Talking Heads

Talking Heads (sometimes stylized as T∀LKINGHE∀DS) were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1975. It consisted of lead vocalist and guitarist David Byrne, drummer Chris Frantz, bassist Tina Weymouth, and guitarist and keyboardist Jerry Harrison. Described as one of the most acclaimed groups of the 1980s, Talking Heads helped to pioneer new wave music by combining elements of punk, art rock, funk, and world music with "an anxious yet clean-cut image". Byrne, Frantz, and Weymouth met as freshmen at the Rhode Island School of Design, where Byrne and Frantz were part of a band called the Artistics. The trio moved to New York City in 1975, adopted the name Talking Heads, joined the New York punk scene, and recruited Harrison. They signed to Sire Records in 1976 and released their debut album, Talking Heads: 77, the following year to positive reviews. They collaborated with the British producer Brian Eno on the acclaimed albums More Songs About Buildings and Food (1978), Fear of Music (1979), and Remain in Light (1980), which blended their art school sensibilities with influence from artists such as Parliament-Funkadelic and Fela Kuti. From the early 1980s, they included additional musicians in their recording sessions and shows, including guitarist Adrian Belew, keyboardist Bernie Worrell, singer Nona Hendryx, and bassist Busta Jones. Talking Heads reached their commercial peak in 1983 with the U.S. Top 10 hit "Burning Down the House" from the album Speaking in Tongues. In 1984, they released the concert film Stop Making Sense, directed by Jonathan Demme. For these performances, they were joined by Worrell, guitarist Alex Weir, percussionist Steve Scales, and singers Lynn Mabry and Ednah Holt. In 1985, Talking Heads released their best-selling album, Little Creatures. They produced a soundtrack album for Byrne's film True Stories (1986), and released their final album, the worldbeat-influenced Naked (1988). Byrne left the band in 1991, and for a time the other band members performed under the name Shrunken Heads. They went on to release the album No Talking, Just Head (1996) as the Heads, featuring various singers, before what remained of the band disbanded permanently. Four Talking Heads albums appeared on Rolling Stone's 2003 list of the "500 Greatest Albums of All Time", and "Psycho Killer", "Life During Wartime", and "Once in a Lifetime" were included among the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll. The band was also ranked number 64 on VH1's list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time". In the 2011 update of Rolling Stone's list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time", they were ranked number 100.