Remain in Light

Talking Heads | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 25, 1990)
• Original Release Date: 1980
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Warner Bros / Wea
• ASIN: B000002KO3
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (160 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,758 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #9 in Music > Alternative Rock > New Wave & Post-Punk > Post-Punk
  • #10 in Music > Alternative Rock > Hardcore & Punk > General AAS
  • #43 in Music > Alternative Rock > New Wave & Post-Punk > New Wave

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Way back in 1980, the original wave of Talking Heads fans were pleasantly stunned to hear Remain in Light, produced and co-written by Brian Eno, on which Byrne and company are joined by guitar god Adrian Belew, and funk legends Bernie Worrell (keyboards) and Steven Scales (percussion), among others, for a fuller, funkier sound nobody imagined they had in them. The first three songs are long, layered, full-body dance parties, with incessantly repeated phrases (musical and lyrical), and increasingly catchy melodic hooks that won't let go for days. "Once in a Lifetime" was the big hit, but the rockingest track is the third, "The Great Curve," after which the songs get more linear and subdued. It's still great stuff, right through to the especially Eno-like droner, "The Overload," but the second half is maybe better to sleep to than dance to. Which is fine: after the exuberance of the first three songs, you'll need a little nap. --Dan Leone

Product Description

Audio CD.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

33 of 35 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing. The Talking Heads' best work! April 2, 2001

By M. Packham

Format:Audio CD

Remain in Light is perhaps the Talking Heads' best album. Technically it is flawless, and as far as music goes, Remain in Light unifies electronica, African rhythms, guitar riffs and Bryan Eno's signature minimalism to hypnotic effect. The music is captivating and melodic - great dance music, but also great careful-listening music - and David Byrne's halting, discordant voice and thoughtful lyrics transcend each song to a more intellectual and compelling level. Ultimately, Remain in Light is a piece of art as well as a piece of music - Byrne and Eno have carefully layered music, vocals and thoughtful lyrics to create perhaps one of the best albums of the eighties.

The first three tracks are primarily dance tracks, but each one is subtly constructed and multi-layered. `Born Under Punches' combines repetition, African rhythm and a variety of eclectic instruments Tom Waits would be proud of. The end result is a dance track with a political slant: "Take a look at these hands... I'm a tumbler/ I'm a government man... I'm so thin... all I want is to breathe." `Crosseyed and Painless' is another dance track, however the weakest of the three. `The Great Curve' is perhaps one of the Heads' best work - it is an exemplary piece of music that showcases the great song-writing and compositional aptitude of the band's frontman, David Byrne. The Great Curve is a haunting, melodic and multi-layered work that stays with the listener for a long time - but, if you like, you can get up and dance to it because it's got one hell of a rhythm pounding through it.

The next five songs are exceptional, however the focus shifts from dance to more of an art-rock.... `Houses in Motion' is brilliant, `Seen and Not Seen' is a spoken conversation piece and `Once in a Lifetime' was the big hit from the album, and has a very catchy and musical chorus. `Listening Wind' revisits the African elements of the album and is quite a haunting piece of music, and finally, the album anti-climaxes with the Eno-Byrne collaboration `The Overload', which fails to live up to it's initial horrific promise.

But altogether Remain in Light rivals Speaking in Tongues for the Talking Heads' best album. It exemplifies their artistic and musical ability that started to mature with the advent of the captivating Fear of Music, yet still retains the pulsating rhythm of More Songs About Buildings and Food and Talking Heads '77. Remain in Light is a unique listening experience - one that you can dance to and listen to all the same - and is a worthy addition to anyone's music library. Read more ›

39 of 45 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Album = 5 stars; reissue = 3˝. January 12, 2006

By spiral_mind

Format:Audio CD

Believe all the raves: Remain in Light is the zenith of the Heads' career and a classic essential for anyone who loves inventive music. This is a madly addicting collision of new-wave, pop, dance-rock and African trance that hasn't dated in the least. From David Byrne's masterful way with melodies to Brian Eno's impeccable onion-layered production work to Adrian Belew's stunt-guitar effects to the all-pervading percussion, every piece of the whole is perfect and falls into place just right.

The core of the album of course is the songs; the mad dance frenzy of "Crosseyed & Painless" and "The Great Curve," the beautiful tones of "Once in a Lifetime" (one of the Greatest Songs Ever), the slow trance of "Houses in Motion" and "Listening Wind" (which remains relevant enough to be downright eerie). Underneath there are layers upon layers of fascinating rhythm throughout, which make it much more than just a bunch of repetitive danceable beats (this release is also augmented by four bonus unfinished/demo tracks that give a nice window into how the original was constructed).

