He had the Foo Fighters as his last live band on his last show. He also had quite a few band I love that aren't 100% mainstream like XTC, Primus, and Ween.
I remember seeing this on Letterman in the summer of 1983. There really wasn't anything quite like them and they blew me away. The drumming and percussion was simply phenomenal.
Funny how strange he was then compared to now. He seemingly overcame it, he's natural and relaxed now. I think Lettermen knew what he was dealing with, a genuine eccentric not someone putting on an act. There's nothing dickish about it, Lettermen treats him well and Byrne is funny every time he says something.
I'm trying to understand what you said at first I didn't like it but I think I like it I felt like Letterman was being a dick but you know before David came on everybody probably said this is a comedy show if you can't take comedy don't come on they don't say that they want to make money they want to insult people have them react David reacted well but he never retreated he stayed his self I liked it I'm 44 this is the first time I saw this I'm in the talking heads like I was for the first time in to rush 3 years ago but Rush is better but I've listened to both all my life just the digger you dig the more you like about things rather than what somebody else said
You can tell Dave respects him and is genuinely happy to have him. Dave pulled no punches for anyone he disliked or thought was giving a bad interview. David seemed comfortable to me, well, at least he was dealing with it well. He also just came off stage and his mojo was working still.
The only thing i thought was slightly rude was Dave saying the lyrics mean absolutely nothing. Theyre not necessarily telling a story but they have meaning in every line, usually several meanings
@@neusprach Snarky Puppy, Louis Cole, Thundercat. If you like Talking Heads (and I LOVE them), give Louis Cole a try. Might take a minute to grow on you, but he has some great energy and lots of fun, like the Heads. Also Jacob Collier. The stuff we grew up with was great, but time moves on, and there are lots of creative people out there!
I was in some kind of homework detention in the early 80’s. Someone had this on cassette and played it 100 times, never got sick of it. Not a bad way to spend an hour.
As this happened, somewhere in the Boston area there was a 20-year-old incredibly feminine young man who sat amazed with their jaw on the floor at what might have been the greatest moment in entertainment in their life up to that point. That impressively dainty yet lengthy young man was the legendary Conan O'Brien.
I did like the 77 first album and then Buildings and Food came and they just escalated in creative majesty from there onwards. With Fear Of Music and Remain In Light they became my favourite American band along with Devo around that time. Eno was able to add his magic too. Byrne is a legendary front man and they will always be one of the first, when I think of my most loved bands in my lifetime.
@@deketk Heck yeah David! Werent they a powerhouse live unit on the 1980 tour with Belew in that form he was. He had just come off the huge 78 Isolar/Heroes world tour with Bowie. I was blessed to witness that tour when i was 18. I was just a few metres from them both and Adrian had me phasing in and out of reality with his intro solo to Station To Station. The greatest show of all for me, thanks mate for your thoughts on that.
Speaking in tongues is known as _glossolalia._ The chants that Lisa Gerrard sings, from the music group Dead Can Dance, are a perfect example of glossolalia. Many people think she's singing in another language, but she's not. She said herself that it's jibberish/glossolalia, every song. Which I find incredible. She listens to a piece of music and she'll come up with a sound with her voice to go with it. She did the chants throughout Gladiator (2000).
Thanks for putting this up! First I thought: "GiIve them more space to dance around!" But the limited stage actually kind of suits that notion of feverish and oppressed bursting-out of the song. The only thing that disappoints me, is that it's somehow turning into a one-man-show in the interview. Yes, Byrne's a genius, but he wasn't doing it all alone.....
I normally don't like videos of live acts but that was stellar David is a great front man so loud & emotive & Everyone in the band contributes musically them drums are sick Such a good performance Edit: we need the album with David speaking in tongues
who would have thought this many years after i first heard them that this would remain so fresh and vibrant just imagine on (what ever talk show you watch ) this came on.....
When asked about folk speaking in tongues, David should have said "I'm originally from Scotland. How they speak sounds to Americans like speaking in tongues." Qualification for the above statement; I am from Scotland.
