#382: Talking Heads' More Songs About Buildings and Food

Contrary to popular misconception (and to the fact that they got their start opening for the Ramones at the Bowery's famously divey CBGB), Talking Heads were never really a punk band per se, not with respect to their recording career, at any rate. From their debut, they were three art students from RISD (they completed the line-up in 1977 with the addition of The Modern Lovers' Jerry Harrison) with a penchant for delivering funk to the bad kids from the Lower East Side. By 1978's More Songs, the Heads had cemented their sound around Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz' groove-happy bottom end, Harrison's playful guitar and keyboard work thrusting and parrying with David Byrne's quirky and frantic tenor delivery; the result was nothing if not electrifying. More Songs opens with the galloping "Thank You For Sending Me an Angel," which, aside from presaging their later hit "Road to Nowhere," yields to the intriguing syncopation of "With Our Love," both songs showcasing Byrne's vocal yelp quite nicely. "Warning Sign" finds one of rock's most compelling basslines giving way to one of its most challenging melodies. "I'm Not In Love" frames the nihilistic aspects of romance in a funk context, while "Take Me To the River" sees the Heads taking on the soul stylings of Al Green and Mabon Hodges to triumphant effect. The upshot of all of this is that More Songs About Buildings and Food is, quite simply, one of the masterpieces of late '70s art rock.

Some other thoughts:

#381, The Modern Lovers: I'm a little embarrassed to admit that I'd never listened to this record all the way through until taking on this project. "Roadrunner" is as perfect a love song to Boston as has ever been penned, while "Pablo Picasso" pays tribute to every guy who's ever been rebuffed by a dirty-mouthed girl in a dirty Bowery bar... The record closes with "Modern World," Richman's biting critique of suburban American ennui.

#380, The Beach Boys' Sunflower: The Beach Boys jettisoned their squeaky clean Surfer Boy image around 1964 or so in favor of an exploration of edgier material, both topical and psychedelic. This came to pass most famously on 1966's Pet Sounds. It was around this time that head Beach Boy Brian Wilson began to lose his footing to mental instability and mounting drug problems. Sunflower sees the slack being taken up largely by Dennis Wilson and Mike Love, but Brian wasn't quite done yet: "This Whole World" is a gem of '60s pop, as is "All I Wanna Do." As for his bandmates' contributions, Dennis Wilson's "Got To Know the Woman" sees Jerry Lee Lewis as filtered through Sergeant Pepper, while Bruce Johnston delivers a nothing less than stunning vocal lead on "Tears In the Morning," as well as a beautiful arrangement of strings, accordian and vocal harmonies. Pet Sounds or Smile it may not be, but this is definitely a worthy offering from the Beach Boys.