"Bombers" is the second single by Gary Numan and his band Tubeway Army, released in 1978. The song is in a somewhat more conventional rock style than their punk-orientated debut, "That's Too Bad", and features sound effects simulating air raid sirens, dive bombers, and machine gun fire. Like its predecessor, the single earned indifferent reviews and failed to chart.
| "Bombers" | |
|---|---|
| Song |
Though their musical styles differ, the song's subject matter is generally seen as a thinly-disguised rewrite of David Bowie's "Five Years", the opening track of The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (1972).[1] Both songs feature detached observations of urban panic caused by impending catastrophe. "Bombers" (which has nothing to do with another Bowie track of the same name) is sung from the perspective of both a witness on the ground ("Look up, I hear the scream of sirens on the wall") and the bomber pilot ("And me I know just where you are, you see I'm a bomber man").
The B-sides were "Blue Eyes", which harked back to the fast-paced punk style of "That's Too Bad", and "O.D. Receiver", a slower piece whose lyrics reflected a Burroughsian world of drug addiction. All tracks on the original vinyl single were credited to 'Valerian', the name that Numan (born Gary Webb) had chosen for himself prior to Tubeway Army's debut; these would be his last releases using that nom de plume, henceforward he would call himself Gary Numan.
Versions
"Bombers" exists in three official versions. In order of recording these are:
- The original version recorded 7-9 March 1978 at Spaceward Studios and issued in October 1984 on an album of previously-unreleased recordings from the same sessions called The Plan. These sessions featured Gary Numan, Paul Gardiner, and Jess Lidyard on drums.
- The single version recorded on 15 April 1978 and released in July the same year. This featured a short-lived band line-up of Numan, Gardiner, Barry Benn and Sean Burke.
- A live version recorded 28 September 1979 and released on the B-side of the single "Complex" later that year. This arrangement differed from the earlier recordings, featuring a Roland CR-78 drum machine, violin and synthesizer, along with guitar, bass and conventional percussion (predominently tom-toms). The track was later released on an expanded version of Numan's live album Living Ornaments '79, where it appeared as the first of three songs utilising the same CR-78 preset drum pattern, the others being "Remember I Was Vapour" and "On Broadway".
Track listing
- "Bombers" (Numan) - 3:52
- "Blue Eyes" (Numan) - 1:43
- "O.D. Receiver" (Numan) - 2:37
Production credits
- Producers:
- Kenny Denton
- Musicians:
- Gary Numan: Vocals, Guitar
- Paul Gardiner: Bass guitar
- Barry Benn: Drums
- Sean Burke: Guitar
Notes
- ^ Steve Malins (1998). Tubeway Army: CD liner notes.