Only met Talking Heads last week . . . RUclips video . . . LOVED! Amazed by the twin back-up singers and lead vocalist (David Byrne). Also the varied percussionists, fantastic. Have learned the talents grabbing my mind were not even Talking Heads members, exception Byrne. Sad seeing the Hall of Fame induction program and the ones I loved weren't part of them at all! (At very end an old Black man grabbed the mic and thanked folks. Don't understand.
David Byrne is autistic, and back in the 1970s & 1980s, autism wasn't well understood by the vast majority of people. So David had spent his entire life being misunderstood & considered eccentric, as well as being somewhat of an outcast. (even being ridiculed by many people who did not understand David's musical genius & his obtuse but insightful lyrics...and having many personal conflicts with his own band.). So, it's no surprise that David was extremely uncomfortable with being interviewed on his own, by a non-musician, on national TV.
Wow! I have that limited edition record of “Speaking In Tongues”. I haven’t played it since the Reagan years! Even weirder...David Byrne has a new album out NOW! 35 YEARS LATER!!
Wow, I've been looking for this performance and interview for years! Thanks for uploading it! I'd been told the interview was very awkward and hard to watch, but it doesn't come across that way to me. Although I do agree with other commenters here that it was unfair to single out Byrne as if he's the entirety of the band, and Letterman isn't a great interviewer in my opinion. The performance was fun, though... anyone knows what song they did afterwards?
Always hard to watch Letterman interview people who are probably more intelligent than he is. He *almost* managed to make the point that the lyrics to "Speaking in Tongues" were purposely non-sequitirs, but they conjure up interesting images nonetheless. Great little preview of "Stop Making Sense"... David's wearing the "normal" sized version of the Big Suit which balloons up to its comical size during SMS.
The way he writes lyrics is the identical way I create lyrics. Use the emotional element/topic of the song and upon listening to the nonsense lyrics later, they sound like words and they’re true to the nature of the song.
To clarify speaking in tongues, usually one person is given the gift to speak in tongues, and another is given the gift to interpret them and can then share the message to others in there native language. These gifts are given from the gift giver himself, Father….God❤️🙏 I personally know a few people who can hear and speak in tongues. I know this sounds like crazy talk. But it’s something you need to experience first hand to truly understand and believe/know it’s a real thing….gift
Saw him in the city walking down 7 the street with a bag of groceries.......one night said hi .... The butterfly effect is that Gavin Rossdale singing? Lol Such brilliant performers Talking Heads were
![[#2024MAMA] G-DRAGON - 무제(Untitled, 2014)+POWER+HOME SWEET HOME+뱅뱅뱅+FANTASTIC BABY | Mnet 241123 방송](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Ox29z5Nf1Uk/mqdefault.jpg)
People might think he is weird. He’s just a shy genius on the autistic spectrum
By all accounts Letterman loved music and had some great musical guests. So glad he had Talking Heads on the show
Letterman was well known for giving newish musical acts exposure.
He had the Foo Fighters as his last live band on his last show.
He also had quite a few band I love that aren't 100% mainstream like XTC, Primus, and Ween.
I agree. RIP mister Letterman. You will be missed.
Yeah, I loved the speech he gave when inducting Pearl Jam into the R&R Hall of Fame.
He certainly did. I think his favorite was Warren Zevon.
I remember seeing this on Letterman in the summer of 1983. There really wasn't anything quite like them and they blew me away. The drumming and percussion was simply phenomenal.
having a drummer and a percussionist makes all the difference. rhythm is off the chain
a band is only as good as it's drummer and Chris is one funky white boy
David Byrne is a genius!
When David said "going to movies" he is so precious
Funny how strange he was then compared to now. He seemingly overcame it, he's natural and relaxed now.
I think Lettermen knew what he was dealing with, a genuine eccentric not someone putting on an act. There's nothing dickish about it, Lettermen treats him well and Byrne is funny every time he says something.
