David Byrne made his name as the frontman for the popular band Talking Heads, but the years since have proved he is a solo artist to be reckoned with. This pioneer of the Art Rock genre continues to change and evolve, expanding his musical palette with albums that have gained him popularity and critical esteem. From the introspective, lyric-driven rock of his self-titled album to the genre-bending experimentation of Grown Backwards, David Byrne offers a multi-faceted catalogue of work that is a treat for any listener looking for something truly out of the ordinary. This round-up of his top ten songs will help you get to know the many sides of David Byrne, a truly unique artist.
1. Why
from Grown Backwards
Here, David Byrne turns his writing skills to some of the very biggest questions, but with a touching humility. The tender, delicate arrangement and tightly crafted song structure allude to the innocence of a classic movie musical ballad, but the intelligent and universal metaphysical curiosity inherent in the picture it paints make it distinctly modern. A simple, unassuming breath of fresh air and clarity, this underappreciated David Byrne song offers the listener a glowing feeling of not just longing for, but being in, a simpler time. Or rather, a time that is just as simple and complex as any other.
2. Angels
from David Byrne
This David Byrne song shows the artist at his insightful and playful best. In “Angels,” David Byrne manages to make a rich, engaging lyrical tapestry by mixing familiar phrases and clichés with deeply personal sentiments and thoughts. The result is a clever, moving, and sometimes laugh-out-loud funny microcosm of how the individual reflects his or her culture, and vice versa. Sample lyric: “I am just an advertisement for a version of myself.”
3. Au Fond Du Temple Saint
from Grown Backwards
This duet with Rufus Wainwright shows David Byrne tackling one of the most intimidating musical genres of all time: opera. It’s rare to find a cover of another songwriter’s work on a Byrne album, but David Byrne provides a defiantly fresh take on this work by Georges Bizet. The result is a surprisingly moving track that benefits from the tension between Wainwright’s rich but slightly undisciplined tones and Byrne’s slightly reedy but precise notes. Here, David Byrne proves himself capable of creating something of beauty even without the dazzling display of lyrics that usually drive his work.
4. Buck Naked
from David Byrne
In this simple ditty with a bare-bones arrangement, David Byrne playfully investigates the different levels of intimacy: physical, emotional, even spiritual.
5. Lilies Of The Valley
from David Byrne
The self-titled album from David Byrne plays with themes of life, death, and the joys and limitations of the human body. David Byrne makes his points on these subjects perhaps most elegantly and concisely on this track, when he steps away from examining what it means to be David Byrne in particular, and gets deep into examining just what it means to be alive at all.
6. A Walk In The Dark
from Uh-Oh
This track gives reign to the repressed sense of menace that permeates much of the David Byrne oeuvre, but complicates things with a playful arrangement, seeming to imply that maybe the dark side of things is about more than just doom and fear.
7. Lazy
from Grown Backwards
With this song, David Byrne celebrates the virtues of being lazy in a catchy, danceable tune that verges on the ecstatic. The track shows some of the influence of the other artists he produces on his label, Luaka Bop.
8. Strange Ritual
from David Byrne
“Strange Ritual” shows David Byrne at his most enigmatic. Surveying the experience of culture and travel through a lens of philosophy mixed with anthropology mixed with good old fashioned blank irony, David Byrne brings some heavy intellect on this track, but with a catchy chorus and a beat that just plain rocks.
9. Civilization
from Grown Backwards
Here, David Byrne presents a charmingly grown-up ditty about the bizarre conventions that have become a part of finding love and genuine human connection in the modern world.
10. Girls On My Mind
from Uh-Oh
A light pop tune on the surface, on closer inspection this David Byrne song offers a bit more substance than you might expect from its catchy chorus and up-beat production.
Reference:
- David Byrne’s official website offers the basics like discography and tour dates, plus lots of fun features, including a changing playlist of his picks by favorite artists, available in streaming audio. ; Check it out at www.davidbyrne.com/
