Five songs to make you fall in love with Talking Heads
Even though they’re still one of the most popular bands in the world, Talking Heads still seem somewhat overlooked in today’s landscape.
After all, when you look at the current climate, it doesn’t take long before you realise that what’s missing is a good dose of straight-up weirdness. Of course, there are smaller rising stars who are doing god’s work and stepping into similar shoes, but we’ve yet to experience anything quite as revolutionary as Talking Heads’ immaculate blend of eclectic world music and quirky performance styles.
Both of which were strengths the band carried from the very beginning. As Tina Weymouth once reflected, Talking Heads emerged during “rarefied times”, bringing together elements of European classical music and African-American sounds into mainstream spaces. It likely shouldn’t have worked, at least not on paper, but it did because they all shared a deep-rooted love for music and good grooves, despite their differences.
And there were many. After all, there’s a reason why David Byrne is still reflecting on his behaviour now, and also why the others described him as a “sly fox” who only ever did things transactionally. And it’s because he very much enjoyed taking the reins within the band, even after they’d become a more established new wave entity that didn’t need such hierarchies.
But even still, when those differences worked in their favour, they truly were one of the best bands in the world.
Five songs to make you fall in love with Talking Heads:
‘And She Was’
The great thing about any Talking Heads song is that it could be about literally anything. After all, ‘And She Was’ was written by David Byrne about a girl who would take LSD in a Baltimore field next to a drink factory. But anybody who heard it was none the wiser, thinking it was just some cutesy rock tune about having a good time.
This makes complete sense, though, when you consider how its upbeat rhythm and melody seem more to do with an exciting experience than anything specific about someone in particular. But that’s also what makes it so great: the song can mean anything you want it to mean, making it easy to place yourself into its weird and wonderful world.
‘Road to Nowhere’
One thing that Talking Heads always excelled at was taking things that were inherently negative or scary and making them seem less intimidating. On ‘Road to Nowhere’, Byrne looked at all the ‘tells’ of a society in the gutter and transformed them into a positive, and out came ‘Road to Nowhere’.
As the title suggests, ‘Road to Nowhere’ tackles that familiar malaise that comes with societal disillusionment, though frames it as something more oddly comforting. As Byrne said, “I wanted to write a song that presented a resigned, even joyful look at doom. At our deaths and at the apocalypse. I think it succeeded.”
‘Once in a Lifetime’
The gift that keeps on giving, ‘Once in a Lifetime’ seems to never go out of style, tackling the disorienting experience of existing in a world that keeps moving, filled with constant chatter, without giving you a second to catch up with yourself.
As Byrne once explained, the song isn’t necessarily about excess or anything like that, at least, not in the way that’s usually associated with rock in the 1980s. While this is a common interpretation, it’s actually about constantly facing different things day-to-day and operating on autopilot, while not stopping for a minute to ask yourself how you even got there in the first place.
‘Burning Down the House’
Although it’s no doubt one of their best songs on one of their best records, ‘Burning Down the House’ didn’t receive that much of a song and dance upon release. Over time, however, it became a modern classic, not just in popular culture but in the band’s broader legacy, capturing everything that was ever great about their sound and style.
It’s also one of those songs that makes you realise just how one-dimensional the current musical climate has become. During live performances, like in Stop Making Sense, the energy this song creates can be felt through the screen, serving as the ultimate reminder that groundbreaking, off-kilter music that truly tests boundaries will always to ignite a fire in anyone willing to listen.
‘This Must Be The Place’
“Home is where I want to be, pick me up and turn me round,” David Byrne sings at the start of ‘This Must Be the Place’. “I feel numb, born with a weak heart, I guess I must be having fun.” It might be somewhat tongue-in-cheek, but its lightheartedness feels more endearing than cliché, with Byrne capturing his signature spontaneity in any given situation.
This is also why it’s one of their best tracks. It’s warm, nostalgic, and gives off a sense of community, making it seem like it’s possible to discover a sense of home and belonging anywhere, even somewhere you don’t recognise. Maybe even especially then. As Byrne says, “The less we say about it, the better, make it up as we go along…”
