Too Late the Hero is the fifth solo studio album by English musician John Entwistle, released on 23 November 1981 by ATCO Records in the US, and by WEA in the UK. This was his only solo album of the 1980s and his last album to chart. The album peaked at No. 71 on the US Billboard 200, making it his best-selling album and his only album to reach the Top 100. "Talk Dirty" was the first single released from the album and it received some airplay in the US on album-oriented rock radio, peaking at No. 41 on the US Mainstream Rock Tracks chart. "Too Late the Hero" was the second single to be released from the album and it would be his only single to chart on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at No. 76. It also peaked at No. 101 on the US BillboardBubbling Under Hot 100 chart, making it his best-selling single all round. "Too Late the Hero" was the only single from the album that had a music video filmed for it. The album was recorded as a core trio of musicans that were Entwistle on bass guitar with Joe Walsh of the Eagles providing all guitar work and Walsh's former Barnstorm bandmate Joe Vitale on drums. Billy Nicholls also sang backing vocals on most of the tracks.
Cover
The album cover is an assemblage of photographs taken by Gered Mankowitz. It depicts Entwistle with an Alembic Explorer bass over grainy photos of him dressed as various heroes.
Composition
The album was Entwistle's first solo album in six years. "I had stopped writing because I thought I was going in the wrong direction with the 'shoo-bop, shoo-bop,' old rock & roll stuff on Rigor Mortis Sets In and Mad Dog. When I started writing again, I went back to the kind of material I was writing before those albums. "Until about two years ago, I tried to stay away from certain subjects. I was getting a feeling from everyone – from the fans right through my wife and family – that if you write about hookers, you must go to hookers, and if you write about drugs, you must take drugs. I got this reputation for sinister black humour after things like Whistle Rymes, when I was getting up at six in the morning to feed my son, Christopher, and then sitting down at the piano at seven to write songs about peeping Toms and suicide cases."
Recording
The album was recorded over a couple of years, during those infrequent months when both Entwistle and long-time friend Joe Walsh were free.
Critical reception
In the AllMusic review by Ben Davies, he praises the contributions of Joe Walsh on lead guitar and Joe Vitale on drums, but says that they were unable to save the album from being boring. The reviewer concedes that the combination of these musicians would have seemed, "Like something of a dream proposition back in the 1970s," making the album an even bigger disappointment.
Track listing
All songs written by John Entwistle.
Non-album track
Personnel
Credits are adapted from the Too Late the Hero liner notes.
