire album sounds like a classy stylized black-and-white Japanese-style cartoon to me), but because stripping away color works as a strong metaphor for stripping away all of the various trappings that served to mask David's humanity in so much of his career. Even in the liner notes, where there is some color in the images shown of David, the addition of color is very soft and muted, only meant to enhance and emphasize what's already there rather than replace it with a big song and dance, so to speak. Even in many of the rather obscure and abstract portions of the album, I can feel David's soul in the music (though to be fair, much of that might also be Eno's soul; the division between the two here is definitely not cut and dried on this album), and David's soul is definitely not something heard on a regular basis.

As on Low, the album is roughly distributed with the "normal" material on the first side and the "difficult" material on the second side, though as on Low this description isn't exact; the first side of Low wasn't exactly filled with "normal" songs (not to mention the presence of two instrumentals on that side), while the second side here ends with a track that could hardly be dismissed as "difficult." Still, while the two albums aren't exactly clones of each other, there is enough similarity in the general shape of the respective albums that it's easy to justify comparisons between the two. In this spirit, I have no problem saying the following: both the "normal" material on "Heroes" and the "difficult" material on "Heroes" are significantly superior to their respective counterparts on Low, and Low wasn't really a slouch in either. Of the six conventional songs on the album, only "Sons of the Silent Age" is even close to "average," and I still enjoy it quite a bit. The music in the verses isn't especially interesting, but the decision to make the secondary melody/chorus section such an over-the-top self-parody of Bowie's 1975 plastic soul era makes me laugh inside every time I think about it. "Blackout" and the closer, "The Secret Life of Arabia," are often overlooked as well, but they really shouldn't be; the former has a fascinating combination of driving beat, ugly guitar/synth squeals and frantic vocals that makes it unforgettable, and the latter (co-written with Carlos Alomar) is such a funny bit of pseudo-exotic disco (coming out of the final moments of the "serious" portion of the album, no less) that it's impossible for me to dislike it even remotely. It's nice to have a track like this, in this spot, where Bowie messing with his listeners seems less like him trying to latch onto some contemporary gimmick and seems more like him playing a genuinely funny gag on their expectations. It's nothing fantastic, but I couldn't imagine the album ending without it.

The other three "normal" songs are ones that seemingly most people enjoy, not surprisingly. Among the world of tracks that one can theoretically dance to, "Beauty and the Beast" has to be one of the ugliest and least pleasant, and I mean that in a very nice way. Everything about the song exudes sheer power, from the opening epic buildup, to the pounding beat (if this isn't proto-techno I don't know what is), to the jarring vocals (both from Bowie and from what I can only assume are female backing vocalists, who make the song bear an unmistakable krautrock influence), to the unpleasant yet irresistable guitar playing from Fripp, to the hilarious lyrics. Years ago, when I put together a 1-CD compilation of material from Eno's solo projects and albums where he'd made significant contributions, this seemed like the only logical choice for an opener, and I still can't think of a better one. Meanwhile, the following "Joe the Lion" stakes its claim as a peak within about five seconds, thanks to Fripp bringing out a MONSTROUS guitar tone for a MONSTROUS guitar line, but the song would still be great even without that portion. Fripp's guitar playing in the rest of the track is just as interesting (if not as immediately striking) as in the opening, and the alternation between Bowie's screamy vocal approach in the verses and the way he sings the "By God it's Monday, slither down the greasy pipe ..." is something I could just listen to over and over without getting tired. Yup, for a mere 3:05, "Joe the Lion" packs a mighty punch.

