Fear of Music
Fear of Music | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | August 3, 1979 | |||
Recorded | April 22–May 6, 1979[1] | |||
Studio |
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Genre | ||||
Length | 40:40 | |||
Label | Sire | |||
Producer | Brian Eno, Talking Heads | |||
Talking Heads chronology | ||||
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Singles from Fear of Music | ||||
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Fear of Music is the third studio album by American new wave band Talking Heads, released on August 3, 1979, by Sire Records. It was recorded at locations in New York City during April and May 1979 and was produced by Brian Eno and Talking Heads. The album reached number 21 on the Billboard 200 and number 33 on the UK Albums Chart. It spawned the singles "Life During Wartime", "I Zimbra", and "Cities".
Fear of Music received favorable reviews from critics. Praise centered on its unconventional rhythms and
Background
Talking Heads' second album
Talking Heads entered a New York City studio without a producer in the spring of 1979 and rehearsed demo tracks.[8] Musically, the band wanted to expand on the "subtly disguised" disco rhythms present in More Songs About Buildings and Food by making them more prominent in the mixes of new songs.[7] These recording plans were shelved after the quartet was not pleased with the results. A decision was then taken to rehearse in drummer Chris Frantz and bassist Tina Weymouth's loft in Long Island City, Queens, where the band members had played while unsigned in the mid-1970s. Brian Eno, who had produced More Songs About Buildings and Food, was called in to help.[8]
Recording and production
On April 22 and May 6, 1979, a
Weymouth later stated that Byrne's sense of rhythm is "insane but fantastic" and that he was key to the band's recording drive during the home sessions.[7] As songs evolved, the performances became easier for the band members.[8] Eno was instrumental in shaping both their sound and recording confidence, and worked on electronic treatments of tracks.[9][10]
Composition
Fear of Music is largely built on an eclectic mix of disco rhythms, cinematic soundscapes, and conventional rock music elements.[citation needed]
Byrne credits the inspiration for the album, especially "Life During Wartime", to life on Avenue A in the East Village.[11] Instead of incorporating characters in society, as he did on More Songs About Buildings and Food, Byrne decided to place them alone in dystopian situations.[4] Weymouth was initially skeptical of Byrne's new compositions, but the frontman managed to persuade her.[8]
Album opener "
"
Artwork
The LP sleeve was designed by Harrison. It is completely black and
Promotion and release
After completing Fear of Music, Talking Heads embarked on their first Pacific region tour in June 1979 and played concerts in New Zealand, Australia, Japan, and Hawaii. The album was released worldwide on August 3.[17]
A U.S. tour to showcase the new material was completed during August 1979.
Reception
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
Consequence of Sound | A+[22] |
The Irish Times | [23] |
Mojo | [24] |
Pitchfork | 10/10[25] |
The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [26] |
Spin Alternative Record Guide | 9/10[27] |
Uncut | 9/10[28] |
Critical
The album was well received by reviewers.
In retrospective reviews, AllMusic's William Ruhlmann felt that Fear of Music was "an uneven, transitional album", but nonetheless stated that it includes songs that match the quality of the band's best works.[19] In the 1995 Spin Alternative Record Guide, Jeff Salamon called it Talking Heads' most musically varied offering.[27] In a 2003 review, Chris Smith of Stylus Magazine praised Byrne's personas and Eno's stylized production techniques.[35] In The Rough Guide to Rock published the same year, Andy Smith concluded that the album is a strong candidate for the best LP of the 1970s because it is "bristling with hooks, riffs and killer lines".[36]
Commercial
Fear of Music was certified
Accolades
Fear of Music was named as the best album of 1979 by NME,[38] Melody Maker,[39] and the Los Angeles Times.[40] The New York Times included it on its unnumbered shortlist of the 10 best records issued that year.[41] Sounds placed the album at number two on its "Best of 1979" staff list, behind the Specials' eponymous release.[42] It placed fourth in the 1979 Pazz & Jop critics' poll run by The Village Voice, which aggregates the votes of hundreds of prominent reviewers.[43]
In 1985, NME placed Fear of Music at number 68 on its writers' list of the "All Time 100 Albums".[44] In 1987, Rolling Stone placed it at number 94 on its list of the best albums of the previous 20 years.[45] In 1999, it was included at number 33 on The Guardian's list of the "Top 100 Albums That Don't Appear in All the Other Top 100 Albums of All Time".[46] In 2004, Pitchfork featured the record at number 31 on its "Top 100 Albums of the 1970s" list,[18] while in 2005, Channel 4 ranked it at number 76 during its "100 Greatest Albums" countdown.[47] The album was also included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.[48]
Track listing
All tracks are written by David Byrne, except where noted
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "I Zimbra" | Byrne, Brian Eno, Hugo Ball | 3:09 |
2. | "Mind" | 4:13 | |
3. | "Paper" | 2:39 | |
4. | "Cities" | 4:10 | |
5. | "Life During Wartime" | Byrne, Chris Frantz, Jerry Harrison, Tina Weymouth | 3:41 |
6. | "Memories Can't Wait" | Byrne, Harrison | 3:30 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "Air" | 3:34 | |
2. | "Heaven" | Byrne, Harrison | 4:01 |
3. | "Animals" | 3:30 | |
4. | "Electric Guitar" | 3:03 | |
5. | "Drugs" | Byrne, Eno | 5:10 |
- The original LP issue credited all songs to David Byrne, except "I Zimbra". After complaints from other band members, the credits were changed to the above on later CD issues.
