The Next Day  by David Bowie

On January 8, 2013, on David Bowie's 66th birthday, the single Where Are We Now? was released without any prior notice, which would prove to be the precursor to this great British artist's twenty-fifth studio album. He had not released any new work since the Reality album in 2003. Ten years later, specifically in March 2013, the album The Next Day was released. The album cover was an idea by graphic designer Jonathan Barnbrook, who took the cover of "Heroes," crossed out the title with a line, and covered David Bowie's face with a sticker that read "The Next Day" (!)

David Bowie, having faced very serious health problems in 2004, had implied that he had retired from active work. However, in 2010 he had come to an agreement with his old friend and collaborator, producer Toni Visconti, and with the help of guitarist Gerry Leonard and drummer Sterling Campbell, secretly prepared some demos in a studio in Manhattan. David Bowie worked on these demos, and from May 2011 until October 2012, under utmost secrecy, many songs were recorded, fourteen of which would constitute The Next Day.

The Next Day was immediately received with great enthusiasm by the public and critics. Many spoke of Bowie's best album in decades. The album reached the highest positions in charts from Argentina to Canada and from Great Britain to New Zealand.