Cutting their teeth on the vibrant, experimental New York art rock scene in the early 70’s, Talking Heads have gone on to become one of the world’s most loved bands. Any budding record collection would benefit from any ‘Heads albums, but the starting point has to be the seminal Remain In Light, a record that perfectly captures all facets of their unique sound.
Released on Sire Records in 1980 and produced by long-time collaborator and friend Brian Eno, Remain In Light is an incredible mix of hard hitting African grooves – inspired by the legendary Nigerian musician Fela Kuti – mesmeric electronic loops and full scale sonic assaults that once listened to will become so ingrained in the senses that it will become that ‘go to’ record for any occasion. Kicking off with the relentless rhythmic masterpiece ‘Born Under Punches (The Beat Goes On), a track that will have even the shyest of dance floor deniers up shaking some butt, this is an album that is both inventive and essential. “Crosseyed And Painless’ offers no respite whatsoever as it literally smashes its way free from the confines of your speakers whilst ‘The Great Curve’ is just magical with guest Nona Hendryx playing the perfect foil to Byrne’s random outpourings. On YouTube there is amazing live footage of Talking Heads from 1980 performing in Rome. They play all of Remain In Light on that tour and it’s truly mind blowing. That’s one of the things about Talking Heads, they manage to capture all the artistic strands – sound, visual, dance – in one beautifully conceived package.
Side two opens with the ‘hit’ single “Once In A Lifetime” which many will remember from the video of Byrne freak-dancing in a huge oversized suit. Trust me, it’s lost none of it’s playfulness or instant charm over the years.
There are moments on Remain In Light that you hear Eno’s influence in full, like the extraordinary ‘Seen And Not Seen,’ an otherworldly gem that seems to draw its driving pulse from some far off galaxy.
Some bands have their moment in the sun, one brilliant album amongst a sea of averageness. Talking Heads aren’t one of those bands. Talking Heads are a band whose output is all straight from the top drawer, a body of work that singles them out as one of the truly great bands of our lifetime.
Remain In Light is their zenith and deserves a place in any record collection. This is a piece of work that still sounds as free, frivolous, frenetic and fabulous as it did upon release nearly forty years ago. Breathtaking and brilliant.
Del Day and Danny Wilson run Union Music Store in Lansdown Place in Lewes specialising in new and pre-loved Vinyl, CDs and guitars.
unionmusicstore.com