- A limited edition UK LP included a live version of "Psycho Killer" and "New Feeling" from Talking Heads: 77 on a bonus 7-inch record.
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
12. | "Dancing for Money" (Unfinished outtake) | 2:42 | |
13. | "Life During Wartime" (Alternate version) | Byrne, Frantz, Harrison, Weymouth | 4:07 |
14. | "Cities" (Alternate version) | 5:30 | |
15. | "Mind" (Alternate version) | 4:26 |
- The remastered reissue was produced by Andy Zax, with the help of Talking Heads, and was mixed by Brian Kehew.
- The DVD portion of the European reissue contains videos of the band performing "I Zimbra" and "Cities" on German music show Rockpop in 1980.
Personnel
Those involved in the making of Fear of Music were:[10][49]
Talking Heads
Additional musicians
The birds on "Drugs" were recorded at Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, Brisbane, Australia
|
Technical
|
Charts
Chart (1979) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (Kent Music Report)[50] | 35 |
Canadian Albums (RPM)[51] | 27 |
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[52] | 11 |
UK Albums (OCC)[17] | 33 |
US Billboard 200[17] | 21 |
Chart (2020) | Peak position |
---|---|
Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[53] | 24 |
Certifications and sales
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI)[54] 2006 release |
Silver | 60,000‡ |
United States (RIAA)[55] | Gold | 500,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
Release history
Region | Year | Label | Format(s) | Catalog |
---|---|---|---|---|
United States and Canada | 1979 | Sire Records | LP, cassette | 6076[10] |
United Kingdom | ||||
Rest of Europe | WEA | 56707[56] | ||
United States and Canada | 1984 | Sire Records | CD | (2–)6076[19] |
Europe | ||||
United States and Canada | 2006 | Rhino Records
|
Expanded CD, digital download | 76451[19] |
Europe | Warner | 8122732992[49] | ||
Japan | 2009 | WPCR-13291 |
Footnotes
- ^ Fear of Music (CD release, back cover). Talking Heads. Sire Records. 1979.
- ^ Helmore, Edward (March 27, 2009). "Interview: 'The business is an exciting mess'". The Guardian. Retrieved July 8, 2022.
- ^ Reynolds, Simon (2005). Rip It Up and Start Again: Postpunk 1978-1984. Penguin. p. 163.
- ^ a b c Pareles, Jon (May 1982). "Talking Heads Talk". Mother Jones. p. 38.
- ^ Charone 1979, p. 27.
- ^ Bowman 2001, p. 145.
- ^ a b c d Charone 1979, p. 28.
- ^ a b c d e f Bowman 2001, p. 146.
- ^ a b Charone 1979, p. 30.
- ^ a b c d e Fear of Music (LP sleeve). Talking Heads. London: Sire Records. 1979.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ Moss, Jeremiah (2017). Vanishing New York: How a Great City Lost Its Soul. p. 17.
- ^ Charone 1979, p. 31.
- ^ Charone 1979, p. 29.
- ^ a b Bowman 2001, p. 147.
- ^ Bowman 2001, p. 158.
- ^ "Grammy Award Nominees 1980 – Grammy Award Winners 1980". Awardsandshows.com. Retrieved August 9, 2019.
