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Sons of the Silent Age

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Wikipedia article




"'Sons of the Silent Age'" is a song written by David Bowie in 1977 for the album '"Heroes"'. According to Brian Eno, it was the only song on the album composed prior to the recording sessions, all others being improvised in the Hansa by the Wall studio. Bowie himself indicated that 'Sons of the Silent Age' could at one stage have been the title for the album, rather than '"Heroes"'.[http://members.ol.com.au/rgriffin/GoldenYears/Heroes.html 'NME' interviews (1977) cited at Bowie: Golden Years] . Retrieved 20 May 2007.

Biographer David Buckley remarked on the song's "doomy sax-driven verses set incongruously aside cheesy choruses".David Buckley (1999). 'Strange Fascination - David Bowie: The Definitive Story': p.321 The lyrics have been interpreted as a third-person revisitation of the themes of psychotic withdrawal explored on Bowie's previous album 'Low' ("Pacing their rooms just like a cells dimensions"), as well as referencing the characters from his 1970 song "The Supermen" ("They never die they just go to sleep one day")Roy Carr & Charles Shaar Murray (1981). 'Bowie: An Illustrated Record': p.92 on the album 'The Man Who Sold the World'. Author Nicholas Pegg speculated that the lines "platforms, blank looks, no books" and "rise for a year or two then make war" alluded to the Nazi regime.Nicholas Pegg (2000). 'The Complete David Bowie': p.195

Other releases



* Bowie performed this song live during his 1987 Glass Spider Tour and it appears as a live track on the 'Glass Spider' live album and video. On this version of the song, the chorus is sung by the band's lead guitarist Peter Frampton

* It appeared in the 'Sound + Vision' box set (1989)

Cover versions



* Philip Glass '"Heroes" Symphony' (1996)

* Danny Michel 'Loving the Alien: Danny Michel Sings the Songs of David Bowie' (2004)

Notes



Category:David Bowie songs

Category:1977 songs

Category:Songs written by David Bowie

Category:Song recordings produced by Tony Visconti

Category:Song recordings produced by David Bowie

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