RiL has finally gotten the remastering that's been long overdue, so there are nuances of sound and percussion here that probably haven't been audible on any recording since the original LP. The sound improvement alone makes this an upgrade well worth buying.. assuming you can play it.

But that's one of the problems with this reissue: it's in Dualdisc format, which means a fair amount of CD players old and new won't be able to play it. And as novel as the idea of a single disc with CD & DVD sides is, it also makes storing/protecting the thing itself much more difficult than it needs to be. More strange, this release is in a cardboard/plastic digipak.... It's a horrible way to store regular CDs to begin with, let alone discs that are vulnerable to scratching on *both* sides. Can someone explain this? What am I missing?

I dock a star for the crummy packaging, but hearing this masterpiece in all its sonic glory is still a treat not to be missed (I recommend just burning a CD-R of the audio). If all you've heard is the previous CD, to hear this is to discover Remain in Light all over again. Read more ›

29 of 33 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars You want polyrhythms? You got polyrhythms! May 5, 2004

By D. Knouse

Format:Audio CD

polyrhythm(n): the simultaneous combination of contrasting rhythms in a musical composition

polyrhythmic(adj): 1: having many rhythms 2: having two or more rhythms proceeding simultaneously in different musical parts

Keep those definitions in mind when listening to this masterpiece from one of the most interesting bands I have ever had the pleasure of hearing. From the galloping multi-rhythmic opening song, "Born Under Punches(The Heat Goes On)," it becomes glaringly obvious that this is very original music. After pushing the Polyrhythmic Threshold with their previous albums, with varied success, Talking Heads shatter all their previous efforts with this epic and wholly amazing album. Along with their concert DVD, "Stop Making Sense," owning this album is absolutely essential to reach a full appreciation of this remarkable band. Both are exceptional experiences. My favorites from this CD are the faster tracks but the last two songs close the album with a somber, ethereal tone. The song "Listening Wind" is haunting, while "The Overload" is like walking around in a daze amid the ruins of some cataclysmic event. For the beginning fan I would suggest buying the DVD "Stop Making Sense" first, but soon after you should purchase this excellent album in a state of euphoria. I wish more bands would embrace polyrhythms and incorporate them in their songwriting. The songs on this album are crammed with them. Thank you.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Funky, danceable, brilliant. September 4, 2003

By Shotgun Method

Format:Audio CD

The Talking Heads, members of 1977's CBGB scene, certainly carved a unique niche in the music world. While the Ramones were pounding out 3-chord witty anthems and Television and Richard Hell were making literate punk rock, the Talking Heads were pioneering their own blend of dancy art-rock. While every album from Talking Heads '77 to Speaking In Tongues is classic material, if I was forced to choose their best album I'd have to side with Remain In Light. Although some gripe over Brian Eno's increased role in the band (some have said that he is the "fifth member") there is no denying that under his auspices as producer, David Byrne (vocals), Tina Weymouth (bass), Chris Frantz (drums) and Adrian Belew (guitar, later of King Crimson) released their best material.

Released in 1980, Remain In Light is often considered one of the seminal "New Wave" recordings, but it isn't really. The Talking Heads couldn't be compared to tripe like The Human League or Culture Club. Their music was diverse, intelligent, fluid, weird, and shake-your-hips-FUNKY.

The first half of Remain In Light is highly eccentric and upbeat dance music, sounding like some odd mutation of punk, African bush music, and funk. Wild polyrhythms abound, Byrne's vocals are quirky and neat bits of beat poetry ("I'm not a drowning man/I'm a tumbler!") and brilliantly inventive guitarist Belew unleashes sounds more remiscient of wild animals and electronic effects than the buzzsaw blast of punk. The second half, beginning with mainstream hit Once In A Lifetime (propelled by that timeless music video on MTV) progressively slows down the blistering pace with more moody and introspective pieces, ending with the dark dirge of The Overload (written by Eno, and very unlike the rest of the record).... Overall, there's not a note wasted here.

Remain In Light is a truly great album--if you've heard the brilliant Once In A Lifetime already, that should be incentive enough to own this record. Right? Check out previous albums Talking Heads '77, More Songs About Buildings And Food, Fear Of Music, and the commercial followup Speaking In Tongues as well. Read more ›