B-side "Plan" Length 2:59 | Genre Glam rock
folk rock | |
Released 19 August 2013 (2013-08-19) Format 7"
CD-R
digital download Recorded The Magic Shop
(New York, New York) | ||
"Valentine's Day" is a song by English rock musician David Bowie, the fourth single from his 24th studio album The Next Day. The single was released on 19 August 2013. This was to be David Bowie's last 7 inch single issued from a new album in his lifetime. The lyrics are based on the psychology of a shooter.
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Release details
The single was released on 19 August 2013 in the UK and on the 20th in the US and other countries. In early August 2013, the single was added to the BBC Radio 2's A-list. The single entered UK's Airplay Chart Top 40 on 9 August 2013, making it the second most successful single from The Next Day (after "Where Are We Now?") in terms of airplay.
Video
The video for "Valentine's Day" was directed by Indrani Pal-Chaudhuri and Markus Klinko, who previously collaborated with Bowie on his 2002 album Heathen. It features Bowie in the abandoned Red Hook Grain Terminal in the Red Hook neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York. In the video, Bowie plays a G2T Hohner guitar while performing the song. Many commentators contrasted the video with the controversial preceding video for "The Next Day" and described it as more "subdued" in comparison. However, visual hints towards gun violence and the NRA were also noted, suggesting the video was conveying a subtle anti-gun message.