Great album openers get the listeners to keep on listening. They can do this in any number of ways. Some openers set the tone by easing us in. Others jump right in and blow our minds from the very beginning. A great album opener isn’t an easy thing to create. More than a great song, it’s all about the sequence. Track 1 has to be the perfect starter. This month, I’m highlighting my favorites. #AlbumOpeningSongs
One of the greatest concert experiences I ever had wasn’t even a true concert. It was a Broadway show: David Byrne’s American Utopia. The show was brilliant. Byrne provided commentary on the state of the world, but he never preached or pissed anyone off. He simply plead for ways to make things better for all of us. And, it turns out, more than 75% of the music was from the Talking Heads catalog. And then here’s the kicker. this event happened as we were beginning to emerge out of the pandemic. The event was cathartic for us all. And when “Burning Down The House” came on, everyone rose to their feet. It never felt so good to dance and be with people again.
The opener to Speaking in Tongues is full of synth zaps, tumbling drum rolls, thumping bass lines, spastic guitar strums, and then there are the vocals. “Burning Down The House” beckons us in to sing along. David Byrne, as usual, sings with his whole being, putting everything he has into every word. It seemed like one of the quintessential songs of the eighties. But then hearing it again live – and on my Spotify – I’m amazed at how well it has held up. It’s just as sharp and mesmerizing as it was all those years ago.
“No visible means of support. And you have not seen nothin' yet. Everything's stuck together. And I don't know what you expect. Staring into the TV set. Fighting fire with fire.”