I'm trying to understand what you said at first I didn't like it but I think I like it I felt like Letterman was being a dick but you know before David came on everybody probably said this is a comedy show if you can't take comedy don't come on they don't say that they want to make money they want to insult people have them react David reacted well but he never retreated he stayed his self I liked it I'm 44 this is the first time I saw this I'm in the talking heads like I was for the first time in to rush 3 years ago but Rush is better but I've listened to both all my life just the digger you dig the more you like about things rather than what somebody else said
You can tell Dave respects him and is genuinely happy to have him. Dave pulled no punches for anyone he disliked or thought was giving a bad interview. David seemed comfortable to me, well, at least he was dealing with it well. He also just came off stage and his mojo was working still.
The only thing i thought was slightly rude was Dave saying the lyrics mean absolutely nothing. Theyre not necessarily telling a story but they have meaning in every line, usually several meanings
@@GamesWithBrainz I'm pretty sure that was supposed to be funny
Byrne is autistic
Man that performance is pure gold
Looked this up after hearing Conan O'Brien and David Byrne talking about this on Conan's most recent podcast episode 😁
What an incredible band! There's nothing like this nowadays, sadly.
40 years ago amazing.
So much great music today…don’t get stuck in the past!
@@SteveCrozier Can you recommend anything?
@@neusprach Snarky Puppy, Louis Cole, Thundercat. If you like Talking Heads (and I LOVE them), give Louis Cole a try. Might take a minute to grow on you, but he has some great energy and lots of fun, like the Heads. Also Jacob Collier. The stuff we grew up with was great, but time moves on, and there are lots of creative people out there!
You're so right about that , watching this now...its almost like they were from the future 😮
Absolute perfection
Letterman has had some of the best bands appear on his show, he’s so lucky to have an archive of all of these performances with a front row seat.
A few weeks before this, REM made their first TV appearance on Letterman's show.
If I could jump in a time machine, and go back to see any live band, it might be TH.
yes!!!!
@@cwr8618 Yes were good as well, but I’m not much into prog
For me it's gotta be Joy Division
That is a FUCKING great performance!
byrne is exactly what a pop musician should be - demented but funny and interesting
I was in some kind of homework detention in the early 80’s. Someone had this on cassette and played it 100 times, never got sick of it. Not a bad way to spend an hour.
TINA ON KEYBOARDS TONIGHT
Here from the recent Conan interview... I saw this a long time ago but forgot. Classic awkward Letterman interview lol
that performance is great
An absolute gem.
Agree 1,000%. But the keyboard solo?
As this happened, somewhere in the Boston area there was a 20-year-old incredibly feminine young man who sat amazed with their jaw on the floor at what might have been the greatest moment in entertainment in their life up to that point. That impressively dainty yet lengthy young man was the legendary Conan O'Brien.
He's organically shy.
I fuckin' love this version - Steve Scales is absolutely killing it on those little Toms at the end there.
That limited edition album is going for between $200-$600 now
No it's not. Highest price one has sold for on Discogs is £143.
Such brilliant performers Talking Heads were
- These words don't mean anything!
- They do but not if you try to figure them out.
I did like the 77 first album and then Buildings and Food came and they just escalated in creative majesty from there onwards. With Fear Of Music and Remain In Light they became my favourite American band along with Devo around that time. Eno was able to add his magic too. Byrne is a legendary front man and they will always be one of the first, when I think of my most loved bands in my lifetime.
Eno, yes! and having Adrian Belew and that expanded touring group help expand their live shows.
@@deketk Heck yeah David! Werent they a powerhouse live unit on the 1980 tour with Belew in that form he was. He had just come off the huge 78 Isolar/Heroes world tour with Bowie. I was blessed to witness that tour when i was 18. I was just a few metres from them both and Adrian had me phasing in and out of reality with his intro solo to Station To Station. The greatest show of all for me, thanks mate for your thoughts on that.
Who’s here from Conan 😄
Nobody
I just listened now Conan and searched it.
yup
Speaking in tongues is known as _glossolalia._ The chants that Lisa Gerrard sings, from the music group Dead Can Dance, are a perfect example of glossolalia.
