Released 14 October 1977 Label RCA Records | Length 3:05 Writer(s) David Bowie | |
Recorded Hansa Studio by the Wall, West Berlin
July–August 1977 Genre Art rock, post-punk, no wave, punk rock | ||
"Joe the Lion" is a song written by David Bowie in 1977 for the album "Heroes". It was produced by Bowie and Tony Visconti and features lead guitar by Robert Fripp. Like the album as a whole, the song demonstrates the influence of German Krautrock.
The track is in part a tribute to performance artist Chris Burden, who was famous for having himself nailed to a Volkswagen in 1974 ("Nail me to my car and I'll tell you who you are") and for having an assistant shoot him in the arm at an art gallery in 1971 ("Guess you'll buy a gun / You'll buy it secondhand"). "Joe the Lion" has also been seen as reflecting Bowie's struggle to overcome the emotional numbness that appeared to permeate his previous album Low ("You get up and sleep"). At many points in the song, the opening bassline from Bowie's song "Changes" is re-used.
Bowie played the song live on the 1983 Serious Moonlight and 1995 Outside tours, and was considered (but ultimately not performed) for his 1987 Glass Spider Tour.