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Music : Little Creatures
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Rating: 
- Great, fun music
One of the better things to come out of the 80s. Although I have heard that this is not considered the best work the Talking Heads has ever done, it is intelligent enough to remain timeless, enjoyable enough to listen to anywhere, and sensible enough to speak to the everyday listener.
Give it a listen!
Rating: - Hard To Really Disklike
I've gone back and rediscovered the brilliance that was Talking Heads now as a forty year old adult and found that I may have been wrong about "Little Creatures", which was actually the first of their albums I bought as a new release back in 1985; I had ignored "Stop Making Sense" when it was on the charts and had only become aware of the band the year before. Amusing anecdote is that "Little Creatures" was released the summer I was on a student exchange trip to Germany and the minute someone told me it had hit the stores I went out & found a copy on cassette, which I still have.
Back then things were different, and they were one of THE bands to follow in my group of artsy-musician urban angstmeisters. At the time I thought it was a pretty cool if unimaginative record & literally listened to it nonstop for a few weeks while traveling around Europe. When I got back to the states and would play the album for my buddies I was somewhat dismayed to hear their opinion that the band had "sold out", and amongst the hip, in-crowd the record very quickly fell out of favor even while it sold briskly to more mainstream listeners. But hearing the big songs (the annoying "And She Was" & "Road To Nowhere") out in the college bars suggested that by golly they HAD sold out, even if the music was still pretty decent.
Then came "True Stories" and it became clear that David Byrne had gone pop, and the rest of the band had gone with him. Boo hoo. "Wild Wild Life"'s success as a single was sort of the last straw and I more or less gave up on Talking Heads as a functioning unit until "Naked", by which time it was too late. By 1989 the group had stopped touring, split up for all intents & purposes, and I never even got to see them live. The disappointment is still tremendous.
One of the unfortunate after-effects of that disappointment was that I turned my back on Talking Heads' pop era -- to this day I have never owned my own copy of the "True Stories" album, even if I liked the movie -- and the greatest victim was probably "Little Creatures" which I literally could not stand for many, many years. Aside from the mind boggling 12 inch remix of "Lady Don't Mind" (which can be found on the newer UK import versions of the CD, the recommended version to buy) and the brilliant "Television Man", which has always been one of my favorite Talking Heads songs, listening to "Little Creatures" made my liver twitch. I put it away and did my best to forget about it for more than 20 years, managing to do a pretty good job it.
That's because listening to it now as a grown adult, and with the benefit of hindsight due to being able to look back at Talking Heads' ENTIRE career now in 2008 and after their being inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (2004), it's pretty clear that "Little Creatures" played a very important if misunderstood -- by me, at any rate -- role in their evolution from an edgy post punk art rock band into a cultural powerhouse who's music transcended mere considerations like genres or commercial appeal vs. underground aesthetic.
My opinion on the album now, 20 years after, is that it is actually a pretty decent record that just happens to have a couple of ultra-annoying songs. Specifically the opening "And She Was", as annoying of a pop single that has ever been heard, and "Creatures Of Love", a country flavored ode to getting laid on a regular basis & managing to find love at the same time, which is easily my choice for Most Awful Talking Heads Song Ever. I even managed to dislike "Road To Nowhere" while it was a popular favorite though I must say that there is something special going on in the song ... Perhaps a profound self realization that the band itself was on both a metaphoric and literal Road To Nowhere, and that it was probably time for them to end their association. Listening to it now sort of sends a chill down one's spine as David Byrne's lyrics sort of tell the story of how it all came crumbling down.
Other tracks however remain openly brilliant: "Television Man", "Lady Don't Mind", the creepy "Walk It Town", the disarmingly domesticated "Perfect World" and "Stay Up Late", even "Give Me Back My Name" which seems to be David Byrne asking for his privacy back after becoming a pop culture superstar. Come to think of it, that's the entire album, and even with the annoying cuts (as well as Byrne's lyrical fixation on having been domesticated by the love of his life, costume designer Adelle Lutz) are actually quite listenable compared to all the crap I had to put up with working in record stores for ten years. "Little Creatures" isn't Talking Heads' strongest hour, but weak Talking Heads is still better than 99.9% of the punk/rock/pop ever composed, so you can do a lot worse. It is a very difficult record to dislike & I recommend it without hesitation to anyone with an interest.
One subject that I see a lot of folks commenting on in regards to Talking Heads is trying to pick a "first CD" recommendation for young listeners who would like to find out what the fuss is all about with this band. While it was a commercial success I wouldn't choose "Little Creatures" but would nod towards either their early minimalist masterpiece "More Songs About Buildings And Food" or the critical heavyweight, "Speaking In Tongues", which really broke open the floodgates for them. "Little Creatures" is probably for later on once you've gotten used to David Byrne's histrionics and become comfortable with the band's sound. By then you'll also have a better feel for why it was so disappointing to fans at the time compared to that which came before it, even if now 20 years down the road it's sounding pretty good again.
4/5
Rating:
- I'm back in High School!
I grew up with these timeless performers. It takes me back to happy times as a teen.
