Posted on 07/25/2020 7:44:31 AM PDT by Cecily
David Byrne overwhelms the image of Talking Heads. With his herky-jerky mannerisms, loopy persona and arch lyrics – not to mention his command of the songwriting credits through much of their catalogue – he eclipsed the efforts of every other member of the band. Yet according to a new memoir by Talking Heads’ co-founder and drummer, Chris Frantz, titled Remain in Love, Byrne’s dominant image wasn’t merely a by-product of a legitimately outsized talent, but a clear power grab, driven by ego, greed and a skewed mindset.
“It’s like he can’t help himself,” Frantz said in a phone interview. “His brain is wired in such a way that he doesn’t know where he ends and other people begin. He can’t imagine that anyone else would be important.”
(Excerpt) Read more at theguardian.com ...
I had arch lyrics once.
I also think the music scene changed/regressed as their creative output declined. Add to that an aging fanbase whom i assume bought less and less recordings. A 1-2-3 shot that is hard to recover from.
“Stop Making Sense” is an outstanding film.
I saw this band Halloween night 1977
I thought Jerry Harrison was the talented one.
In high school (early ‘80s), I knew a man who had managed a club in NYC, and he talked to me about some of the up and comers who had later made it. He had wrongly predicted that Deborah Harry would be dead of an OD before she hit 35. However, I had asked him if these crazy Punk and New Wave acts took themselves seriously, or if it was just schyick. He told me, in all seriousness, “it’s just schtick ... except for The Talking Heads.”
[While he used to come off as odd and distant, in the last two decades he has radiated nothing but warmth, positivity and charm. “He’s like Mr Rogers now,” Frantz said, with a laugh. “It’s true that his public image has changed. But friends of mine assure me that he hasn’t. I think he probably just decided that he could catch more bees with honey.”]
I will never understand why some folks called them punk, they were all art school types
Arch Stanton was on everybodies' mind years and years ago.
Remain in light was that lp and that was due t eno
Fear of Music is their best album, IMO.
So in other words, he's a typical Democrat. Got it.
The best lp
I liked Genius of Love, more than the usual group’s output.
That was such a fun, creative and musically tight piece of work. Incredibly unique. Just hearing that lead in guitar brings it all back even now. I’m sure David Byrne would turn his nose up at this piece, because he had no direct influence on it.
Very talented.
Same as it ever was
He was quite the introvert in real life. I still miss him a lot. The current crop of “comedians” is pathetic.
A lot of what’s called “art rock” or “proto-new-wave” today was called “punk rock” back then; the label didn’t stick to noisy dissonant guitar bands until the Ramones came on the scene. The New York Dolls were called “mock rock” back in the early 70s.
Genius of Love by Tom Tom Club was a great tune and a huge hit. So they did alright without Byrne. Off the top of my head I can’t think of any of his solo hit songs
I called the dolls glam rock
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