The big classic of the album, though, pretty much has to be the title track. I can see where one might want to dismiss it; it's gotten an obscene amount of exposure over the years, and it's such a big song with such a big sound and a big vocal performance that one could easily see it as tacky and overdone (like I often see other Bowie ballads). Whatever may be, though, the song has never once pushed any of my cynicism buttons, and I can't see how it ever will. Bowie writes a great story with these lyrics, and if this great vocal performance (the best of his career) isn't dripping with actual, sincere emotion, then the only conclusion I can draw is that Bowie really had absolutely no emotion in him whatsoever. The music, meanwhile, simply couldn't have happened in any combination other than Bowie, Eno and Fripp coming together. The melody and basic pattern of the song came from Eno and Bowie feeding off each other; the sound, produced by Visconti and Bowie or not, is saturated with various Eno production tricks; and, of course, there's Fripp's playing. Fripp and Eno might have collaborated previously to create bizarre (and often borderline unlistenable) guitar/synth experiments, but Fripp's guitar had also been responsible for some of the most interesting and often gorgeous (in a fully non-cliched manner) moments of Eno's solo albums (not to mention some of Fripp's more beautiful moments in other contexts, most notably in King Crimson but also in other places like the end of "A Plague of Lifehouse Keepers"). Another guitarist might not have had the, um, discipline to play so few notes and hold those notes out so long, and another guitarist might not have picked a tone so strangely alien and yet so instinctually familiar and so beautiful. Yup, this is pretty much as good as any track on a Bowie album could get.

Of course, even people who like the "normal" half of the album tend to lose the plot in the instrumental portion of the album, but I'll have none of that. One thing that is essential with these four tracks is to listen to and absorb them as a set: the opening "V-2 Schneider" can mostly work on its own, yes, but it's even more striking when paired with the completely different "Sense of Doubt," and the other two definitely work better as the conclusion of the first two. As with the second side of Low, if you hate ambient music, you'll probably dismiss these tracks without a second thought, but it would be your loss to do so. And frankly, what kind of fool would turn away from the greatness of "V-2 Schneider" just because the only words in the track are a repetition of the title in the last minute or so? As much as I love ""Heroes,"" this is only a smidge behind it, and if I had ever had the chance to attend a Bowie concert and hear the first notes of this track, I would have gone nuts. Aside from an absolute winner of a bassline, it's full of chord changes that don't quite happen on the beat you'd expect, saxophone parts that are similarly slightly off-kilter, and guitar sounds that evoke the image of a rocket or missle without any difficulty whatsoever, and anybody who's not won over by the time the vocals come in will never like instrumental music.

The following "Sense of Doubt" is credited solely to Bowie, but that's a misnomer; the track works because of conflicting instructions Bowie and Eno received from Eno's Oblique Strategies deck, so Eno really deserves credit as much as Bowie does here. There's a main theme of a low-pitched descending series of three notes, covered in synths and other noises (especially creaking Bowie vocal sounds) that make me picture a terrible black-and- white nightmare of seeing a city after it's gotten a nuclear weapon dropped into it (why that image? Well, why not that image?). One part in the track kills me every time I hear it: the single swelling synth chord that starts playing at 1:44 and is held for 11 seconds before finally dropping down a step and going into a melody of sorts. After "Sense of Doubt" ends on a relatively optimistic/triumphant note (at least, as much as this track allows), in comes "Moss Garden" (with a formal credit to Eno), featuring Bowie on a koto with stately atmospheric guitar and synth textures, and finally we have "Neuköln," a song about a district in West Berlin that the synths and the wailing saxophone make sound like a pretty desolate place. I'll admit that the suite isn't 100% gripping in every moment from start to finish, but as a whole it's fantastic, and yes, I included the whole suite on the "Eno and Friends" compilation I mentioned earlier.

If you're a Bowie fan who doesn't like this, I'd definitely be pretty surprised. If you're an Eno fan who doesn't like this, I'd be flabbergasted. Either way, it's one of the biggest "must own" recommendations I can give for any album from the late 70's.

Bowie had already perfected his new approach by the time of this release and showed exactly how well he could incorporate it into his existing repertoire!

Unlike its predecessor, "Heroes" actually features songs that I can relate to and the album opening number, Beauty And The Beast, perfectly sums up this fact! Together with Joe The Lion, it brings that good old sense of joy to music making that I've actually not heard on a Bowie record since the days of Ziggy Stardust! The album's title track is an undisputed masterpiece, carried perfectly by Robert Fripp's lead guitar. But it's actually Sons Of The Silent Age that really steals the show for me here. Just like Scream Like A Baby, from Scary Monsters, it's just one of those perfectly weirded out moments that really speak to me in every possible way and I just can't get enough of everything it has to offer. I'm talking about the completely out of place saxophone intro, the weird ambient backing arrangement that constantly tries to incorporate themes of moments from the past but even gives a gimps of the things to come. Finally, the chorus itself is just perfect!

