Ten Favorite Debut Albums: Talking Heads: 77 (#9)

@FourWalls (61308)
United States
April 23, 2017 6:18pm CST
After I mentioned something about a great debut album I thought I'd count down my favorite debut albums. Most of these aren't any surprise at all, as I still crow about these people. Here's the next album on the list. #9: Talking Heads: 77 - Talking Heads I got this album after More Songs About Buildings and Food, which had Talking Heads' first top 40 hit, "Take Me to the River," on it. Doesn't matter the order, as long as I got it! Lumped -- unfairly -- in the "punk" scene because they played at CBGB's (which, if you didn't know, stood for "Country, Blue Grass, & Blues" -- not exactly Patti Smith and Ramones music! ), 77 did have a "punk" song of sorts included: the classic "Psycho Killer." Other than that, this was great music that was a little funky, a little pop, and a little rock backing lyrics that distilled complexities way the heck down ("I'm writing 'bout the book I read, I have to sing about the book I read"...not the greatest review you'll ever hear of a book, but the song is terrific!). That's always been the hallmark of front man/primary lyricist David Byrne: make the most simple things (such as an airplane flight in "The Big Country" from Buildings and Food) sound incredible. That's what makes Talking Heads so special to me. And that specialness was evident from the first album. Talking Heads: 77 Recorded by Talking Heads Produced by Tony Bongiovi, Lance Quinn, and Talking Heads Released on Sire Records, 1977 Favorite cuts: "Don't Worry About the Government," "Psycho Killer," "The Book I Read," "Pulled Up." Here's one of the most sarcastic songs about the government you'll ever hear:
Talking Heads live on the Old Grey Whistle Test in 1978
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@JohnRoberts (109865)
• Los Angeles, California
24 Apr 17
Quadruple thumbs up!!!
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@teamfreak16 (43451)
• Denver, Colorado
24 Apr 17
And oh, what a fantastic album it is! Too bad, despite their popularity, more people don't recognize what a great band these guys were.
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