This week we look back on the 40th anniversary of Fear of Music, the third album from Talking Heads. In 1979, at a career crossroads, Talking Heads retreated to the loft apartment of band members Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth — the same space they rehearsed at in their early days. Together with producer Brian Eno, the Record Plant mobile track came to them, capturing their new songs outside a traditional studio. The songs themselves often veered outside of traditional rock, incorporating elements of disco, funk, and world music to the often disjointed lyrical worldview of David Byrne. As Byrne said, "It wouldn't please us to make music that's impossible to listen to, but we don't want to compromise for the sake of popularity." Ah, the days when critics could call an album "foreboding, obsessed, gritty weirdness," and it would be both popular and acclaimed on the year-end polls! Fear of Music is a fascinating album between Talking Heads' early new wave and their masterpiece, Remain in Light.

Segments

Playlist, hour 1

Playlist, hour 2