"" is a song written by
David Bowie together with
Brian Eno in 1977. Produced by Bowie and
Tony Visconti , it was released both as a single and as the title track of the album ''
"Heroes" ''. A product of Bowie's fertile
'Berlin' Period , life in the city was crystallized into the simple tale of two lovers who come together in the shadow of the
'Wall Of Shame' (though here "the shame was on the other side"). While not a huge hit at the time, the song has gone on to become one of Bowie’s signature tunes and is well-known today for its appearance in numerous advertisements.
The title of the song is a reference to the 1975 track "Hero" by the band at the time, contends that Bowie was protecting him and his affair with Maass. Bowie confirmed this in 2003.
The music, co-written by Bowie and Eno, has been likened to a
2007 .
"Heroes" was released in a variety of languages and lengths ("a collector's wet dream" in the words of ''
NME '' editors
Roy Carr and
Charles Shaar Murray , see ''Other releases'' below). In contrast to the bewildering audio situation, the video clip (directed by
Nick Ferguson ) was a stark and simple affair, the singer captured performing the song in what appeared to be a single take with multiple cameras, swaying in front of a spotlight that created a monotone and near-silhouette effect. Despite a large promotional push, including Bowie’s first ''
Top Of The Pops '' appearance since
1972 , "Heroes" only reached #24 in the UK charts, and failed to make the US
Billboard Top 100 .
In February 1999, ''
2007 . Bowie has regularly performed the song in concert since its release (see ''Live versions'' below). To the consternation of many fans, the song has become a mainstay of advertising in recent years, gracing efforts by
Microsoft ,
Kodak , CGU Insurance,
HBO Olé (HBO Latin America) and various sporting promoters throughout the world. It was also used as the intro to the
Video Game ''
NHL 99 '', released in 1998. "Heroes" has been cited as Bowie's most-covered song after "
Rebel Rebel " (see ''Cover versions'' below).
# "Heroes" (
David Bowie ,
Brian Eno ) – 3:38
# "
V-2 Schneider " (Bowie) – 3:10
# "Heroes" (English version) (single edit) - 3:29
# "Héros" (French version) - 3:31
# "Helden" (German version) - 3:32
# "V-2 Schneider" - 3:10
# "Heroes" (album version) - 6:07
# "Heroes" (single edit) - 3:29
- A concert version recorded at the Philadelphia Spectrum in April 1978 was released on the live album '' Stage ''.
- The rendition at on keyboards.
- It was performed at the Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert in 1992 by Bowie, Mick Ronson and the remaining members of Queen .
- An acoustic version of the song was played at The Bridge Benefit Concert in 1996, and later released on ''The Bridge Benefit Concert'' album.
- Robert Fripp's band King Crimson performed the song live in 2000; it was released on the album '' Heavy ConstruKction ''.
- The edited 7-inch single, running at 3:32 mins and backed with "V-2 Schneider", was released separately in English, French ("Héros") and German ("Helden"). All three of these cuts plus "V-2 Schneider" were released together as an Australian 4-track 7-inch.
- The complete English version as it appeared on the album was released as a Spanish 12-inch Single .
- A version featuring the German single edit spliced into the second half of the full-length English track ("Heroes/Helden") appeared on the German pressing of the LP and is also available on Bowie’s Soundtrack to the film '' Christiane F. '' and on the '' Rare '' album.
- It appeared on the following compilations:
- --- ''Chameleon'' (Australia and New Zealand 1979)
- --- '' Best Of Bowie '' (1980)
- --- '' Fame And Fashion '' (1984)
- --- '' Sound + Vision '' (1989) - "Helden"
- --- '' Changesbowie '' (1990)
- --- '''' (1993)
- --- '' The Singles Collection '' (1993)
- --- '' The Best Of 1974/1979 '' (1998)
- It was released as a picture disc in the RCA ''Life Time'' picture disc set.
