Richard Page of Mr. Mister didn’t think Broken Wings would ever be a hit. They thought the song was too long. And it was too personal. You see, Broken Wings is about the band’s recovery from cocaine addiction as they learned to “fly again.” Many musicians at the time considered cocaine to be a harmless creative muse. Even Sigmund Freud used it. But cocaine derailed Richard Page and the rest of the band for several years. During their time of recovery, Page had a bass line he was working on. Page’s cousin and collaborator, John Lang, was reading the book Broken Wings by Kahlil Gibran, author of The Prophet. John was fused was inspired by the tune and brought in ideas from the book. And the song took flight.
Richard Page of Mr. Mister didn’t think Broken Wings would ever be a hit. They thought the song was too long. And it was too personal. You see, Broken Wings is about the band’s recovery from cocaine addiction as they learned to “fly again.” Many musicians at the time considered cocaine to be a harmless creative muse. Even Sigmund Freud used it. But cocaine derailed Richard Page and the rest of the band for several years. During their time of recovery, Page had a bass line he was working on. Page’s cousin and collaborator, John Lang, was reading the book Broken Wings by Kahlil Gibran, author of The Prophet. John was fused was inspired by the tune and brought in ideas from the book. And the song took flight.