When it was announced that Scots-born David Byrne would be performing at the Edinburgh Playhouse, I knew I wanted to go. Admittedly, I can’t say that I’ve been a fan of his or Talking Heads for decades – or even years. It’s only recently that I’ve dipped into the latter’s back catalogue. Before that though, I was already very familiar with the biggest Talking Heads hits – Psycho Killer (The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain do a brilliant version), Once In A Lifetime, And She Was, Life During Wartime, and Road To Nowhere. I also remember really liking Lazy, the 2002 single Byrne collaborated on with X-Press 2, a British house duo. And as part of my New (to me) Music blog series, I’ve heard two Talking Heads albums, so far: More Songs About Buildings and Food and Remain In Light.
Having seen photos of earlier gigs on the Who Is The Sky tour, I thought it looked such an intriguing way to put on a concert and I wanted to experience it for myself. After a faff trying to get a ticket, I finally secured one and then, as I did with my first EXTC gig, I went onto Setlist.fm, found the list of songs for the Who Is The Sky tour, and then made a playlist on Tidal to become better acquainted with the tracks not already mentioned above.
A good chunk of the songs had become favourites in the months leading up to the concert – Strange Overtones, T Shirt, This Must Be The Place, (Nothing But) Flowers, to name but a few.
Fast forward to the day of the gig. I booked a hotel ridiculously close to the venue so with doors opening an hour before the event itself was due to start at 8pm – I left the hotel at the back of 7 (it was advised people turn up early) and walked the ten seconds to the Playhouse, showed my ticket and queued up at the small merch counter. I bought a few things while mildly regretting not bringing a bag with me – sure, I could have bought a tote bag but I already have way, way too many as it is. Anyway, the storage problem was solved after I bought a drink at my seat which was delivered in a small paper bag, just snug enough to fit my purchases.
Anyway, enough of the wittering and time to move on to the reason you clicked on this post in the first place – the gig itself.
Before the lights dimmed, David Byrne could be heard over the speakers reminding folk to keep pictures and video recordings to a minimum and to try and be “present”. He went on to say that dancing was allowed but to be mindful of those around us… but that “they might want to dance with you”.
And certainly people took heed of his words. Of course there were cameras out during the gig but not as many as you’d think and, from my vantage point (Stalls Row E aisle seat), people were taking a few snaps and perhaps recording a little but there wasn’t a sea of phones like at a lot of other events.
And of course there was dancing. Most folk, including myself, got up to dance during the bigger hits (I always checked that those behind me were already standing before I did), and remained seated for the music from Who Is The Sky. Because I’d given myself a heads-up with the setlist, I’d become familiar with newer tracks like What Is The Reason For It? and Everybody Laughs, so I was bopping away in my seat for those.
Every song had a bespoke backdrop, including t-shirt slogans (T Shirt) and a 360 degree image of Byrne’s flat during lockdown (My Apartment Is My Friend). Sometimes I didn’t know whether to focus on the performers or watch the videos on the three large screens.
And let’s turn to those performers, a mix of dancers, singers and musicians, who accompanied Byrne. They were constantly on the go. Okay, so the dance moves weren’t extravagant but to remember all the steps and movements for 21 songs, for 2 hours? That’s a hell of a lot to remember and I commend their stamina. We were told by Byrne that one of the members, cellist and bass guitarist, Kely Pinheiro was unwell so couldn’t join them onstage but that we would still be able to hear her. I’m not sure if that meant they recorded her pieces beforehand, or that she was backstage playing (setlist.fm for this particular concert seems to think the latter).
In between songs, Byrne addressed the audience. At one point some photographs he’d taken in Edinburgh appeared on the screens. The first was individual photos of the four statues at the city’s Surgeon’s Hall Museum which were in honour of the nurses and doctors during Covid. Byrne remarked that it was rare to find statues of ordinary people. The second image was of the wildfire which had happened mere days before on Arthur’s Seat.
The last few songs before the encore were the biggies – Psycho Killer, Life During Wartime, and ending with Once In A Lifetime. I think everybody that could was up dancing at this point.
I actually thought that was it, especially going by the thunderous applause and cheering when everyone left the stage.
But they weren’t quite done. A light was lowered from the ceiling and under the soft glow, everyone came back on to sing Everybody’s Coming To My House, and then a proceedings were brought to an end with Burning Down The House.
When those on stage took their bow, there was another explosion of absolute roof-raising cheers and applauding that even Byrne looked slightly surprised at the intensity.
Is it the best gig I’ve been to? I think I can definitely say yes, it is. It kept me engaged and engaged for two hours, and I doff my hat to everyone involved, from performers to backstage crew.
I’m definitely interested in watching the American Utopia tour from 2018 which I believe has a similar set up to this one. And I really need to get round to watching the entirety of Stop Making Sense.
Oh, and get listening to the rest of the Talking Heads and solo David Byrne back catalogue, too!
Over to you. Were you at one of the Who Is The Sky gigs? Have you seen David Byrne before, or Talking Heads? And what’s been your best (and worst) gigs?