Many people think she's singing in another language, but she's not. She said herself that it's jibberish/glossolalia, every song. Which I find incredible. She listens to a piece of music and she'll come up with a sound with her voice to go with it. She did the chants throughout Gladiator (2000).
Liz Fraser - Cocteau Twins uses the same 'non-sensical' and impromptu language for lyrics.
everything about this is 110%
Thanks for putting this up! First I thought: "GiIve them more space to dance around!" But the limited stage actually kind of suits that notion of feverish and oppressed bursting-out of the song.
The only thing that disappoints me, is that it's somehow turning into a one-man-show in the interview. Yes, Byrne's a genius, but he wasn't doing it all alone.....
It's possible that they weren't the type that like to be interviewed, so they had him do all the talking
I normally don't like videos of live acts but that was stellar
David is a great front man so loud & emotive
& Everyone in the band contributes musically them drums are sick
Such a good performance
Edit: we need the album with David speaking in tongues
You don't like videos of live acts? LMFAO
This guy has zero musical background. lol
Its nice now that David Byrne can be more himself now. Talking Heads is a fantastic band.
I don't know what you expect, staring into the TV set.
To think they said he'd never make in the industry with a voice like that...
who would have thought
this many years after i first heard them
that this would remain so fresh and vibrant
just imagine on (what ever talk show you watch )
this came on.....
40 years ago.
"... the words don't mean anything?
they do, but not if you try to figure them out."
Best sentiment, ever. Byrne was way ahead of his time.
The version onStop Making Sense is awesome
When asked about folk speaking in tongues, David should have said "I'm originally from Scotland. How they speak sounds to Americans like speaking in tongues."
Qualification for the above statement; I am from Scotland.
Chris Frantz invented dad-core
I bet a lot of people seeing this can't connect to how "avant-garde" this was. And that includes the tech in the opening.
This is a band I would travel to the future with.
pretty sure we have. I would love to see them take a residency at the Sphere in Las Vegas. Can you Imagine?
he's such an ordinary man
Great song, even better performance.
Honestly this is trippy as fuck
Wow, I never knew this existed
I love it :)
I have been a huge fan for many years
One of the original Brides of Funkenstein, Lynn Mabry, with the dress and short hair post P-Funk. She’s still a stellar performer! ❤️🌹
Saw him in the city walking down 7 the street with a bag of groceries.......one night said hi ....
Wow that was 40 years ago.
Letterman had the best musical performances!
Only met Talking Heads last week . . . RUclips video . . . LOVED! Amazed by the twin back-up singers and lead vocalist (David Byrne). Also the varied percussionists, fantastic. Have learned the talents grabbing my mind were not even Talking Heads members, exception Byrne. Sad seeing the Hall of Fame induction program and the ones I loved weren't part of them at all! (At very end an old Black man grabbed the mic and thanked folks. Don't understand.
video reminds me of Devo👍❤
These people are
Fn underated awesome entertainers d b a freakin genio songwriter
that performance is great
Man, that was hot!
He's like I was in school. I wasn't comfortable speaking in front of people. Lol...
David Byrne is autistic, and back in the 1970s & 1980s, autism wasn't well understood by the vast majority of people. So David had spent his entire life being misunderstood & considered eccentric, as well as being somewhat of an outcast. (even being ridiculed by many people who did not understand David's musical genius & his obtuse but insightful lyrics...and having many personal conflicts with his own band.). So, it's no surprise that David was extremely uncomfortable with being interviewed on his own, by a non-musician, on national TV.
Wow! I have that limited edition record of “Speaking In Tongues”.
I haven’t played it since the Reagan years!
Even weirder...David Byrne has a new album out NOW! 35 YEARS LATER!!
You have that gorgeous album? I am utterly jealous.
One of my favorite albums and concerts of all time. Poplar Creek, Illinos 1983
In his 70's, David Byrne seems much more comfortable in his skin and in interviews.
Great version! The audience loved it!
Awesome Video!
Two truly kooky guys.
This is art
Caught the Chicago stop of the tour. Greatness.
Of all the bands I wish could reunite this would be them, but it will NEVER happen.