- ^ ISBN 0-8230-7609-1.
- ^ Pitchfork Media. Archived from the originalon January 17, 2013. Retrieved September 23, 2009.
- ^ a b c d Ruhlmann, William. "Fear of Music – Talking Heads". AllMusic. Retrieved September 23, 2009.
- ^ Kot, Greg (May 6, 1990). "Talking Heads On The Record". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved November 9, 2020.
- ISBN 0-89919-026-X. Retrieved March 9, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
- Consequence of Sound. Retrieved October 30, 2020.
- ^ Courtney, Kevin (January 13, 2006). "Talking Heads: 77/More Songs About Buildings and Food/Fear of Music/Remain in Light (WEA)". The Irish Times. Retrieved November 8, 2015.
- ^ Cameron, Keith (July 2020). "New Feelings". Mojo. No. 320. pp. 68–69.
- ^ Greene, Jayson (April 23, 2020). "Talking Heads: Fear of Music". Pitchfork. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
- ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
- ^ ISBN 0-679-75574-8.
- ^ Gill, Andy (August 2015). "Buyers' Guide". Uncut. No. 219. p. 40.
- ^ Pareles, Jon (November 15, 1979). "Fear Of Music". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 5, 2014.
- ^ Rockwell, John (August 3, 1979). "The Pop Life: Talking Heads strikes again". The New York Times. p. C19.
- The Daily Collegian. p. 8.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (October 8, 1979). "Christgau's Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved February 4, 2016.
- ^ Cromelin, Richard (September 23, 1979). "The Talking Heads' Fears, Fixations". Los Angeles Times. p. O83.
- ^ Bentkowski, Tom (December 10, 1979). "State of Heads". New York. pp. 135–136.
- ^ Smith, Chris (September 1, 2003). "On Second Thought: Talking Heads – Fear of Music". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on July 1, 2013. Retrieved September 23, 2009.
- ISBN 1-84353-105-4.
- ^ "RIAA: Gold & Platinum". Recording Industry Association of America. Archived from the original on June 26, 2007. Retrieved September 22, 2009. Note: User search required.
- ^ NME staff (December 15, 1979). "Best Albums of 1979". NME. p. pull-out section.
- ^ Melody Maker staff (December 15, 1979). "1979 Melody Maker Albums". Melody Maker. p. pull-out section.
- ^ Los Angeles Times music staff (January 6, 1980). "The 10 best albums of 1979". Los Angeles Times. p. 68.
- ^ Rockwell, John (December 21, 1979). "The Pop Life: A critic picks top 10 for '79". The New York Times. p. C20.
- ^ Sounds staff (December 15, 1979). "The Best of 1979". Sounds. p. 30.
- ^ "The 1979 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. January 28, 1980. Retrieved September 23, 2009.
- ^ NME staff (November 30, 1985). "All Time 100 Albums". NME. p. 16.
- ^ Rolling Stone staff (September 3, 1987). "Top 100 Albums Of The Last 20 Years". Rolling Stone. p. 56.
- ^ The Guardian music staff (January 29, 1999). "Top 100 Albums That Don't Appear In All The Other Top 100 Albums Of All Time". The Guardian. p. Features insert.
- ^ "The 100 Greatest Albums". Channel 4. February 26, 2009. Archived from the original on March 6, 2012. Retrieved December 23, 2010.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ISBN 978-0-7893-1371-3.
- ^ a b Fear of Music (CD booklet and case back cover). Talking Heads. London: Warner. 2006.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ "RPM 50 Albums". RPM. 32 (12). Toronto: RPM. December 15, 1979.
- ^ "Talking Heads – Fear Of Music". Ultratop. Retrieved September 22, 2009.
- ^ "Album Top 40 slágerlista – 2020. 41. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
- ^ "British album certifications – Talking heads – Fear of music". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved October 23, 2021.
- ^ "American album certifications – Talking heads – Fear of music". Recording Industry Association of America.
- ^ Fear of Music (LP sleeve). Talking Heads. London: WEA. 1979.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
Bibliography
- Bowman, David (2001). This Must Be the Place: The Adventures of Talking Heads in the Twentieth Century. ISBN 0-380-97846-6.
- Charone, Barbara (October 1979). "More Songs About Typing and Vacuuming". Creem. pp. 27–33.
External links
- Fear of Music lyrics at Rhapsody
- Fear of Music at Discogs (list of releases)