Side two is once again an instrumental affair and this is where Eno and Bowie really outdo themselves. All of these compositions work much better than any of the similar tracks from Low and Sense Of Doubt even breaks through the general excellence of the pieces and becomes one of the album's true highlights. The Secret Life Of Arabia did surprise me quite a bit when I heard it for the first time, but I've come to appreciate this weird little track more and more with time. What really always bothered me about this tune is that its lyrical content has very little to do with its music, so I've come to see it more like a suitable joke track that literally breaks the ambiance!

It's clear to me that the collaboration with Brian Eno gave David Bowie a new creative boost that would continue to be apparent even on the future albums. "Heroes" was easily the peak of that collaboration and even though I can't recommend this release to everyone, it's a must have addition to every Art Rock music collection!

***** star songs: Beauty And The Beast (3:35) "Heroes" (6:08) Sons Of The Silent Age (3:17) Sense Of Doubt (3:58)

**** star songs: Joe The Lion (3:06) Blackout (3:48) V-2 Schneider (3:10) Moss Garden (5:05) Neukoln (4:32) The Secret Life Of Arabia (3:45)

Robert Fripp joins Bowie and Eno in Berlin to produce this manic art rock album which captures the New Wave spirit of the age perfectly. Having hung out with Iggy Pop for much of the previous year helping him get two solo albums together, Bowie had been inspired by Iggy's skill for ad-libbing lyrics at the mic and took a similarly improvisational approach to several of the songs, giving them a wild-eyed and energetic edge. Capturing a hectic, tense, chaotic atmosphere, the album also incorporates more gentle moments in its second half, including a nod or two to Kraftwerk that almost beats the electronic masters at their own game.

"Heroes" reminds me of "Low" as it really is an album of two halves; side one features pop angst and infectious melodies to rock to. Side two features synthesizer ditties and futuristic Krautrock influences. It begins with the catchy 'Beauty and the Beast' which is a great start and Bowie sounds ominous. 'Joe the Lion' never impacted me but I loved "Heroes" although it was played way too many times on the radio. This 6 minute version is a masterpiece though and once heard is never forgotten. What a wall of sound is generated here and Bowie at his most forceful and emotional; "nothing can drive us away, we can be heroes just for one day."

'Sons of the Silent Age' is a low droning song with Bowie sounding rather robotic. The tracks on side two are in stark contrast, mainly the instrumentals. My favourite track has always been 'V-2 Schneider' that really sounds more like Kraftwerk and I was a huge addict of the Kraut electronica at the time. The synths are heavy and powerful and Bowie is an incredible composer. 'Sense of Doubt', 'Moss Garden' and 'Neuköln' are all bizarre instrumentals with Krautrock nuances and motorik beats. Bowie was influenced and became an influence himself. Many listeners would have been thrown by these tracks sitting proudly on a Bowie album, but it is great to hear and kudos to Bowie for his daring and creativity. Brian Eno and Robert Fripp are once again part of the team and they inject some wonderful ambience in to these tunes.

It is a great album that could have been a masterpiece. There are brilliant moments and some mediocrity so we can round this off to 3 gold stars.

Bowie's "Heroes" is a strange but graceful little record and it comes extremely close to a masterpiece if not for but a few moments of unneeded noodling.

It's a sophisticated pop record, Bowie's trademark, to start with, but it is filled with such raw emotion it's hard not to take notice. The first track almost seems lighthearted, but Eno's production technique on this record gives the listener the sense that something darker is lurking underneath and perhaps it is because the titular track is one of the most emotional piece of pop music ever written.

"We could be heroes, just for one day," Bowie says and it's this particular track that really evens out the record as a whole with it's pop tunes interlaced with the titular ballad and the weird sonic experimentation of side 2. That's what most people have a hard time with indeed, but I find it very relaxing music, starting with V-2 Schiender and eventually coming to the finale of the album Secret Life of Arabia which as it turns out is a very catchy end to an album that went through an odd phase just minutes before.

It's really kind of an oddity in Bowie's discog but it's also one of his best. Kind of like Alice Cooper's "Dada" or Bob Dylan's "Street-Legal". Those are cult albums within strong artists and sometimes those are the best albums in a musicians career.

4 stars because it's not the strongest record ever but still pretty amazing.