Stop making sense (1984) [VINYL]

Product Information

The band performs 18 songs in Stop Making Sense, including its recent single at the time, “Burning Down The House.” That summer, the song was in heavy rotation on radio and MTV, helping the song become the band’s first top 10 hit in America. It was, however, a different song from Speaking in Tongues that was destined to deliver one of the film’s signature moments. Byrne would perform “Girlfriend Is Better” wearing his now iconic, oversized business suit inspired by costumes worn in traditional Japanese theater. For good measure, a picture of him in the suit also graces the album cover. Harrison says the film still holds up today: “To me, Stop Making Sense has remained relevant because the staging and lighting techniques could have been created in a much earlier time period. For example, Vari-Lights, lights with motors to re-aim them, had just come into vogue. Had we used them, there would have been a timestamp on the film, and it eventually would have felt dated… The absence of interviews, combined with the elegant and timeless lighting, created a film that can be watched over and over.” Goods that are faulty or sent in error must be returned to Crash Records Limited, 35 The Headrow, Leeds, LS1 6PU within 7 working days of the item being received by the customer. Matrix / Runout (Side B, variant 6): SH-SP 1 25121 B SH 3 [Allied 'ɑ' logo] B-19702-SH3 SLM 1̶-̶2 0-2 STERLING TJ ∆7401-X

I wrote about it somewhere, maybe in the Los Angeles-based "Music Connection" magazine. Little Feat's Waiting For Columbus had come out in 1978 recorded to analog tape and comparing this to that or comparing Talking Heads' own The Name of This Band is Talking Heads a double LP released in 1982 consisting of late 70s era quartet recordings on one disc and the new expanded group on the other. This sounded like a live album, not like an artificial construct. Last evening after publishing this review I played the 1999 DVD and it sounded great: plenty of midrange giving voices body and weight, plus far greater dynamic range.That’s no guarantee the mix translates well to a purely aural experience but it tells me the vinyl. sound was a choice not a recording restriction. Harrison says the film still holds up today: “To me, Stop Making Sense has remained relevant because the staging and lighting techniques could have been created in a much earlier time period. For example, Vari-Lights, lights with motors to re-aim them, had just come into vogue. Had we used them, there would have been a timestamp on the film, and it eventually would have felt dated...The absence of interviews, combined with the elegant and timeless lighting, created a film that can be watched over and over.” Weymouth praises Demme as a collaborator: “Jonathan was a very enthusiastic, highly adaptive, and imaginative guy who was just as good a listener as he was a talker and collaborator. From the get-go you just got the impression he was as flexible as he was disciplined. Being team players, that boded well for a great relationship and a great film!”

Matrix / Runout (Side A, variant 5): SH-SP 1 25121 A SH1 [Allied 'ɑ' logo] B-19701- SH1 SP SLM∆ 7401 1̶-̶2̶ STERLING TJ 0-1 The inspiration for Stop Making Sense came when director Jonathan Demme saw Talking Heads perform during the band’s 1983 tour for Speaking in Tongues. Afterward, he approached them with the idea of making the show into a concert film. They agreed and worked together over the next few months to finalize the details. Ultimately, Demme filmed three shows at Hollywood’s Pantages Theater in December 1983 to create Stop Making Sense. The strengths of the Stop Making Sense concert film are both obvious and well documented. Behind the incredible direction of Jonathan Demme, the creative minds behind the music, and the revolutionary filming and production decisions, the film was both an incredibly successful and influential experiment by the band. Adding: “As often happens, the songs got an added energy when we performed them live and were inspired by having an audience. In many ways, these versions are more exciting than the studio recordings, so maybe that’s why a lot of folks discovered us via this record.”

A record as essential as the first five Talking Heads LPs, Stop Making Sense remains the perfect live album. Same as it ever was. Weymouth praises Demme as a collaborator: “…Jonathan was a very enthusiastic, highly adaptive, and imaginative guy who was just as good a listener as he was a talker and collaborator. From the get-go you just got the impression he was as flexible as he was disciplined. Being team players, that boded well for a great relationship and a great film!” and LP similar to Talking Heads - Stop Making Sense, but the vinyl is easier, and the color of the label is lighter. Matrix / Runout (Side A, variant 1): 0-25MI-I SH-SP 1-25121 A SH1 [Allied 'ɑ' logo] B-19701-SH1 SLM ∆7401 STERLING Talking Heads’ full Stop Making Sense concert is getting its first-ever full vinyl release on August 18 by Rhino.

Sting

Byrne's annotation mentions that he found it odd that "...for many people, this album was their introduction to Talking Heads". Byrne credits the film and the "improved mixes and sound quality" for helping popularize the band with this new, larger audience. Byrne writes, "This show, this collection of songs, was a kind of history of the band up until that point." Of course, by that time, long time fans knew all of the songs and albums, especially the groundbreaking Brian Eno produced ones. And here they got to hear the familiar songs in highly energized versions.

T HE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “ Talking Heads joined forces with director Jonathan Demme for the groundbreaking concert film Stop Making Sense. To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the concerts filmed for Stop Making Sense, a newly restored 4K version of the film will return to theaters for a global theatrical run with A24.In the liner notes, Byrne states: “We had done a live album before this, but coupled with the film, and with the improved mixes and sound quality, this record reached a whole new audience.” BTW: the production credits are far better on the 1999 DVD than they are on both the original LP edition and on this reissue. Byrne says it’s interesting that this album was — for many people — an introduction to Talking Heads: “We had done a live album before this, but coupled with the film, and with the improved mixes and sound quality, this record reached a whole new audience. As often happens, the songs got an added energy when we performed them live and were inspired by having an audience. In many ways, these versions are more exciting than the studio recordings, so maybe that’s why a lot of folks discovered us via this record.” Design [Booklet Designed By - With], Liner Notes [Booklet Written By - With] – Jeff Ayeroff*, Michael Hodgson (2)