More Songs About Buildings and Food

Talking Heads finally clicked.

I have never clicked with Talking Heads besides Psycho Killer. I heard 77 yesterday and just kinda enjoyed it. Now i know what most people hear, and i love it.

Such good songs on here, The Big Country, The Good Thing, I'm Not In Love and especially Take Me To The River. Take Me To The River gets me hyped for Stop Making Sense since i'm going through TH's discog.

NEED TO HEAR RATING: DEFINITELY HEAR

Best song: Take Me To The River
Worst song: The Girls Want To Be With The Girls
Underrated: The Big Country

This album is a lot more disco and dance-influenced than Talking Heads' previous, debut album (which I've already gotten). "The Big Country" sounded familiar to me, and it was the best song to me as well as a good closer. While the other songs were catchy and fun, the debut album just seems better to me.

I’m so glad David Byrne exists… that this band existed. While not my favorite album of theirs, I was happy to listen to it again. Punk in their own eccentric way and ahead of their time.

3.5

Top tracks: I’m Not in Love, Take Me to the River

Just the best. No skips. Such a consistently great band. Other than maybe Naked and True Stories, a straight 5-star career.

Grooves!

Me like.

Great bass work and very approachable songs. It's maybe a bit repetitive.

Favorite Songs: With Our Love ; The Good Thing ; Take Me to the River

Jeg elsker Talking Heads :)
Hvis man er et Talking Heads-head som mig, vil man nok synes, at mange af disse numre føles som en slags demoer, da de findes i senere og mere storladne udgaver på andre albums og selvfølgelig i deres bedste form på Stop Making Sense (som er det bedste livealbum i verdenshistorien). Så hvis man bliver den mindste smule turned on af det her, så bare vent - det bliver meget, meget bedre, jo længere de kommer. Sidstnævnte album er desværre ikke på listen, så det er lektier

4.1

Poppig rytmisk skiva. Inga låtar som sticker ut. Cover på Al greens Take me to the river. 3,5 av 5.

Quite good, drags just a little.

Don't know why Spotify recommends Talking Heads on my playlists. They're just too quirky to be on my regular rotation. They just have this "look how artsy I am" vibe I can't really shake off.

In terms of this album, this is pretty funky. Has the instrumental post-punk/new wave sections but with the added groove.

I do love Take Me to the River, but the rest of the album is blah to me.

This album was a bit hit-and-miss for me, much like many shared by other listeners. While the iconic Al Green cover of "Take Me to the River" stands out as an undeniable highlight and a genuine career gem, the rest of the tracklist felt mostly like it was just kind of there.

On one hand, you can certainly hear the infectious energy of Tina Weymouth's basslines and the initial sparks of the band's collaboration with Brian Eno driving that signature rhythm. Yet, for every moment of quirky, dorky post-punk charm, David Byrne's frantic vocal delivery and idiosyncratic cadence could also come across as grating or exhausting over the stretch of a full playthrough, leaving me with mixed feelings about the overall record.

1) Thank You for Sending Me an Angel
2) Found A Job
3) Artists Only

Least Favourite: The Good Thing

I listened through this while playing Far Cry 5. It was a good backdrop while slaughtering Peggies and cruising around Hope County, Montana.

Vibes:10/10
Actual music:6.5/10
Overall:3.5/5, would have sex to it.

I win: I got two late-70s NYC art punk records in a row! (Yesterday was "Marquee Moon")

This was my favorite record for a while in 1978, but I haven't heard it in ages. Despite that, I'm currently singing along with every song. "I'm painting! I'm painting again!"

I like these quirky early Talking Heads albums the best. This is a great record - the jangly bouncy music, the puzzling lyrics, Byrne's weird vocals. I was wondering whether I’d still be a little tired of their version of “Take Me to the River” since it got so much airplay at the time, but no, it’s great. That was admittedly nearly 50 years ago, after all.

Favorite track: “The Big Country,” which I’m always reminded of whenever I fly out west and look out the window of the airplane. But really, it’s the whole thing.

Thank goodness we’re done with this band now

Pre Listen:
Seriously? They didn't include Speaking in Tongues by the Talking Heads on this project, but they included this one?? This is one of their worse works in my opinion, I don't have a single song from it on my playlist, and I consider myself a big Talking Heads fan. Fucking baffling man.

Notable Tracks:
Warning Sign - Ugh I love the instrumental work on this song, that bass is fucking sick. Then David Byrne comes in and sounds like he's singing against the music, not with it. Frustrating.
Stay Hungry - Least favorite song. It has this grating elementary sound to it, it's so repetitive. Byrne's vocal performance is so bland here too.
Take Me to the River - Favorite of the album, and the only song that comes close to getting added to my playlist. Gets me nodding along a bit to it midway though, typically.

Post Listen:
This album is a culmination of every issue I have with the Talking Heads as a band, which again, suck because I really like the Talking Heads at their strongest.

Repetitive melodies, David Byrne just going full-schizo on the mic, weird audio-mixing, and an overall feeling like there's something missing. Some songs go on for too long, some just lack substance overall. It's really a shame they included this album on here, if this project is suppose to be a celebration of only the best. Critically and commercially to my knowledge, both Little Creatures and Speaking In Tongues far out-performed this album, neither of which are on this project for god knows why.

If you listened to this and think The Talking Heads just isn't for you, I'm begging you to listen to Speaking In Tongues. This album here is them at their most meh, I promise. 2/5

I am really not a Talking Heads fan, hearing one too many times On the Road to Nowhere tainted my listening pleasure with them. Then I heard Fear of Music and all was mostly forgiven. This one seems to somewhere in the middle, I liked it and its unique new wave sensibilities but not one I would buy.

More Songs About Buildings and Food has some great moments, but overall it felt a bit mediocre to me. The album is tight and well-played, and you can hear the band's creativity and quirky style developing, but a lot of the tracks didn't leave a strong impression on first listen. I found myself much more engaged by the second half of the album—the last few songs had stronger hooks and more personality, making for a better finish than start.
The production, handled by Brian Eno, gives the album a distinctive sound, and it's easy to see why it's considered an important step in Talking Heads' evolution. Even though it didn't completely click with me, I can appreciate its influence and experimentation. It's one of those albums that feels like it could grow on me with more listens, but for now I'd call it a solid, if somewhat uneven, record.