TALKING HEADS – REMAIN IN LIGHT LP – Nr MINT 1980 PUNK NEW WAVE

Talking Heads – Remain In Light
(Sire Records  1980  SIR56867)
Matrix No’s: A3/B7

Sleeve in Nr MINT condition
Inner Sleeve in Nr MINT condition
Lyric Insert in Nr MINT condition

Vinyl in Nr MINT condition

Talking Heads were an American new wave and avant-garde band formed in 1975 in New York City and active until 1991. The band comprised David Byrne (lead vocals and guitar), Chris Frantz (drums and backing vocals), Tina Weymouth (bass and backing vocals) and Jerry Harrison (keyboards, guitar, and backing vocals). Auxiliary musicians also regularly made appearances in concert and on the group’s albums. The new wave style of Talking Heads combined elements of punk rock, art rock, avant-garde, pop, funk, world music, and Americana. Frontman and songwriter David Byrne contributed whimsical, esoteric lyrics to the band’s songs, and emphasized their showmanship through various multimedia projects and performances.

Critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine describes Talking Heads as being “one of the most critically acclaimed bands of the ’80s, while managing to earn several pop hits.” In 2002, the band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Four of the band’s albums appeared on Rolling Stone magazine’s 2003 list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, and the Channel 4 100 Greatest Albums poll listed one album (Fear of Music) at number 76. On a 2011 update of Rolling Stone’s “100 Greatest Artists of All Time”, the band was ranked at No. 100.

Remain in Light is the fourth studio album by American new wave band Talking Heads, released on October 8, 1980 on Sire Records. It was recorded at locations in the Bahamas and the United States between July and August 1980 and was produced by the quartet’s long-time collaborator Brian Eno. The album peaked at number 19 on the Billboard 200 in the US and at number 21 on the UK Albums Chart. Two singles were released from Remain in Light: “Once in a Lifetime” and “Houses in Motion” as well as promotional single “Crosseyed and Painless”. The record was certified Gold in the US and in Canada during the 1980s.

The members of Talking Heads wanted to make an album that dispelled notions of frontman and chief lyricist David Byrne leading a back-up band. They decided to experiment with African polyrhythms and, with Eno, recorded the instrumental tracks as a series of samples and loops, a novel idea at the time. Additional musicians were frequently used throughout the studio sessions. The lyric writing process slowed Remain in Light‘s progress, but was concluded after Byrne drew inspiration from academic literature on Africa. The artwork was crafted with the help of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s computers and designing company M&Co. Following the album’s completion, Talking Heads expanded to nine members for promotional concerts.

Remain in Light was widely acclaimed by critics. Praise centred on its cohesive merging of disparate genres and sonic experimentation. The record has featured in several publications’ lists of the best albums of the 1980s and the best albums of all time. It is often considered Talking Heads’ magnum opus. In 2006, it was remastered and reissued with the addition of four unfinished outtakes.

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Byrne, Eno, Frantz, Harrison, and Weymouth.

Personnel

Those involved in the making of Remain in Light were: