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Ironically, it has been a decade since the legendary band the Talking Heads have called it quits. Now, as we approach 2002, the Talking Heads have reached the pinnacle quarter century mark since their first recording 77, released in the appropriate year, to gain them eligibility for induction into the Rock and Hall of Fame. Highly regarded as the brightest of the new wave bands to emerge from the CBGB’s scene in New York, their influence has carried beyond their Northeast roots. They were one of the tightest groove/rock outfits of the 70’s and 80’s whose diverse sound incorporated the art rock of the Velvet Underground with a mix of world beats wrapped around a tight bass line that can make a listener dance and think at the same time. The rhythm section, the husband and wife team of Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz have ventured their groove to new territories with the Tom Tom Club. Guitarist Jerry Harrison has become producer extraordinaire for groups such as Live, Big Head Todd, and the Foo Fighters. However, their fearless leader David Byrne has been keeping himself involved in a smorgasbord of creative outlets. As an actor, solo musician, movie director, host of the PBS program “Sessions” and the writer of musical scores for the productions of “The Last Emperor” and “The Catherine Wheel,” he is quite the “Renaissance Man.” He has been touring North America the past 2 months in support of his latest solo recording, Look Into The Eyeball. This is simply a fantastic album, showing that Mr. Byrne has not slowed down a bit in the studio as he approaches his fiftieth birthday. More surprisingly, he hasn’t missed a step on stage either.
The show at Le Spectrum in Montreal had a mix of both the old and young in attendance witnessing this legend, considered by many to be an icon. Byrne wore a hip gas mechanic shirt with his name patched proudly on his chest. Joking later in the show, he mentioned, "we are really a race team, but we just drive a bit slow." This was one of the many one-liners that had the crowd either laughing or scratching their head. Byrne didn’t appear to be the tight and neurotic character we have known him to be from the old MTV video days. Despite his gray hair, this man was no Bob Barker, as his radiant energy stimulated the packed crowd. David Byrne is no stiff on stage either. One can tell, he truly takes good care of himself and lives a clean holistic lifestyle. I’ll bet he wasn’t pounding the typical rock star mix of booze and pills but instead an assortment of herbal teas. Whatever works, because the most surprising part of his performance is that Byrne’s vocals were absolutely perfect, as his voice has aged like wine. Honestly, his voice flowed smoother than many vocalists half his age, as today’s nauseating boy bands should take note.
Byrne was backed by a solid drummer, a spectacular percussionist, and a talented bass player who proved that the classic Talking Heads songs can stand the test of time in a live setting, and that the new songs can keep you grooving through unfamiliar territory.
The show started with a new song off the latest release called “The Revolution” a simple but powerful lullaby sounding number, which gave the opening of the show an intimate touch. The band followed with a powerful “Nothing But The Flowers” from the 1988 Talking Heads release Naked. This tune was so powerful, that Byrne broke one of his guitar strings. There was a real personal feel to the show, as each song carried a small introduction along with some witty commentary. Is there a “VH1 Story Tellers” in the near future? The next tune called “Buck Naked” carried a somber introduction by Byrne explaining how it was written for his daughter who was having a tough time dealing with her aunt’s battle with AIDS. In paradox fashion, the song had a happy playful beat to coincide with the giggly chorus theme. At this point, the largest crowd reaction followed as the band broke into the Talking Head’s mid 1980’s hit “And She Was.” Byrne explained he wrote this one about a girl he hung out with once on LSD. The familiar “Hey Hey, Hey Hey, Heys,” from the song were ringing about in harmony from both the man on stage and the crowd. The tune moved right into the bass line of “Once in A Lifetime.” Byrne was now a man on a mission, making faces and pantomime like gestures. After all these years, the song still appears fresh as he stood center stage releasing the self-analytical lyrics. It was rather eerie standing right in front of this legend, singing the words to such a landmark song. Best of all, the bass player sang the backup vocals during the chorus, and you still couldn’t quite understand the words just as in the original recording from, Remain In Light. Like he said, "Same as it ever was."
After a few more tunes from the Byrne solo catalog, a 6 piece string section composed of young musicians from Austin, TX joined the stage to give the band a bigger kick. As soon as you thought you’ve seen it all, the show got better. As the strings began a familiar riff in synchrony, Byrne began to do his herky-jerky dance around the stage behind the drummer and they kicked into the classic, “This Must Be The Place (Native Melody).” This was played both beautifully and brilliantly with Byrne hitting the feel good high notes of this spiritual Talking Heads tune. Cleary, Byrne had found his place. Another feel good song from the Bryne score off the Broadway production the “Catherine Wheel” followed, called “What A Day That Was” that had the crowd bobbing and moving in step. The next tune carried a heavy Latin dance beat that kept the crowd grooving as hard as it did all night, called “Desconcido Soy.” Byrne was swinging back and forth rhythmically and belting the lyrics with authority. Obviously, this was one of the stronger new songs from Look Into The Eyeball. Another catchy new song with radio potential is “Like Humans Do.” The vocals were sung mellifluously, complementing the playful and funky music in harmony. Byrne introduced the final song as, “one my mother used to sing to me as a child.” As the audience pondered what to expect, the band jumped into a remake of the Whitney Houston 80’s hit, “I Wanna Dance With Somebody.” Once again, Byrne had the crowd thinking and dancing simultaneously.
For the first encore the song was introduced as “one that has never been more inappropriate but appropriate at this current time.” The band launched into the Talking Heads classic “Life During Wartime.” Hearing this tune with a string section adds musical jam possibilities, as the song could have stretched beyond 10 minutes with the added string layers. The lyrics were so clear and have never rang so true in light of what the world has seen the past 2 weeks, as Byrne reassured us, “this aint no fooling around.” After the first encore, two more songs, “The Other Side Of Life” and “The Accident” based more around their lyrical depth kept the crowd clapping for more. Would there be a third encore? Sure enough, Byrne had room for one more and said, “We are going to try something we haven’t tried before.” With the help of the exotic and beautiful female lead singer of the opening band Si*Se, the band concluded the show with the Talking Heads favorite, “Slippery People.” We may never see the Talking Heads perform live again, but seeing David Byrne on stage certainly is the real thing.
Shane Handler
Burlington,VT
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