‘No Talking Just Head’: the Debbie Harry song that hinted at the greatest CBGB what could’ve been
You could tell the Talking Heads were really at the end of their tether in the mid-1990s when the instrumentalists got together and released an album without David Byrne, brutally titled No Talking, Just Head.
It was almost like saying, ‘Get the ego out of the way, the real musicians are here to show you how it’s done.’ That was a great idea in theory, but the album wasn’t exactly a major commercial success. Its only saving grace was an inspired collaboration with Debbie Harry.
The whole notion of the two biggest bands of their generation spearheading into one supergroup may seem like a fever dream, but it’s worth remembering that both the Talking Heads and Blondie actually go way back. As some of the most blazing exports to have entered the doors of CBGB in New York and emerged as bona fide rock stars ready to take over the world, there was an intrinsic connection that bound their respective careers together, no matter the different trajectories they ended up on.
As such, by the time they reached 1996, each with their fair share of mega hits and splintered relationships under their belt, it was almost like a more opportune moment than ever to finally get back into each other’s orbit and pay homage to their roots. The result was the album’s titular track, ‘No Talking, Just Head’: a song which channelled a darker hint of the disco and new wave trends on which both bands made their names.
Complete with plenty of crashing sound effects and, of course, a tinny synth, in many ways it’s exactly what you’d expect any kind of Talking Heads and Blondie collaboration to sound like. But in turn, this also opens up a whole myriad of questions – could they have taken this further? What would it have turned into? And, more importantly, should Harry have joined the Talking Heads?
As preposterous as the concept may seem, it was once an idea with the possibility of happening, naturally back in the heyday of CBGB. It was before the Talking Heads were the household name that everyone knew, and drummer Chris Frantz was in search of a singer. Of course, it didn’t take much thought to approach the blonde bombshell of the club, who dryly turned down the offer by saying, “Well, I already have a band, but you can buy me a drink.”
Thus, even though a Blondie and Talking Heads collaboration almost seemed like the first joining together of the rock Avengers, the possibility in the pipeline had really been a long time coming. Although ‘No Talking, Just Head’ never became a seismic hit, its brooding darkness, naturally doused with a dose of punk and an ode to the new wave for good measure, could have facilitated the greatest rock band crossover of all time. Instead, we’re left to dream.
Of course, you can never say never. The Talking Heads seemed to have ruled out any chances of a future reunion, but this doesn’t mean they couldn’t technically be swayed if their old CBGB cronies were to give them a call. But you’d also have the matter of putting Byrne back into the mix, somehow. At the time of their fallout, the rest of the band may have stated that they were interested in No Talking, Just Head, but the reality is, with Harry in tow or not, there is no band without him.
