This was the first album with Talking Heads I ever heard, I was 11 years old when it was released. Since my brother got the album the year of its release (I think) I got to explore this band at a relatively young age. Speaking In Tounges spun quite often on the turntable in our home, or rather - the tape rolled in the tape recorder, since at that time we usually recorded all of our albums on tape, " so not to wear out the record." So I was quite familiar with this album already as a child, an album I liked.
The album in my possession is a limited edition that was released in 50 000 copies. The disc is made of transparent vinyl and is inside a transparent sleeve, designed by Robert Rauschenberg. Inside the sleeve there are three round plastic discs, in three different colors, with text / photos on them. Robert won a nice prize for this design, a Grammy, indeed. The original sleeve looks like this, designed by the singer David Byrne:
As said, it was my brother who bought the album, but over the years it has somehow wandered over to my collection. Exactly how this happened I don’t remember, maybe I cleaned his room one extra time? Or was it a panic gift on a forgotten birthday? It could of course have been out of pure kindness, too. Unfortunately, the sleeve was bit too wide to fit in the record shelf. To solve this dilemma my brother cut it the to make it smaller. Almost 30 years later, with greater wisdom, we understand that this was probably not a great idea.
The collaboration with Brian Eno was at this time over and the band produced the record themselves. Apparently it was a successful move, the previous album Remain In Light had caught attention and been praised, but Speaking In Tounges became the band's commercial breakthrough. The hit Burning Down The House (which some might associate with Tom Jones) got on the US top-10 list, and the album got a second position on the dance chart for six weeks.
And it is a danceable record, full of groovy rhythms that are easy to jazz along to. Although there were lots of musicians involved in the recording, it's a pretty light and spacious soundscape. Some songs have similarities to the songs on Remain In Light’s A-side, but with all the layers of sound peeled away. I wouldn’t go so far as to call it a minimalistic production, but at least a step in that direction. I often find myself sitting and grooving with the music when I play it, and I realize once again such a good record it actually is.
As always, the band succeed with the trick to find a new sound with a new album. And still it sounds just like you would expect Talking Heads to sound like. Byrne’s somewhat peculiar voice is a common thread through all of the band's recordings, which create a recognition. A consequence of his voice is that I experience the songs as a bit neurotic. Beacause Byrne has a semi-neurotic voice, it’s just the way it is. So even though it’s a rhythmic and dance-friendly album, I wouldn’t call it cheerful and happy music. Not unhappy either. Perhaps intellectual pop with a neurotic twist.
It’s in any case a really good album without any real lows. The quality of the songs are high throughout, and the music is quite accessible without being commercially tailored. Talking Heads (possibly read David Byrne) are good musical craftsmen, they create interesting pieces, not too simple, you can still dance to. One of my favorite songs has always been the closing song This Must be The Place (Naive Melody). A fine and unusually fragile creation to be Talking Heads.
Tracklist
Side A
1. Burning Down The House 4:00
2. Making Flippy Floppy 4:36
3. Girlfriend Is Better 4:25
4. Slippery People 3:30
5. I Get Wild/Wild Gravity 4:06
Side B
1. Swamp 5:09
2. Moon Rocks 5:04
3. Pull Up The Roots 5:08
4. This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody) 4:56
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