For many fans, David Bowie’s Low (1977) stands as the pinnacle of his recorded work. The first entry in his legendary Berlin Trilogy, the album saw Bowie and collaborator Brian Eno embark on a daring sonic odyssey, experimenting with new synthesizers and radical song structures.
The record’s A-side offered tight, fractured pop songs like Sound and Vision, Always Crashing in the Same Car, and Be My Wife. But it was the largely instrumental B-side that shocked listeners—an atmospheric, synth-driven landscape that felt like the future. Critics and RCA executives feared it was too avant-garde, with one insider even claiming the album “needed more work.” Still, Bowie pressed ahead.
Before recording Low, Bowie had produced Iggy Pop’s debut solo album, The Idiot. Dark, eerie, and gothic in tone, it featured Nightclubbing, Sister Midnight, and China Girl—songs that would influence Bowie’s own direction. By the summer of 1976, Bowie and Iggy had both relocated to Berlin, seeking to escape drug addictions and rebuild their lives. Living together in Schöneberg, they became inseparable. “He resurrected me,” Iggy later said of Bowie.
Although Low was recorded first, it was released in January 1977, two months before The Idiot. With Bowie avoiding promotion for his own record, he instead threw his energy into supporting Iggy’s comeback. He assembled a live band featuring guitarist Ricky Gardiner, the Sales brothers on bass and drums, and himself on keyboards. While Bowie remained deliberately in the shadows on stage, he served as musical director, shaping the performances.
The tour began in March 1977 at Friar’s Club in Aylesbury, England—ironically the same venue where Bowie first debuted Ziggy Stardust. Punk fans, eager to see their “Godfather,” turned out in droves, often spitting at the band in typical punk fashion. Despite the chaos, Iggy powered through, and the tour soon settled into a successful run across the UK, Canada, and the United States.
Meanwhile, Low quietly thrived without promotion. Lead single Sound and Vision climbed to number three in the UK charts, and the album itself matched that position, also reaching number 11 in the U.S.—a surprise to RCA, who had doubted it. Bowie’s audience was clearly willing to follow him into uncharted territory.
In a surreal moment, Bowie and Iggy even appeared on the family-friendly Dinah! show, performing Funtime and Sister Midnight—a bizarre but fitting example of Bowie’s refusal to be pigeonholed.
The creative burst continued. Bowie and Iggy soon returned to the studio for Lust for Life, featuring the anthems The Passenger and the title track. Bowie himself closed the year with “Heroes”, a masterpiece of his Berlin period and one of the defining songs of the decade.
Looking back, 1977 was a period of reinvention and rejuvenation. For Bowie, Low was a bold artistic leap that anticipated synth-pop. For Iggy, it was a second chance at stardom. And for both, their Berlin years remain a testament to friendship, risk-taking, and the relentless pursuit of new horizons.