Bomber Motorhead: The Song Behind the Legendary Stage Rig
Bomber Motorhead is the song that gave the band their most spectacular stage prop.
Motorhead released it as a single in November 1979, the title track of their third studio album.
The song’s name later became a 40-foot lighting rig that swooped over the crowd at every show.
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📋 Table of Contents [+]
⚡ Key Takeaways
- This Motorhead title track was released as a single in November 1979 from the album of the same name.
- Eddie Clarke, Lemmy Kilmister, and Phil Taylor wrote the song, inspired by Len Deighton’s novel Bomber about a World War II raid.
- The single peaked at number 34 on the UK Singles Chart, while the album reached number 12 and went Silver.
- Illustrator Adrian Chesterman designed the album cover in about a week, painting the band into a Heinkel 111 bomber.
- The band’s 40-foot stage rig, modeled on that same plane, became one of rock’s most famous lighting props.
What Is Bomber Motorhead About?
The song is about a World War II bombing raid gone wrong, not about war in general.
Lemmy said he was reading Len Deighton’s novel Bomber when he wrote the lyrics.
The book follows a raid where British bombers hit the wrong German town, and Lemmy built the song around that chaos.
The track marked his first attempt at writing directly about warfare.
Who Wrote Bomber Motorhead?
Eddie Clarke, Lemmy Kilmister, and Phil Taylor wrote the song together in 1979.
Lemmy handled bass and vocals, Clarke played guitar, and Taylor drove the rhythm on drums.
Producer Jimmy Miller, known for his earlier work with the Rolling Stones, produced the recording.
The band recorded the track at Roundhouse Studios and Olympic Studios between July and August 1979.
Eddie Clarke co-wrote Bomber and later called his album cover portrait a bit too soft for his liking.
Image Credit: Photo by Andrew King, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Where Was Bomber Recorded?
The song was recorded at Roundhouse Studios and Olympic Studios in London.
Sessions ran from 7 July to 31 August 1979, fast even by the band’s own standards.
Bronze Records released the single with the first 20,000 copies pressed on blue vinyl.
The B-side was the non-album track Over the Top, later added to reissues of the album.
How High Did Bomber Motorhead Chart?
Bomber Motorhead peaked at number 34 on the UK Singles Chart in 1979.
The parent album performed better, reaching number 12 on the UK Albums Chart.
That chart run earned the album a Silver certification in the United Kingdom for sales above 60,000 copies.
Critics still rank it among the band’s strongest records, with AllMusic calling it one of their all-time best.
The album arrived the same year as Overkill, giving Motorhead two classic records within twelve months of each other.
What Is the Story Behind the Album Cover?
Illustrator Adrian Chesterman designed the cover in about a week after getting the assignment on a Friday.
The artwork shows a German Heinkel 111 bomber from World War II, with the three band members’ faces painted into the gunner positions.
Chesterman built a scale model of the plane, sprayed it black, and photographed it to get the lighting and reflections right.
Eddie Clarke was reportedly unhappy with his portrait, feeling the artist gave him hair that looked too soft for his taste, according to Loudersound.
Why Is the Bomber Stage Rig So Famous?
The Bomber Motorhead stage rig is famous because it turned the album cover into working stage machinery.
Crews built a 40-foot replica Heinkel that swooped over the crowd, its guns lighting up as it moved.
The rig was the first of its kind able to move forward, backward, and side to side during a live show.
Motorhead used updated versions of the rig for decades, right through the band’s final tour in 2015.
The band carried that same larger than life energy forward a year later into Ace of Spades, the album that made them legends.
Has the Rig Ever Gone Wrong?
The rig has gone wrong more than once during Motorhead’s touring history.
At Nottingham Royal Theatre, Lemmy got stuck riding inside it after his microphone cable tangled as the rig lifted.
Drummer Mikkey Dee had a far more dangerous moment at Hammersmith in 1992, when his hydraulic riser rose several feet higher than the crew expected and the descending rig nearly crushed him.
At a separate Wembley Arena show, Dee was left suspended around 20 meters in the air after the rig malfunctioned mid performance.
Read the complete lineup history of the members of Motorhead who lived through those close calls on tour.
People Also Ask
What is Bomber by Motorhead about?
Bomber is a song inspired by Len Deighton’s novel of the same name, about a World War II bombing raid where British planes hit the wrong German town, and Lemmy Kilmister used that chaos as the basis for the lyrics.
The track marked his first song written directly about warfare.
Who wrote the song?
Eddie Clarke, Lemmy Kilmister, and Phil Taylor wrote this 1979 Motorhead single together, with producer Jimmy Miller, previously known for his work with the Rolling Stones, recording it at Roundhouse and Olympic Studios that summer.
How high did Bomber chart?
The single peaked at number 34 on the UK Singles Chart in 1979, while the parent album reached number 12 on the UK Albums Chart and earned a Silver certification.
Who designed the Bomber album cover?
Illustrator Adrian Chesterman designed the cover in about a week, painting the band’s faces into the gunner positions of a German Heinkel 111 bomber built from a scale model he photographed for accurate lighting.
Why has the Bomber stage rig malfunctioned?
The stage rig has malfunctioned in at least two documented incidents, including a 1992 Hammersmith show where drummer Mikkey Dee’s hydraulic riser rose higher than expected and the descending rig nearly crushed him.
A separate malfunction left Dee suspended around 20 meters in the air during a Wembley Arena performance.
Watch the Official Bomber Motorhead Video
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Bomber
1979, 50th Anniversary Edition
The album that inspired rock’s most famous lighting rig.
Silver certified in the United Kingdom.
Overkill
1979, 2 CD Edition
The album that came earlier the same year.
Gave the band their first Top 40 single.
Ace of Spades
1980, 50th Anniversary 2 CD Edition
The album that turned this momentum into legend status.
Motorhead’s most famous record.
No Sleep ’til Hammersmith
1981, 40th Anniversary Deluxe Edition
Hear the era that first flew the rig live.
Hit number 1 on the UK Albums Chart in 1981.
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Bomber gave Motorhead more than a hit single, it gave them a stage show nobody else could copy.
As of 2026, footage of the rig swooping over old concert crowds still circulates among fans online.
Bomber Motorhead remains proof that a song about a World War II bombing raid could turn into rock’s most dangerous piece of stage equipment.
Last updated: July 11, 2026