We are candid with each other and hold each other accountable. We’ve built a great friendship over the past several years and it is really incredible to have developed such a wonderful relationship with someone who I have admired for decades. Swan: I have gotten to know David so well that nothing really surprises me anymore. We maybe all on a road to nowhere, but with the future in our hands we can make that road go anywhere.Brunner: What might surprise people about David Byrne? Byrne’s wacky body expressions never lets up – even as the end credits roll, he leaves the stage, pops on his helmet and Go-Pro, and hops on his bike before cruising around New York with the rest of the band! The film is truly life-affirming, and is possibly one of the greatest concert films ever made – for me, it’s up there with The Last Waltz. Reflections on badness quickly gives way to joy and vibrancy, as we are treated to some favourite Heads’ songs at the end. The musicians give a rousing salute to those American minorities who lost their lives to police brutality via a version of Janelle Monáe’s Hell You Talmbout, which is relevant, timely and deeply forceful. I am sure all Americans have been affected in some way or another by the shocking course of events that has occurred there in recent times. Some would say this is out of place in a music film, but I don’t agree. He also makes an odd mention about the state of affairs in the US – this was filmed when the country was experiencing the final dark days of Trump. There are some funny anecdotes and titbits about his music and the musicians on stage beside him. Byrne, in his matter-of-fact North American accent, speaks many truths in-between songs. The music is joyous and gratifying, but the thrust of what is said is equally as important. The energy exuded by the musicians, led by the irrepressible and expressive Mr Byrne, encaptivates the viewer, as it does the audience who often rush to their feet to applaud the extraordinary show taking place in front of them. Spike Lee controls the cameras, and adds some trademark editing flair here and there but you would never know it was ‘A Spike Lee Joint’ until the credits roll. There is no set design and all instruments are completely wireless. Everyone is in their feet, wears a grey suit and looks pretty cool. The setting is fairly intimate (small stage, thousand or so in the audience), and the performance is carefully choreographed. The film is essentially a live recording of Byrne (not of Talking Heads anymore) and a number of international artists performing songs from his most recent album American Utopia, as well as many other recognisable tunes, on Broadway. While it is that, it is also so much more. American Utopia can be seen as a spiritual sequel to that ground-breaking 1984 concert film (directed by Jonathan Demme). Then I watched Stop Making Sense for the first time and I was totally engrossed by this man. It wasn’t until relatively recently that I started to listen to Talking Heads more, mainly because Byrne began to appear more and more in things that I engaged with – in particular, a candid interview on BBC Radio’s Desert Island Discs where he explained some of his upbringing, his influences and his thoughts on current affairs. As one would say, he seems to be ‘on the spectrum’…and I like that. This is epitomised by the music video for Talking Heads’ Once in a Lifetime, where the bespectacled and dickie-bowed lead-man throws shapes at the screen while mouthing the lyrics to an incredibly catchy song. Give us time to work it out.ĭavid Byrne has always struck me as a wacky guy but with an extraordinary talent for music. Directed by Spike Lee.Īnd we’re not little children. David Byrne’s American Utopia (HBO Pictures)Ĭhoreography by Annie B Parson.
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