Right (song)

Last updated • 2 min readFrom Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia
"Right"
Song by David Bowie
from the album Young Americans
A-side "Fame"
Released7 March 1975
RecordedAugust November 1974
Studio Sigma Sound, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Genre Blue-eyed soul, funk
Length4:13 [1]
Label RCA
Songwriter(s) David Bowie
Producer(s) Tony Visconti

"Right" is a song by the English musician David Bowie from his album Young Americans , released on 7 March 1975. Recorded on 14–18 August and 20–24 November 1974 at Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia, [2] "Right" is the last of four tracks on side one of Young Americans, [3] and the B-side of the single "Fame", released in August 1975. [1]

Contents

Music and lyrics

The repetition of the main lyrics—"Taking it all the right way / Never no turning back"—the prominence of the percussion and bass, and the emphasis on the backing singers made "Right" one of the album's "authentically soulful" songs, according to professor of music Ian Chapman. Chapman describes it as having "no hidden Bowie-esque irony, barb, or angst", [3] although Alex Petridis calls it a "twitchy, agitated note-to-self". [4]

The backing vocalists included Luther Vandross and an old friend and co collaborator on some of Bowie's albums, Geoff MacCormack; it was the only track on Young Americans to feature MacCormack. The call and response between Bowie and the backing singers "lends an air of immaculate sophistication to the lyric's paean to positive thinking", according to Nicholas Pegg. [5] In 1975 Bowie called the song a mantra: "People forget what the sound of Man's instinct is—it's a drone, a mantra. And people say, 'Why are so many things popular that just drone on and on?' But that's the point really. It reaches a particular vibration, not necessarily a musical level." [5] [6]

Toward the end of Alan Yentob's film about Bowie, Cracked Actor (1975), Bowie, Luther Vandross, Robin Clark, and Ava Cherry are seen rehearsing "Right" for the 1974 "Soul Tour", although in the end it was never performed live. [5] [6]

Personnel

According to biographer Chris O'Leary: [2]

Technical

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>Diamond Dogs</i> 1974 studio album by David Bowie

Diamond Dogs is the eighth studio album by the English musician David Bowie, released on 24 May 1974 through RCA Records. Bowie produced the album and recorded it in early 1974 in London and the Netherlands, following the disbanding of his backing band the Spiders from Mars and the departure of producer Ken Scott. Bowie played lead guitar on the record in the absence of Mick Ronson. Diamond Dogs featured the return of Tony Visconti, who had not worked with Bowie for four years; the two would collaborate for the rest of the decade. Musically, it was Bowie's final album in the glam rock genre, though some songs were influenced by funk and soul music, which Bowie embraced on his next album, Young Americans (1975).

<i>Young Americans</i> 1975 studio album by David Bowie

Young Americans is the ninth studio album by the English musician David Bowie, released on 7 March 1975 through RCA Records. A departure from the glam rock style of previous albums, the record showcased Bowie's interest in soul and R&B. Music critics have described the sound as blue-eyed soul; Bowie himself labelled the album's sound "plastic soul".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Golden Years (David Bowie song)</span> 1975 song by David Bowie

"Golden Years" is a song by the English musician David Bowie, released by RCA Records on 21 November 1975 as the lead single from his tenth studio album Station to Station (1976). Partially written before Bowie began shooting for the film The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976), the song was mostly compiled in the studio and was the first track completed for the album. Co-produced by Bowie and Harry Maslin, recording took place at Cherokee Studios in Los Angeles during September 1975. Due to Bowie's heavy cocaine use, he later recalled remembering almost nothing of Station to Station's production.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1984 (song)</span> 1974 song by David Bowie

"1984" is a song by the English musician David Bowie, from his 1974 album Diamond Dogs, released as a single in the United States and Japan. Written in 1973, it was inspired by George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four and, like much of its parent album, originally intended for a stage musical based on the novel, which was never produced because permission was refused by Orwell's widow Sonia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Young Americans (song)</span> 1975 single by David Bowie

"Young Americans" is a song by the English singer-songwriter David Bowie from his ninth studio album of the same name. It was mostly recorded in August 1974 at Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia and was debuted on the Soul tour the following month. The song featured contributions from then-unknown singer Luther Vandross, who conceived the backing vocal arrangement. An embracement of R&B and Philadelphia soul, the song presents an Englishman's impressionist portrait of America at the time, featuring various characters and allusions to American totems and events.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John, I'm Only Dancing</span> Song by David Bowie

"John, I'm Only Dancing" is a song by the English musician David Bowie, originally released as a non-album single on 1 September 1972. A glam rock and R&B number, the lyrics describe a situation in which the narrator informs his lover not to worry about the girl he is with because he is "only dancing" with her. Although ambiguous, many interpreted it as concerning a gay relationship. Recorded in London in June 1972, it was boosted by a low-budget promotional video directed by Mick Rock. It reached number 12 in the UK; RCA refused to release it in America due to its suggestive lyrical content.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sorrow (The McCoys song)</span> 1965 song by The McCoys

"Sorrow" is a song first recorded by the McCoys in 1965 and released as the B-side to their cover of "Fever". It became a big hit in the United Kingdom in a version by the Merseys, reaching number 4 on the UK chart on 28 April 1966. A version by David Bowie charted worldwide in 1973.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TVC 15</span> 1976 song by David Bowie

"TVC 15" is a song by the English musician David Bowie, released on his 1976 album Station to Station. RCA Records later released it as the second single from the album on 30 April 1976. The song was recorded in late 1975 at Cherokee Studios in Los Angeles. Co-produced by Bowie and Harry Maslin, the recording featured guitarists Carlos Alomar and Earl Slick, bassist George Murray, drummer Dennis Davis, pianist Roy Bittan and Warren Peace on backing vocals. The upbeat song is mostly art rock performed in a style reminiscent of the 1950s. Lyrically, the song concerns a character's girlfriend being eaten by a television set. It was inspired by a dream of Iggy Pop's and Bowie's role in The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976). Some lyrics are also influenced by the Yardbirds and Kraftwerk.

