David Bowie – Blackout (1978) 2016 Nacho Remaster

Blackout was originally a track from David Bowie’s 1977 album, “Heroes”. And then a live version was subsequently on the 1978 album, “Stage”.

The audio used here is from the 2005 remaster of “Stage”. “Stage” was recorded live at the Philadelphia, Boston and Providence shows, in Spring 1978. Listening closely to an audience recording of Blackout, from the Philadelphia show on the 28th of April, it seems likely that the version of Blackout on Stage was recorded at that show.

The footage we see is from the show at Dallas Convention Centre, in Texas, on the 10th of April, 1978. The show was shot by RCA as a promotional film for “Stage”. Thankfully the 21 minute film survived in great quality, and is easily the best record we have of the ’78 tour.

“Time again to praise Dennis Davis”, is how Chris O’Leary starts the essay on Blackout, featured on his excellent blog, Pushing Ahead of the Dame.

“..Davis sounds like a percussive orchestra, or his fills seem a painstaking series of drum overdubs. But it’s just him, most of his drumming cut live, like the series of crazy fills Davis does twice on “Blackout” (cued by Bowie’s “get me to the doctor!” at 1:01 and 2:02), where he spins like the second hand of a clock, moving from toms to congas back to toms. There’s the little fills Davis throws in throughout, as if providing regular infusions of oxygen, or his move to what sounds like cowbell on the “get me off the streets” verse. And during it all Davis keeps perfect time. A human jazz metronome, Visconti later called him: playing flawlessly, yet never the same way twice.

Chris concludes the essay with, “The version from Philadelphia, May 1978, collected on Stage, is arguably the definitive version of the song: Bowie’s vocal is tremendous and Davis sounds like a monster’.

Blackout, Pushing Ahead of the Dame, blog

Chris is not wrong, on both counts. Davis’ drumming is always thrilling, and Blackout is perhaps his pièce de résistance. On both the studio version on “Heroes” and this live version, his drumming is breathtaking.

To me, Blackout is very high art. Bowie was simply at the peak of his creativity at this point. And this track is one of the finest that he created during the so-called Berlin-era. Blackout exists in a special rarefied air, and somehow manages to be abrasive, bleak, funky, romantic, sinister and joyful all at the same time. I’ve been listening to it for almost 40 years, and it still knocks me out.

Surely this track was a huge influence on some off the New Wave bands that sprung up in the late 70’s and early 80’s. Listen to Echo & the Bunnymen’s dark, sophisticated 1981 masterpiece, “Heaven Up Here”. The elements are all here – the bleak atmosphere, angular guitars, funky basslines, pounding drums, obscure lyrics, controlled off-key singing.

One is always limited in what is possible re-purposing footage onto another audio source. Songs are never played the same way twice, and on this track Bowie, Davis and guitarist Adrian Belew are particularly wayward. As has been mentioned, Davis didn’t play the same way twice. Bowie ad libs very differently on the two versions and swaps emphasis and even lyrics around quite frequently. And special mention must go to Adrian Belew, who more or less plays crazed guitar solos throughout, and was therefore very hard to create believable syncs with the footage.

There will be a companion video to this soon, Sense Of Doubt – Live 1978. During the ’78 tour, Sense of Doubt was the next track in the set, both are from the “Heroes” album. I tried making a 2-for-1 video with both tracks, but with the ending I have planned for Sense Of Doubt, the video seemed too unwieldy and uneven.

Finally, I am grateful to the person who requested last week that I make this video. It was on my Bowie video To-Do list anyway, but I was inspired to move it to the top of the queue.

Hope you dig it!

Do me an’ yerself a favor – watch it in the H’est D available, with the sound UP LOUD!

If anyone has any other footage, or ideas for another video project, of material from Bowie’s classic period, do please get in touch: nachomarcho@gmail.com

Putting this video together was another huge labour of love, made with respect for the source.

I don’t own the rights, and I’m not making any money out of this etc. Just a fan making videos for other fans.

Nacho, 11th December 2016.