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David Byrne: The 60 Minutes Interview

Bob Dylan recently released a new art of songwriting book/collection of essays, The Philosophy Of Modern Song, and he doesn’t always speak flatteringly about some fellow musicians within its pages. Drummer Chris Frantz of Talking Heads in particular felt taken aback by Dylan’s second essay, on Elvis Costello’s “Pump It Up,” which said: “Elvis Costello And The Attractions were a better band than any of their contemporaries. Light years better.” Apparently Frantz really did not appreciate Dylan’s total disregard of “any of their contemporaries,” which includes fellow new wavers Talking Heads. “I love Bob Dylan’s new book The Philosophy Of...

Talking Heads' "Once in a Lifetime," from the 1980 album Remain in Light

Tom Tom Club posed a peculiar question on their 1981 debut album, then offered their answer: "What you gonna do when you get out of jail? I'm gonna have some fun." Decades later, the bouncy, reggae-tinged riff and lulling female harmonies of "Genius of Love" can still be heard scattered throughout popular culture. A side project created by Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth, Tom Tom Club was initially meant to keep the Talking Heads members busy while David Byrne and Jerry Harrison worked on solo endeavors. The husband-wife duo was, at first, at a loss when an accountant warned them...

Billionaire NBA team owner Mark Cuban clashed with Megyn Kelly during a Monday interview on her podcast over questions related to the NBA’s willingness to do business with China despite the country’s human rights abuses, telling her it is not “the only one” to engage in such violations. Kelly began with a reference to the 2019 controversy inspired by Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey, who wrote a message on Twitter in support of Hong Kong protesters. “Fight for Freedom. Stand with Hong Kong,” Morey wrote. “There was some guy who sent out one tweet,” Kelly noted. “All hell broke...

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...

I have been looking forward to this for weeks and all these idiots do is chatter about THEIR thoughts about everything with a video background of the defense talking with the audio OFF! I want to reach through the tv and choke these propaganda puppets. What kind of inflated egos do these puff heads have that they think their daily chatter is more important than the actual impeachment proceedings. Schiff has more air time today than Trumps lawyers. I AM PISSED AT FAUX.

As 2019 wound down, well-known press figures sounded alarms about the “erosion of truth.” MSNBC’s Chuck Todd spoke to our own Peter Wade about the “epidemic” of “disinformation.” Washington Post editor Marty Baron and New York Times editor Dean Baquet joined Todd on Meet The Press to talk about how the Internet and Donald Trump and Russia are all combining to create an era in which “crazy conspiracy theories” and “absolute falsehoods and lies” can proliferate. This isn’t a new idea. Since 2016 especially, a wide array of American politicians and think-tanks have been hammering the idea that the free...

"Life During Wartime" is a song by the American new wave band Talking Heads, released as the first single from their 1979 album Fear of Music. It peaked at #80 on the US Billboard Pop Singles Chart. Talking Heads - Life During Wartime

Is Ted Cruz likable enough?

"I've resisted the idea that Donald Trump could and would become the Republican nominee," writes GOP strategist Alex Castellanos in an email assessment of the presidential race. "Unhappily, I've changed my mind." Castellanos, who once said flatly that "Trump is not going to be the nominee," writes "the odds of Trump's success have increased and been validated in the past few weeks."

Quiet conversations have begun in recent weeks among some of the Republican Party’s biggest donors and normally competing factions, all aimed at a single question: How can we stop Donald Trump?

Guest lineups for the Sunday TV news shows: ABC's "This Week" — Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.; Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas; former Gov. Jeb Bush, R-Fla. ——— NBC's "Meet the Press" — Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew; Sens. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Tom Coburn, R-Okla. ——— CBS' "Face the Nation" — Sens. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Mark Warner, D-Va. ——— CNN's "State of the Union" — Cruz; Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. ——— "Fox News Sunday" — Sens. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., Dick Durbin, D-Ill., and Roy Blunt, R-Mo.

Demanding a change to the way business is done in Washington, President Barack Obama on Thursday urged lawmakers to ignore lobbyists, bloggers, "talking heads on radio" and "the professional activists who profit from conflict."

Conservative leaders allege the media are trying to ignore the once high-profile scandals overshadowing the Obama administration, as President Obama and his aides aggressively push the claim that these controversies are "phony." The "phony scandal" line was the unofficial talking point of the week in Washington. White House Press Secretary Jay Carney made it his fallback retort from the podium -- when asked about the president's new wave of speeches on the economy, Carney explained Obama was trying to refocus Washington away from "fake" controversies. For three speeches in a row, Obama hammered this refrain: "With this endless parade of...

From the movie "True Stories." Apologies for the forced commercial at the beginning of this YouTube excerpt.

The other day I received my weekly missive from WallStreetJournal columnist and former Reagan speechwriter Peggy Noonan,in which she informed me and the world that "the Romney campaign has to get turned around." She added helpfully,"This week I called it incompetent,but only because I was being polite. I really meant 'rolling calamity.'" The media loved this column and repeated it widely. Their goal is to depress the Republican vote. Noonan's goal,apparently,is to get attention. Noonan got a lot of it in October 2008, when she wrote the following giddy nonsense about Barack Obama: He has within him the possibility to...

David Byrne is suing the governor of Florida, alleging that he used the Talking Heads' 1985 single "Road to Nowhere" without permission or proper licenses. Byrne is seeking $1 million in damages from Gov. Charlie Crist, who's also Florida's former Attorney General, and his senatorial campaign for use of the song earlier this year in a website and YouTube ad attacking his then-Republican primary opponent, Marco Rubio. Crist has since changed his campaign and is running as an independent candidate. The suit (Case Number 8:10-CV1187-T26 (MAP)) was filed early Monday afternoon in the United States District Court for the Middle...

Crist used the talking heads' classic "Road to Nowhere" without permissionFirst, Gov. Charlie Crist was auctioned off on eBay by his former party. Now, he is being sued by an old rock band for using one of their songs without permission. Road to Nowhere Billboard.com is reporting David Byrne of the Talking Heads is going after Crist for $1 million because the governor used the song "Road to Nowhere" in an ad that targeted GOP Senate candidate Marco Rubio earlier this year. The lawsuit, filed in Tampa, claims Crist and his campaign should pay what other companies have offered to...

Around the time of CPAC or the comment Rush Limbaugh made about wanting Obama to fail, a youtube video was posted. It was a congressman or senator guest appearing on Fox News or CNN (???). He was dark haired, slim, good looking and really funny. I think he was also a rock and roll musician like Huckabee and Tony Snow. During the session, he defined the Republican party in these terms. Our liberty is from God not the Government. Our sovereignty is in our souls not the soil. Our security is through strength not surrender. Our prosperity is from the...