Classic Bowie Track Set to Raise Awareness of Local Helensburgh ‘Heroes’ as Scots Community Bids for Chart Success

A Scottish community is readying itself to release a version of the classic David Bowie track 'Heroes', on 1st August 2009, which is the end product of six months hard work by over 100 local volunteer singers and musicians.

Glasgow, United Kingdom, July 16, 2009 --(PR.com)-- In an attempt to raise awareness for both the talented and inspirational people that have hailed from the Helensburgh area, and the need for permanent arts and leisure facilities, a group of local people hit upon the idea of creating a ‘Live Aid’ style community recording of the song.

The recording process commenced in January of this year, when over 70 Helensburgh people, aged seventy to eighty, congregated in a local hall to record the choral elements of the song, under the musical direction of Alan Craig, Head of Music at Langside College, Glasgow. The backing track having been recorded by Kenny Hyslop and his production team at Glasgow’s Carlton Studios, using local musicians. Kenny, a professional drummer with Scots bands such as SLIK and Simple Minds, was born in Helensburgh and was the project’s producer.

A team of 12 volunteer lead vocalists, who were coached and mentored by Kirsten Easdale, a professional singer and former member of Scottish folk band Calasaig, spent many hours rehearsing before laying down the final track for mixing and mastering.

The artwork for the single was created by 3 Helensburgh primary school pupils who won a local competition to design a cover for the project which attracted over 200 entries.

The project is now beginning to capture the public imagination, particularly amongst the Twitterati with many Bowie and Eno fan sites tweeting support, with it now featuring on the homepage of David Bowie’s official web site.

Phil Worms, the project’s Executive Producer, and a Director of Helensburgh Heroes, the Charity behind the project stated: “This record has been a real testament to the power of community and just demonstrates that when a focused and talented group of people work together anything is possible.”

Phil added: “What started out as a pretty crazy idea has snowballed into an extraordinary celebration of local creative talent. In a short space of time, we have formed a record company, which we hope will be of benefit to local musicians in the future, registered a new band, and recorded a video to accompany the single.”

“Given that this is Scotland’s Homecoming Year, it would an amazing achievement if we could dent the charts this summer, as this record innovatively captures both the creative spirit present within our community whilst at the same time recognising and promoting the achievements of the area’s ‘sons and daughters’ who have contributed so much to Scotland and society over the decades.”

A sample of the single and accompanying video can be found on the Helensburgh Heroes YouTube channel: www.youtube.com/helensburghheroes

The single will be premiered and released at a musical event in Helensburgh on 1st August. It will be available for download from usual online retailers. All proceeds will be used by the Helensburgh Heroes Charity to promote the arts within the area.

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Contact
Helensburgh Heroes
Phil Worms
+44 07906 008064
www.helensburghheroes.com
Twitter: twitter.com/helensburghhero
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