🔘 Wild Is The Wind – Single: Nov. 1981

Released: November 13, 1981 (UK)

Label: RCA Records

Catalogue Numbers: BOW 10 (12") / PB 9815 (7")

Formats: 7" Vinyl Single / 12" Vinyl Single

A late‑’81 reissue spotlighting Bowie’s powerful, atmospheric performance of Wild Is The Wind — backed with Golden Years.

Issued by RCA to promote the Changestwobowie compilation, the single reintroduced one of Bowie’s most celebrated vocal interpretations.

🔘 Overview

Wild Is The Wind was released on November 13, 1981 as a standalone single drawn from Bowie’s 1976 album Station to Station. The track, originally recorded as a dramatic, slow‑burning reinterpretation of the 1957 standard, showcased Bowie’s extraordinary vocal control and emotional depth.

RCA issued the single in both 7" and 12" formats to support the Changestwobowie compilation. The B‑side, Golden Years, reinforced the Station to Station connection and added commercial appeal. The release arrived in a distinctive picture sleeve and became a key Bowie reissue of the early ’80s.

🔘 Track List (Common Configurations)

7" Vinyl — PB 9815

A. Wild Is The Wind

B. Golden Years

12" Vinyl — BOW 10

A. Wild Is The Wind (Long Version)

B. Golden Years

Written by: Dimitri Tiomkin, Ned Washington

Produced by: David Bowie, Harry Maslin

🔘 Release Details

Label: RCA Records

Formats: 7" Vinyl / 12" Vinyl

Country: UK

Year: 1981

Notes:

- Issued to promote Changestwobowie

- Drawn from Station to Station (1976)

- B‑side Golden Years from the same era

- Released in picture sleeve

🔘 Variants (Discogs‑Verified)

Variant 1

UK – RCA – PB 9815 (1981)

Format: 7" Vinyl (Paper Label)

Variant 2

UK – RCA – BOW 10 (1981)

Format: 12" Vinyl

Variant 3

UK – RCA – PB 9815 (Injection‑moulded label, select pressings)

🔘 Chart Data (BBC / Official Charts Company)

Peak Position: UK — No. 24

Weeks on Chart: 8

Chart Run (Official Charts):

22 Nov 1981 — No. 35

29 Nov 1981 — No. 29

06 Dec 1981 — No. 24

13 Dec 1981 — No. 27

20 Dec 1981 — No. 33

27 Dec 1981 — No. 41

03 Jan 1982 — No. 52

10 Jan 1982 — No. 69

🔘 Context & Notes

Recording Notes

Bowie’s 1976 recording is widely regarded as one of his greatest vocal performances — intimate, controlled, and emotionally expansive.

Collector Notes

12" BOW 10 pressings are especially prized. Clean picture sleeves for both formats remain highly collectible.

Legacy

A haunting, elegant Bowie classic — revived in 1981 to highlight his interpretive brilliance.

🔘 Related Material

Previous Single

Under Pressure (with Queen) — 1981

Next Single

Cat People (Putting Out Fire) — 1982

🔘 Discography (Selected, Chronological)

Wild Is The Wind — 1976

Golden Years — 1975

Wild Is The Wind (Reissue) — 1981

🔘 Mini‑Timeline

1976 — Original recording released on Station to Station

Nov. 13, 1981 — UK reissue released

Late 1981 — Peaks at UK No. 24

🔘 Glam Flashback

A spellbinding Bowie vocal — intimate, cinematic, and timeless.

🔘 Sources

RCA Records

Discogs

Official Charts Company

Bowie archival documentation