Truly next-level Talking Head heads will know that the band played their first ever gig on 5 June, 1975, opening for the Ramones at CBGB in New York. Appearing as a three piece consisting of David Byrne, Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz, the fledgling band already had future classics such as Psycho Killer in their set.
Now, as the clock ticks towards an incredible 50th anniversary of that fateful first gig, all the signs suggest that the disbanded band could be on the cusp of a reunion. Maybe.
The evidence comes via the band’s Instagram, which features an animated night-to-day transition featuring that 5 June date in the font used for their Talking Heads 77 debut LP, an album released – appropriately enough – two years after their first gig, in 1977.
So what does it all mean?
Does the use of 77’s font simply signify that this is more promo pointing towards the out-now existence of the Talking Heads 77 four-vinyl reissue of their first album – the specific use of that date being a subtle fan-only reference for the faithful? Or is something deeper and more important about to happen?
Once in a lifetime?
David Byrne, the band’s vocalist and first guitarist, got together with Chris Frantz on drums when they attended the same design school and played together in a band they called the Artistics.
Tina Weymouth was Chris’s girlfriend, and, as the owner of a van, she would help shift their gear to gigs. However, feeling that Weymouth was missing out on the fun, Frantz encouraged her to take up the bass, playing her a lot of Suzi Quatro to get her in the mood.
After getting up to speed, Weymouth officially joined the band with their classic four-piece line-up being rounded out by Jerry Harrison on keyboards in time for that first album.
The band would go on to huge new wave success but the pressures of fame, creative differences and side-projects such as Byrne’s own solo albums and Weymouth and Frantz’s Tom Tom Club, led to their break-up in 1991 – a move that Byrne said “wasn’t handled well,” and “kind of ugly,” in an interview with Rolling Stone.
The story goes that Byrne shutting down the band even caught Chris Frantz by surprise with the drummer only learning of his band’s split by reading about it in the Los Angeles Times. “As far as we’re concerned, the band never really broke up,” he said. “David just decided to leave.”
“As a younger person, I was not as pleasant to be around. When I was working on some Talking Heads shows, I was more of a little tyrant,” Byrne admitted.
Or same as it ever was?
So, will 5 June see some kind of reunion? A personal appearance? A gig? Or a tour? New material, even? Or… Nothing?
Watch this space.
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