Geoffrey Alexander MacCormack, better known as Warren Peace, is an English vocalist, composer and dancer best known for his work with David Bowie in the 1970s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Velvet Goldmine (song)</span> 1975 song by David Bowie

"Velvet Goldmine" is a song by the English singer-songwriter David Bowie. A glam rock number with lyrical references to oral sex, it was originally recorded on 11 November 1971 at Trident Studios in London during the sessions for his 1972 album The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. It was ultimately left off the album and subsequently released as a B-side of the UK re-release of "Space Oddity" in 1975. Praised by biographers as an undervalued classic, it later appeared on compilation albums, including on Re:Call 1, part of the Five Years (1969–1973) boxed set, in 2015. Its namesake was used for Todd Haynes's 1998 film of the same name.

"Panic in Detroit" is a song written by the English singer-songwriter David Bowie for the album Aladdin Sane in 1973. Bowie based it on his friend Iggy Pop's descriptions of revolutionaries he had known in Michigan and Pop's experiences during the 1967 Detroit riots. Rolling Stone magazine called the track "a paranoid descendant of the Motor City's earlier masterpiece, Martha and the Vandellas' "Nowhere to Run"".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rock 'n' Roll with Me</span> 1974 song by David Bowie

"Rock 'n' Roll with Me" is a power ballad written by David Bowie and Geoff MacCormack and recorded in January 1974 that first appeared on Bowie's Diamond Dogs album, supposedly to address the artist's complex relation with his fans. A version recorded during the Diamond Dogs tour in July 1974 was released on the album David Live.

"Big Brother" is a song written by David Bowie in 1973 and intended for his never-produced musical based on George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four. In 1974 it was released on the album Diamond Dogs. It segued into the final track on the record, "Chant of the Ever Circling Skeletal Family".

"Fascination" is a song written by the English singer-songwriter David Bowie and the American musician Luther Vandross for Bowie's Young Americans album in 1975. The song originated from a Vandross song called "Funky Music " which The Mike Garson Band used to play before Bowie concerts in 1974.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Can You Hear Me? (David Bowie song)</span> 1975 song by David Bowie

"Can You Hear Me?" is a ballad by the English musician David Bowie from his 1975 album Young Americans. Bowie called it a "real love song", written with someone in mind, but he did not identify them. The song was released as a single in November 1975 on the B side of "Golden Years".

"Word on a Wing" is a song written and recorded by the English singer-songwriter David Bowie in 1975 for the Station to Station album, where it appears as the closing track of the LP's first side.

"Scream Like a Baby" is a song written by David Bowie. It appears on the 1980 album Scary Monsters .

<i>Cracked Actor (Live Los Angeles 74)</i> 2017 live album by David Bowie

Cracked Actor is a live album by the English singer-songwriter David Bowie. It was released posthumously as a Record Store Day release on 22 April 2017 through Parlophone record label. Produced by Bowie and mixed by Tony Visconti, it was recorded on the Diamond Dogs Tour in September 1974, some material from which appeared in the BBC documentary Cracked Actor.

<i>Im Only Dancing (The Soul Tour 74)</i> 2020 live album by David Bowie

I'm Only Dancing is a live album by the English musician David Bowie. It had a limited release on 29 August 2020 for Record Store Day as a double LP and double CD. It was recorded on the second half of the Diamond Dogs Tour in 1974, which is known as "the Soul Tour" due to the influence of the then-unreleased material Bowie had begun recording for Young Americans (1975). I'm Only Dancing marks the first time performances from this portion of the tour have been officially released.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ava Cherry</span> American singer and model

Ava Cherry is an American singer and model. She collaborated with English musician David Bowie between 1972 and 1975; the two met in New York City when she was a nightclub waitress and Bowie was touring for The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. Afterwards, they began a period of personal and artistic collaboration that heavily influenced the Young Americans "blue-eyed soul" era. Following this, she struck out as a solo singer and backing artist for musicians such as Luther Vandross and Chaka Khan.

References

  1. 1 2 Pegg, Nicholas (2016). The Complete David Bowie (7th ed.). London: Titan Books. p. 780. ISBN   978-1785653650.
  2. 1 2 O'Leary, Chris (2015). Rebel Rebel: All the Songs of David Bowie from '64 to '76. Alresford, Hants: Zero Books. pp. 373–374. ISBN   978-1-78099-244-0.
  3. 1 2 Chapman, Ian (2015). Experiencing David Bowie: A Listener's Companion. London: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. pp. 108–109. ISBN   978-1442237513.
  4. Petridis, Alex (22 September 2016). "David Bowie: Who Can I Be Now? (1974–1976) review – an artist on the edge". The Guardian.
  5. 1 2 3 Pegg 2016, p. 226.
  6. 1 2 O'Leary, Chris (28 October 2010). "Right". Pushing Ahead of the Dame.