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Regardless of how familiar music fans are with the Talking Heads, chances are they’ve had the lines “Psycho Killer… Qu’est-ce que sais? Fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa-fa far better” stuck in their heads at least once.
These lyrics are found on the album Talking Heads ’77, which has much more to offer than these well known and annoyingly catchy lines from the song “Psycho Killer.”
The Talking Heads open the album with an artsy ballad entitled “Uh-Oh, Love Comes to Town.”
The song is a cheeky jab at how love affects people. They become unable to work or act properly suddenly, and why? According to the band, “The answer is obvious! Love has come to town.”
“Tentative Decisions” at first seems like nonsense about how men and women’s brains work differently. However, upon a closer look, it is more progressive than that tired topic.
The lyrics go on to say that men just simply want to talk and make women out to be the problem. In the ’70s, this was a hot take for a male-fronted band to take, but it comes across as being witty and it is executed well.
The next song, “Happy Day,” epitomizes the Talking Heads’ musical style. The band often experiments with sounds, but vocalist David Byrne’s eccentrism is shown throughout the song.
Byrne plays with his range and various vocal quirks over the art rock instrumentals of the band. This creates the signature sound of the Talking Heads, which is nearly impossible to describe but impossible not to recognize.
The last song on the album, “Pulled Up,” is a fun song about self improvement, with a little help. The instrumentals are upbeat and it makes for a danceable tune.
The song is addressed to the narrator’s parents, thanking them for their support in getting the narrator out of rough situations, making for a cute tune through and through.
All in all, the Talking Heads are a little eclectic, and that is shown in their self-titled debut. Still, anyone looking for something different to listen to should lend Talking Heads ‘77 an open ear and an open mind.
