1986 Top Ten Songs: Wild Wild Life (#9)

Tweet

Enjoy this. It’s the last rock hit on the list for 1986. And this wasn’t that big of a hit, but it did win MTV awards for the video, so at least you stood a chance of hearing it there. One of my favorite bands of the 80s, and of all time, steps into the spotlight today. #9: Wild Wild Life - Talking Heads Fun fact: Sam Kinison makes an appearance in it. Fun fact: the Prince impersonator in the video is Talking Heads guitarist/keyboardist Jerry Harrison. No kidding. Fun fact: the John Goodman impersonator in the video is….John Goodman. Goodman was in the movie True Stories, and he actually sang the song “People Like Us” in the movie. Anyway, while I love the stuffing out of the album, the cracks that were tearing Talking Heads apart can be seen quite clearly in retrospect. How they managed to stay together for one more album (which I didn’t really care for) is a surprise. Their split was UGLY. Bassist Tina Weymouth said their lawyer (it was three against one: Harrison, Weymouth, and drummer/Weymouth’s husband Chris Frantz against front man David Byrne) asked if she’d ever been divorced. She said no, and the lawyer said, “This is a divorce.” The fences were mended for the most part by the time Talking Heads was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, prompting Frantz to thank the Hall “for giving this band a happy ending.” They also appeared together, although never performing music, for the 40th anniversary release of Stop Making Sense, considered by many to be the best concert film ever made. “Like sitting on pins and needles,” indeed. Wild Wild Life Written by David Byrne Recorded by Talking Heads From True Stories, 1986 I’m wearing fur pajamas: