Talking Heads 77

I'm not doing talking heads. I already know

Really good really fun listen, makes you wanna move

Preferred other TH albums but still a fantastic offering. Felt a bit Sesame Street in places.

This isn't new to me. It is one of the greatest albums ever made. No notes. 10/10

Listened before : No Listen again : No I wasn’t a huge fan of this, it felt a bit like it was going through the motions. I’m don’t love psycho killer which didn’t help. The song about the American civil service was a low point.

It’s good. I don’t think it’s anything absurdly original or out of the box as it mostly carries on from where Roxy Music started (particularly Psycho Killer). I find David Byrnes lyrics to be kind of bland and uninteresting on certain songs as well. It strays a bit too arty for my personal liking through the middle section of the album, but there’s first 2 songs and the last 2 are stellar. There’s some genuine belters on this album, so I can’t knock it too harshly. 3 stars, they’ve done much better.

It’s fun but I really only loved psycho killer because it’s familiar

Sublime, whether listening at home drinking coffee or standing in a Suffolk field with gassy beer in a plastic cup.

Talking Headsin debyytillä tuotanto on vielä melko pelkistettyä, mutta kuitenkin toimivaa. Soundit tuovat mieleen samana vuonna julkaistun Televisionin Marque Moonin. David Byrnen omaleimainen ja hermostunut laulutapa käy hetkittäin vähän raskaaksi, mutta onhan tämä vioistaan huolimatta onnistunut aloitus bändin uralle.

Pretty good, carried by psycho killer

#piektdiena

It's funny how the 1001 Albums generator works sometimes. I had just posted my review of Talking Heads' More Songs About Buildings and Food on Facebook and Instagram the day before, and now here I was listening to their debut album, Talking Heads: 77. Apparently, the generator decided I needed another dose of David Byrne and company! I gave More Songs About Buildings and Food four stars and a BUY, so I was curious to hear how their earlier material compared. I've always enjoyed Talking Heads' quirky style, and "Psycho Killer" is one of my favorite songs by them. At least I knew there would be one guaranteed winner! The album got off to a fun start with "Uh-Oh, Love Comes to Town." It had that distinctive Talking Heads sound, with an upbeat energy that made it an enjoyable opener. "New Feeling" was okay. It certainly had their classic sound, but it wasn't doing much for me. "Tentative Decisions" picked things back up. I really enjoyed the different musical shifts throughout the song, especially the drumming. One thing I appreciate about Talking Heads is how they can change direction in the middle of a song while maintaining that wonderfully quirky personality. "Happy Day" was just okay, but "Who Is It?" was a fun little surprise. It was short, quirky, and entertaining. Sometimes a song doesn't need to be long or complicated to make an impression. "No Compassion" was another highlight. Once again, I enjoyed the changes in the music. I'm finding that I really appreciate Talking Heads when they experiment with different rhythms and arrangements. It keeps things interesting and gives the songs more personality. Unfortunately, the album started losing some momentum for me after that. "The Book I Read" was okay, and "Don't Worry About the Government" was decent, but neither really stood out. There wasn't anything particularly bad about these songs. They just weren't grabbing me. At this point, I was leaning toward a three-star rating. But then Talking Heads saved the best for last! "Psycho Killer" is an absolute classic and one of my favorite songs by the band. That bass line, David Byrne's unique vocals, and the song's infectious energy make it unforgettable. It's one of those songs I can listen to over and over again. And then came "Pulled Up," which turned out to be my favorite discovery on the album! What a fantastic way to close things out. The final two songs were easily the best on the record, and they were enough to bump my rating up another half-star. Overall, Talking Heads: 77 is a solid debut that showcases the band's creativity and distinctive sound. I enjoyed the quirky arrangements, rhythmic changes, and especially the drumming. However, there were too many songs that I found merely okay rather than memorable. Having recently listened to More Songs About Buildings and Food, I can appreciate how Talking Heads continued developing their sound. Their second album was more consistent and enjoyable for me, while this debut showed plenty of promise without quite reaching the same level. Final Verdict: 3.5 out of 5 stars. NO BUY. There are some terrific songs here, particularly "Psycho Killer" and "Pulled Up," but not enough to make me want to add the entire album to my vinyl collection. Still, I'm glad I got to experience where Talking Heads began. And I have to give them credit. Just when I thought this was going to be a three-star album, they pulled me back in with that fantastic finish! Favorite Tracks: "Psycho Killer," "Pulled Up," "Tentative Decisions," "No Compassion," and "Uh-Oh, Love Comes to Town." GenX Journeys: The 1001 Albums Project Embrace the past, own the present, and build an epic future.

Love it

Ahh, this was just what I needed. Pulled Up is such a great closing track.

Embrace the Weird! Yesterday Today And Everyday Embrace It! 4

The streak of Talking Heads not having any good albums continues! While a meditation on being autistic is kind of fun as a voyeur, mostly this album is a band that hasn't quite found their voice and in turns sounds like proto-Talking Heads, a bar band, joy division, and a roxy music tribute band. The lyrics are goofy enough and the musicality juuuuuust inventive enough to avoid being irritating, but it steps over the line a few times (I find Who Is It? particularly annoying). So yeah, baby steps, an album that leads to the future but on its own? Stick to the hits.

Very good feel good music. Play in the background of a lifestyle about the sun.

still good.

A great album, by a great band... but its not their best by a bit. Psycho Killer is their best song ever though. High 3 or Low 4... I'm going for a 3 here but could go either way

Psycho killer by itself makes this album a cracker. Little bit same same at times, great guitar and bass riffs but lyrics and flow seem to end up recycling a lot like they didn’t know where to go with them. Still pretty good

Ik maakte me op voor het ergste, maar omdat het hun debuut is, zitten de pratende hoofden nog op het snijvlak van jarenzeventigpop en de komende new wave. Maar in beide genres is het niet echt goed, en de debiele manier van zingen is daar debet aan, gecombineerd met de wat dunne klankkleur van het geheel. Eentje in de categorie 'ook weer niet slecht genoeg om een 2 aan te geven'.

Als ik in mijn eigen reviews op Talking Heads zoek, dan komen er veel meer hits dan de 4 albums van de Talking Heads zelf. Dat is natuurlijk omdat ik ze vaak als een soort referentie gebruik en meestal is dat niet zo positief. Het gaat vaak om overmatige experimenteerdrift of de gekke stemmetjes van David Byrne waarmee ik muziek dan vergelijk. Qua zang van David Byrne krijg je wel redelijk wat je verwacht op dit debuut (fap fap fap!), maar qua experimenteren valt het reuze mee. Ze doen zeker niet continu de standaard dingen, dus je hoort wel gelijk dat die drang tot gekkigheid er is. Maar ze houden er wel een fijn tempo in en er zit ook een lekker funky basloopje in regelmatig. Dus qua muziek vind ik dit misschien wel een van de betere albums van de Talking Heads. Er hadden er alleen geen 4 in gemoeten, 1 of 2 was meer dan voldoende geweest voor deze snobfavorieten. Dus daar krijgen ze toch een strafpunt voor. Maar omdat ik dit misschien wel de beste notering van ze vind, krijgen ze alsnog een 3. Precies datgene wat alle albums van de Pratende Hoofden van mij hebben gekregen. Wat maar weer aangeeft, hoe overbodig de hoeveelheid albums is.

fun!album für paulo, und cooles cover

Quite a fun listen with some cool bass lines, but it didn't make me want to finish hearing the whole album.

I am finding my feelings about Talking Heads very confusing. They teased me with Fear of Music making me feel I could like them but the Building and Food album made me feel a bit blah. This first album of theirs irritated me at the beginning, I thought the songs were meaningless. But when side 2 came around with my favourite song of theirs - Psycho Killer a crazy song with change of tempo - and the exuberant Pulled Up I was beginning to feel I could be a fan.

Very enjoyable!

Another Talking Heads album, another set of enjoyable expressive weird and whacky music, with one of the all time great bangers on it. Its not my favouritr TH record. But its still class 4.6/5.0 Best Song: Psycho Killer obvs

I do like this album a lot, David Byrne I’m full weirdo mode. Great lyrics and the music is a lot of fun

killer album

- Not a fan of almost all of this. Would skip every track but "Psycho Killer" and "Pulled Up." But this album even makes me start to side-eye those. - Not a shocker that "Psycho Killer" is the only track you ever hear.

To be honest the lead track did not impress me that much. I didn’t really like the singers voice on it. However I really liked the second track and third track were both good records. Okay, I think the album is good. I’m not the biggest fan of the singers voice. However I think instrumentals really carry this project. Also it’s not like his voice is objectively bad I can see how people could like it. It’s just not for me. Overall I think it’s a good project. I’m leaning for a 3/5 or 4/5. Prob a 4/5 due to the iconic psycho killer.

In comparison to Remain in Light which I previously rated, this album is very melodic! Has more of the early 80s feel - light, fun, and wacky. David Bryne is so odd, and his voice and lyrics are really the weak point for me. But nonetheless, this was actually a decently enjoyable listen.

Didnt quite speak to me

Super fun and funky album. While this debut album doesn’t reach the same heights as Talking Heads would later in their career, it’s just so catchy and quirky and unmistakably them.

I sorta remembered 77 being further below Talking Heads' best albums, but no, this was better than I remembered. Even though Eno wasn't producing them yet, there's definitely a lot of that same Talking Heads that you hear in the latter albums. I could not sit still while listening to this.

The weirdness of the Talking Heads in full form!

Alright. The best tracks are played out and the less well known ones are slightly forgettable 3.5

I love Talking Heads and love the energy they bring. This isn’t my fave album of theirs but enjoyable nonetheless.

Quite surprised I enjoyed this album very much.

david you are so fucking weird why does it work so well

un peu chiant, comme d'hab

David Byrne has one of those voices I hate but I still like Talking Heads. This isn't their best album, it's pretty patchy. But it's still great.

Great album but still one of their worst

obviously fantastic

So fun and she was one of my favorites

Really interesting. I went into the album with high hopes having enjoyed everything I heard from them before. Some of those aspects came through in the album, particularly in Uh Oh Love comes to town, pulling up, and obviously psycho killer. But besides those individual highlights was actually quite mediocre. I would still listen to again, as their style absolutely matches what i like to listen to in my free time, but would probably prefer to pick and choose than the project as a whole.

I absolutely love New York’s musical output. The Velvet Underground, Television, LCD Soundsystem and, most recently, Geese have been in constant rotation since I was a teenager - but one of the most beloved bands from the Big Apple have never connected with me in the slightest. I am, of course, talking about The Strokes. But I’ve never loved Talking Heads as much as most people either, as much as I do enjoy them. On paper, they do everything right. That nervous, frenetic energy, the Brian Eno connection, their mastery of the pop song structure in the early 80s. I’ll admit, Remain In Light deserves the hype, but Speaking in Tongues and especially its sister live album, Stop Making Sense, while better in film form, occupy the “good, but not great” area of music that so many albums fall into. Perhaps to unlearn this almost-disdain I’ve built up towards the band, I need to go back to their roots - so here we are, the very first album recommended to me on my second go-around on this site. Talking Heads: 77. This album contains much that I love about the CBGB scene. The plucky, DIY feel is all there, the production is very basic, the songwriting is extremely straightforward - but it doesn’t need to be any more than that. The anxious energy that exudes from a song like Pulled Up, the camp horror of Psycho Killer (arguably the band’s most well-known song), the playful, childlike notions of love of Uh-Oh! Love Comes To Town. It’s clear to me what this album is - a bit of fun. It’s about as unpretentious as you can get, really. OK - those later albums I mentioned earlier clearly have more depth to them, or at least more to chew on. But I can’t help but find something charming about the band’s debut. On this record, what might be an otherwise dull moment for another band is immediately saved by David Byrne’s infectious character, one he continues to portray, even now. So sure, it’s not the second coming of christ, but it’s a good time, and this particular album seems quite happy to be just that and nothing more. 7/10 Do you NEED to listen to it before you die: No

You know... some of the other more quirky Talking Heads albums don't quite do it for me. In fact, I sort of find them insufferable. But this one had obviously their most famous hit AND a bunch of other incredible songs.

buenooo, me gusta mucho como inicia porque es con toda la emoción, pero hay canciones flojas que dañan la vibra, sin embargo la mayoría son buenas.

On se demande par moments s'ils sont en train d'innover ou si ils ne savent juste pas ce qu'ils font. 3.49 étoiles

Love the music. Love the lyrics.

Boring Don’t like the singers voice

Warbly nonsense flanked by some good ones at the start and end. Psycho killer obviously the best. I'm not worried about the government, more about his mental lyrics. I like talking heads, but I mostly just got irritated by the weird vocals in this one

Strong opener, liking the steel pans in uh-oh, love comes to town. Some nothing-y songs in between Don’t worry about the government is… interesting. Very warbly and nonsensical. I love a bit of talking heads but this album isn’t for me besides the first song and obviously psycho killer unfortunately which do some heavy lifting. Pulled up is a decent-ish ending. Slightly disappointed though!

A couple of fun tracks but I was mostly underwhelmed.

Wow that was surprisingly bad for talking heads. I was hoping that was gonna be good. It was a little funky which was cool Highlights Uh Oh Love comes to town First Week/ Last Week.. Carefree (fav, like the horns even if the first half of the song isn't great) Psycho Killer

Stand out was obviously psycho killer, everything else was good but not really for me

Really odd album, not much like the stuff they would do after. The vocals got kind of grating after a little bit, but it was still a fun listen

lovely

Talking Heads debut here. Props to the song Psycho Killer, loved Goose's cover of that track at Fiddler's Green 25, but other than that I really just can't get into this band. Not for me

great songs but not my style at all

Psycho Killer the only song I was really familiar with coming into this (and yes it's quality!) but the whole thing flows together well. Great debut from the Heads

Heard this before. Pretty solid debut for an all time great band. Nowhere near a favorite for me and not one I go back to often but some really good early Talking Heads tracks on here for sure.

Fantastic!

It was fine. Didn't love it, kinda boring

I like Talking Heads a lot, but this wasn't my favorite. Maybe I just wasn't in the mood for it at the time.

2/5

Dober 👍🏼

My favourite Talking Heads album.

One of the Talking Heads albums I know less well, I haven’t listened properly in yonks. It’s very interesting how foundational to their sound it is, certain elements really wouldn’t change much at all, and yet there’s a naivety and looseness to it all that’s really endearing in how much of a debut it is. The guitar tone is absolutely gorgeous on it, and although I love how razor sharp it got by Speaking In Tongues there’s a softness and a fullness to this that is really lush whilst also keeping that textbook TH spidery sound. Ultimately I think it is a little too basic and wholesome to stand up to their later material and to really blow me away, but it’s a wonderful debut and I’m very glad it’s on the list.

Three Talking Heads albums in my first 56 albums... joy. I can fully appreciate that this band and David Byrne are very important to a lot of other musicians, and a lot of people love this band. I just don't really enjoy Byrne's vocals. As I mentioned on the other two records so far, I don't necessarily mind new wave, I just hear portions of these songs that lean into punk beats and melodies and that's what excites me. The artist-y parts are just not as interesting to me. I find myself waiting for Psycho Killer just two songs in. The weird stuff like Tentative Decisions gets exciting at times, but for the most part, I only find a few sections of each song that connect with me. It might be different without Byrne's vocals, but he's the key songwriter, so I don't know how you could ever detangle those. Alas, it's just not for me, and that's okay.

Really good album with a couple of absolute bangers at the end

I've been trying to figure out a favorite Talking Heads album for a long time, but I hadn't really dug into this one. It makes a decent case. I really love This Must Be The Place, so Speaking In Tongues has the #1 spot right now....I don't know if that's a popular choice or not...

Rate: 8/10.

Not as great as Remain in Light or Buildings and Food but a lot of fun anyway. Lays down a groove and rides it for just the right length of time.

Very nerdy, reminds me of Devo and therefore of my father. A twitchy, bespectacled album

great album!!

Some fun sounds & ideas, but the same-y vocals quickly grow a little grating overall.

Two Talking Heads albums and neither one is Stop Making Sense? That just does not make any sense. Which David Byrne would probably appreciate. This is a good album, but I am marking it down to 3 because it is not Stop Making Sense (see also Remain in Light below). If they give me another Talking Heads album that is not Stop Making Sense, I think I will blow my top.

I’ve been trying to not hate the simplicity of this album ever since I discovered this band when Speaking in Tongues came out. Today is the day when I finally got it. This isn’t Fleetwood Mac or the Eagles; Talking Heads 77 was a blurry look at the future of rock, even if the band was still finding its way.

I hated this. David Byrne’s vocals annoyed the hell out of me almost from the start, and once that got under my skin there was really no coming back from it. A lot of this sounds like somebody took the English punk and ska coming out around the same time, stripped out everything I like about it, and replaced it with twitchy art-school weirdness. “Don’t Worry About the Government” was at least mildly entertaining because I liked the tongue-in-cheek lyrics. “Psycho Killer” was decent too, although I’m sure familiarity helped. It also helps that Byrne mostly sings like a normal person on that one instead of doing whatever the hell he’s doing on most of the album. I know Talking Heads are supposed to be hugely influential, but this did absolutely nothing for me. Mostly I just found it irritating.

So Durchschnitt wie etwas nur Durchschnitt sein kann.

Nachdem ich schon das ein oder andere Album von denen probiert habe, das hier aber noch nicht kannte, gebe ich mir jetzt mal die ganze Diskographie. Neuentdeckung.

That one good song saving

2/5 I don’t think this album was for me. Apart from a track or two I didn’t quite get what they were aiming for musically, and the vocals didn’t do me any favours either.

4/5. Underrated in their solid discography. Psycho Killer is. The tru highlight, but it’s not the only song worth checking out. This album is groovy, weird, and just fun. Talking heads are great and this album is no exception. David Byrne is a very fun frontman and songwriter, and serves to make this piece just flat out fun.

Good overall. Psycho Killer is the best song . High energy and intense album.

Made the call to go back and revisit this one proper for this entry and wow, either my tastes have shifted or I've just gotten more mature because suddenly this record sounds really wonderful. Great start for these guys.

Really enjoyed this. It’s sounds like what I think talking heads sounds like. Weird their later stuff I don’t like until they pull out of it into being liked again. Didn’t expect their first album to have their traditional sound.

Some great moments but pretty inconsistent. Can definitely hear the potential of the band but they hadn't reached that yet.

The hits

Right from the start, I'm digging the steel drums in the opening track. And while I'm almost too tired of "Psycho Killer" to continue enjoying it, we're not there yet. I think this might be the most enjoyable Talking Heads album I've listened to so far. While I can't pin down the exact reason why I find it more to my liking, it probably has something to do with the more upbeat, whimsical music. Byrne's lilting vocals enhance the more serious commentary in the lyrics. It's still an average album on a subjective scale, but as a debut album, and for how well the track list is constructed, I can see why it's on the list.

a true classic

Nothing great about this apart from that one song we all know

More less.

Some really fun tracks. They do all sound like different shades of the same color, but it's a good thing that I like that color! Pulled up is a fantastic way to end an album. I love the way his lyrics sound like someone reading instructions and reacting to them.

Don't think I've played this through before, but it sounds kinda familiar (even apart from Psycho-Killer) - the elements prefigure what's coming up for Talking Heads (I knew MSABAF reasonably well), and also more broadly the new wave sensibility coming up. (Noted that the Heads had already been gigging for some time, this stuff was out there.) There are elements I could love (particularly Weymouth basslines, lyrics often quite engaging), some songs have very appealing riffs (particularly No Compassion), others don't really grab me on what might be first listens (and some Byrne vocal stylings are a bit off-putting). What rating? I'll give it points for being influential and for the chutzpah, less points for likeability. Overall, it's at least Good, 7/10. (Might bump it up if/when I get round to listening through a couple more times.)

A fun and playful album, I love the way the band doesn't takes itself too serious. For me it make it feel more genuine Fav songs - Tentative Decisions, Psycho Killer 4/5

Fafafafa

They named this album after the score it deserves. :3 This isn't really my kind of music but I loved it anyway. Psycho Killer was a bit disappointing though, there are much better songs on the album. :3