The poll has closed, and the winner is "This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody)" by the Talking Heads. Because the video for this song came from the epic film Stop Making Sense I figured I would honor the victor by posting a series of clips from this amazing concert movie. The first is a not-to-be missed video of David Byrne interviewing himself about the making of the film. It is a showcase of the intriguingly awkward, strange, brilliant character behind the Talking Heads success.
Stop Making Sense (1984) was directed by renowned film-maker Jonathan Demme, and was recorded during three nights of shows in 1983 at the Pantages Theater in Hollywood. The film was the first ever to be made using only digital audio techniques, and features the now iconic "big suit" and weird dance moves that helped reveal Byrne as a mad-genius of music. Byrne and Demme's expectations for the filming of the shows had dramatic impacts on the resulting product. Because Byrne wanted no color lights to be used to illuminate the performers, the lighting techniques for the movie are unusual. Rarely showing the audience, and keeping crowd noise at a minimum, was intended to allow the viewer to form their own opinion of the performances. Also, the film uses long camera shots instead of the quick-cut techniques, allowing viewers to see the full performance and stage interactions rather than zooming in on individual soloists/performers. Check out the four clips from the film below for yourself. Im particularly fond of minute 4:00 in both "This Must Be the Place" and "Once in a Lifetime"...
When I was about 13 my sister took me to see David Byrne live in Washington, D.C. It was 1994. I didn't know what I was getting into. I remember the psychadelic colors filtered through oils projected overhead, the off-putting voice, and quirky dance moves, the bleary red-eyed college students, unnaturally happy, swaying this way and that. I had no idea what was going on around me. I just knew it was something new, and I loved it. This music is timeless.
Byrne is still making great music. I recently got Everything That Happens Will Happen Today (2008) and really enjoy the two tracks Everything That Happens and Life is Long
Everything That Happens
Life is Long
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