Search - Talking Heads :: Naked

Benjamin G. from HUDSON, MA
Reviewed on 12/9/2006...

Byrnian brilliance.

Joel and Robin A. from LEXINGTON, MA
Reviewed on 8/12/2006...

This was one of the first CD's I ever bought. A bouncy departure from the earlier Talking Heads, on David Byrne's route to World Music.

Excellent

kennedy19 | wakefield, ma USA | 03/21/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"With "Naked," Talking Heads sought to combine the complex rhythmic layering style of an earlier album like "Remain in Light" with the ironic upbeat accessibility of their more recent commercial work such as "Little Creatures." The result is an intriguing hybrid, with a spark all its own. Some Heads fans may prefer the harder edge of their earlier years, but one should not dismiss "Naked's" polished maturity so quickly. The album bubbles and swirls with diverse and rich rhythms, a variety of instruments (such as french piano, brass, and oboe), and wonderful interweavings of twangy guitar sounds. The first half of the album is pure fun, beginning with David Byrne's superb vocal performance on "Blind" and continuing through a series of tongue-in-cheek 80s vignettes like "Mr. Jones" (an updating of the Bob Dylan everyman from the 60s, now grown fat and even more consumerist but having a great time), the catchy "Totally Naked," the atmospheric "Ruby Dear," and the dazzling "Nothing But Flowers." Each of these tunes is a masterful mix of fluid sounds that make you glad to be alive. The album then takes on a gradual but progressively darker tone, beginning cynically with "The Democratic Circus" (you must remember that at the time this album came out, presidential candidates like Gary Hart were dropping like flies in ridiculous public scandals) and proceeding on to the chilling denoument, "Cool Water." The contrast is amazing - while Mr. Jones parties and naturists frolic around nude, real people are suffering and working themselves to death. Personally, I think this was one of the best albums of the eighties."

There Is No Best Talking Heads Album!!

michael shaoul | new york, new york United States | 12/09/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Through my years as a growing Talking Heads fan, I have come to realiize that it is impossible to coin one of their albums as the best. Any true TH fan will agree. Sure there are some TH albums that are not as good as others, like True Stories for instance, but even with "True Stories," the more you listen to it, the more hidden tresures you discover- thus making it grow on you untill it's just as good as all the others. Having said that, each one is unique and special in it's own way, it all depends on what mood you're in at the time. But what is so great about all of them is that they not only give great listening pleasure, but also demand something more from the listener, thought, hence the term, used so befittingly with this band, "smart music." Naked is at the top of this list. Possibly the smartest TH album ever, its sophisticated, rich and flavored sounds only enhance the sheer wit and intensity that the music posseses, which I must confess, makes it one of my most listenable albums. Its title is exactly what the music represents, purity. It is stripped down to just the purest forms of how music is made. No fancy electronic sound effects or unorganic sounds. This message of returning back to nature is clear in all the songs lyrics. Just amazing to see how they do it, but they do. "Bill, living in the forrest," "there was a factory, now there are mountains and rivers," when we ride the ferris wheel we're little childen again," "some day we'll live on Venus, and men will walk on mars, but we will still be monkeys down deep inside." This strange and bizzaro poetry is the best you're gonna get. And anyone who doesn't like it because it doesn't have the same angular more jagged stylings of eariler albums are insane. Just listen to the goddam thing. The music is unbelievable. How can someone say it doesn't sound good? And Byrne obviously did know where he was heading with this sound and that's fine. Always reinventing yourself is healthy for an artist. No one should hold him back by saying, no, don't do that, only do what you did back in the late 70's early 80's. It would be one thing if his new stuff was bad and really went nowhere, but it's not! It is great music. After Naked his progression from "Rei Momo" to "Look Into The Eyeball" is nothing short of amazing. There aren't many artists like him still out there today. And I mean real artist that honestly let their creative muse really take them in the dirrection that is natural and not commercial or forced. That is real creativity. Any one who thinks that it is too soft or lacks the older TH sound, must understand that, much like other band like The Beatles, this is a band that evloves with a consistent changing sound. And that is only because the people making this music are whats called, "true artists."
Just the song (Nothing But) Flowers is worth the price of the CD. And anyone who thinks differently doesn't grasp the concept of just how monumental and important that song is. But the creativity doesn't stop there. I can honestly say that every single song is a gen in itself. Yes, they do take multiple listens to fully understand just how good they are. However it is songs like those that grow on you that just keep getting better and better each time you hear it, unlike the conventional pop song that usualy gets played out and old after a few months. This album has lasting power, that is why it has not been fully discovered yet and like all great painters and artists, their works aren't fully discover and appreciated until after they're dead. I wonder why it's always like that?"