Love this. Bonnie Raitt did a cover of this and killed it!
protect that man
Wow, I've been looking for this performance and interview for years! Thanks for uploading it! I'd been told the interview was very awkward and hard to watch, but it doesn't come across that way to me. Although I do agree with other commenters here that it was unfair to single out Byrne as if he's the entirety of the band, and Letterman isn't a great interviewer in my opinion. The performance was fun, though... anyone knows what song they did afterwards?
Second song ("I Zimbra") is available here: ruclips.net/video/YL2IkJ1P_H0/видео.html
.ME GUSTA. MUCHO. ESTE GRUPO MUSICAL TAMBIEM. SON. MUY. ORIGINALES TAMBIEM. ME. GUSTA. SUS. MUSICOS. SUS. COROS. FEMENINOS. SON.GENIALES YP SIEMPRE. LOS. REPITO SUS. TEMAS GRACIAS. A RUclips
This is one of the few 1980's Letterman musical performances that doesn't have the house band in it
Love those two backup singers. Their interaction was a major highlight of the movie.
Okay but what about the white man?
@@mathiaskanuck6759 Are you familiar with the difference between definite articles and indefinite articles in English?
@@aquamarine99911 Yes. I'm an english major... What does that have to do with my question?
@@mathiaskanuck6759 Which white man are you talking about? There are four in this video (including Letterman).
They are so hot.
fucking legend!
superb
Is it just me or are there a lot of bots in this comment section?? People are saying the same things over and over, even down to the spelling mistakes
Yeah I was wondering the same thing, they’re in every music video for some reason. I don’t know what they’re trying to accomplish
same as it ever was
brilliant.
Totally Awesome!
Always hard to watch Letterman interview people who are probably more intelligent than he is. He *almost* managed to make the point that the lyrics to "Speaking in Tongues" were purposely non-sequitirs, but they conjure up interesting images nonetheless. Great little preview of "Stop Making Sense"... David's wearing the "normal" sized version of the Big Suit which balloons up to its comical size during SMS.
If you paid any attention you'd notice that Letterman feed Byrne questions that Letterman's staff obviously researched (as is standard).
I love this every time
The way he writes lyrics is the identical way I create lyrics. Use the emotional element/topic of the song and upon listening to the nonsense lyrics later, they sound like words and they’re true to the nature of the song.
dope!
Revisiting the heroes of my youth and it strikes me .He could have been Sheldon Cooper´s cool brother. :)
He is a genious, David Byrne.
What a band
A True musical Artist so underrated
Seems odd no shots of Tina or Jerry at all.
Ah, the poor diddums!
If someone tried to program AI with David Byrne's brain it would just say: "NOPE!!".
Yes!!!🎉🎉🎉
The best...
Well SOB. I always thought the singer of this song was black
David doesn’t know how to interview David, this was uncomfortable.
Three cheers for as-burgers. Unfiltered, unadorned, and unusual - as in, not the usual commercial crap.
I know I'm not him, but I wouldn't want him to be any other way.
Wow!
COOL
Somebody put Tina in the corner😮
The butterfly effect is that Gavin Rossdale singing? Lol
To clarify speaking in tongues, usually one person is given the gift to speak in tongues, and another is given the gift to interpret them and can then share the message to others in there native language. These gifts are given from the gift giver himself, Father….God❤️🙏 I personally know a few people who can hear and speak in tongues. I know this sounds like crazy talk. But it’s something you need to experience first hand to truly understand and believe/know it’s a real thing….gift
So no one but the person talking and one other person who is interpreting can make sense of what's being said? Religion man... shit's crazy.
It's not real. lol gullible humans
David looks like Dracula.
❤
David Byrne understood the economic advantage of differential pricing. He wasn't a smooth-talking salesman, however.
Saw him in the city walking down 7 the street with a bag of groceries.......one night said hi ....
The butterfly effect is that Gavin Rossdale singing? Lol
Such brilliant performers Talking Heads were
That guy of the thumbnail is look like the actor Christian Bale!!!
He Beavis it's that Letter Dude with the Big Suit guy...