Rating: - Good for picking up a party or driving
The Talking Heads have put out some great music in the 1980's up to the mid 90's but I think this album was when they reached a creative pinnacle in their melodic style. David Byrne has the kind of creative mind which produces lyrics and music in a unique way. Because their music was always considered obscure, even within their category, they tended to attract a sub mainstream audience. "Speaking in Tounges" was their first record to get noticed but even so, it was considered eclectic. Then "Stop Making Sense" (the movie) came out and mainstream was going to see it and buying Talking Heads recordings, followed by the soundtrack for "True Stories."
What I like about it is that it's uplifting, fun, and energetic. The music makes you want to get up and dance. The words are sometimes weird, funny, and strong statements about our society. I've also put in some great driving time in our old Saab, listening to this CD. When it ends, you find the last hour seemed to go by quickly and you're almost there!
Rating: - Eclectic, poignant and it began my musical appreciation
Little Creatures was an album a friend of mine who ran a record store in the 80's in Newport, Rhode Island, gave to me when I was first discovering the magic of Mike Stipe. I was into very different styles of music, but knew about Talking Heads during its heydey days at CBGB's and their connection at RISD. David Byrne was a voice of his generation. I was very young when I first heard 'Little Creatures'. My friends laughed at me, as at that time Beastie Boys were the towering inferno of adolescence. 'And She Was' and 'Road To Nowhere' I would belt out in my room to screams from my mother to turn that blasted, awful, talentless music off. :)
There is just something whimsically magical, and almost ambient about Little Creatures and the voice of Byrne. It's music that seems to fit into every situation, which is why so many directors, including Stone, has used their music in scenes which called for something that indeed isn't smashing rock and roll, and too soft to be called Byrne.
Really a fantastic album, by one of the greatest bands ever.
- Great, fun musicOne of the better things to come out of the 80s. Although I have heard that this is not considered the best work the Talking Heads has ever done, it is intelligent enough to remain timeless, enjoyable enough to listen to anywhere, and sensible enough to speak to the everyday listener.
Give it a listen!
Rating:
- Hard To Really DisklikeI've gone back and rediscovered the brilliance that was Talking Heads now as a forty year old adult and found that I may have been wrong about "Little Creatures", which was actually the first of their albums I bought as a new release back in 1985; I had ignored "Stop Making Sense" when it was on the charts and had only become aware of the band the year before. Amusing anecdote is that "Little Creatures" was released the summer I was on a student exchange trip to Germany and the minute someone told me it had hit the stores I went out & found a copy on cassette, which I still have.
Back then things were different, and they were one of THE bands to follow in my group of artsy-musician urban angstmeisters. At the time I thought it was a pretty cool if unimaginative record & literally listened to it nonstop for a few weeks while traveling around Europe. When I got back to the states and would play the album for my buddies I was somewhat dismayed to hear their opinion that the band had "sold out", and amongst the hip, in-crowd the record very quickly fell out of favor even while it sold briskly to more mainstream listeners. But hearing the big songs (the annoying "And She Was" & "Road To Nowhere") out in the college bars suggested that by golly they HAD sold out, even if the music was still pretty decent.
Then came "True Stories" and it became clear that David Byrne had gone pop, and the rest of the band had gone with him. Boo hoo. "Wild Wild Life"'s success as a single was sort of the last straw and I more or less gave up on Talking Heads as a functioning unit until "Naked", by which time it was too late. By 1989 the group had stopped touring, split up for all intents & purposes, and I never even got to see them live. The disappointment is still tremendous.
One of the unfortunate after-effects of that disappointment was that I turned my back on Talking Heads' pop era -- to this day I have never owned my own copy of the "True Stories" album, even if I liked the movie -- and the greatest victim was probably "Little Creatures" which I literally could not stand for many, many years. Aside from the mind boggling 12 inch remix of "Lady Don't Mind" (which can be found on the newer UK import versions of the CD, the recommended version to buy) and the brilliant "Television Man", which has always been one of my favorite Talking Heads songs, listening to "Little Creatures" made my liver twitch. I put it away and did my best to forget about it for more than 20 years, managing to do a pretty good job it.
That's because listening to it now as a grown adult, and with the benefit of hindsight due to being able to look back at Talking Heads' ENTIRE career now in 2008 and after their being inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (2004), it's pretty clear that "Little Creatures" played a very important if misunderstood -- by me, at any rate -- role in their evolution from an edgy post punk art rock band into a cultural powerhouse who's music transcended mere considerations like genres or commercial appeal vs. underground aesthetic.
My opinion on the album now, 20 years after, is that it is actually a pretty decent record that just happens to have a couple of ultra-annoying songs. Specifically the opening "And She Was", as annoying of a pop single that has ever been heard, and "Creatures Of Love", a country flavored ode to getting laid on a regular basis & managing to find love at the same time, which is easily my choice for Most Awful Talking Heads Song Ever. I even managed to dislike "Road To Nowhere" while it was a popular favorite though I must say that there is something special going on in the song ... Perhaps a profound self realization that the band itself was on both a metaphoric and literal Road To Nowhere, and that it was probably time for them to end their association. Listening to it now sort of sends a chill down one's spine as David Byrne's lyrics sort of tell the story of how it all came crumbling down.
Other tracks however remain openly brilliant: "Television Man", "Lady Don't Mind", the creepy "Walk It Town", the disarmingly domesticated "Perfect World" and "Stay Up Late", even "Give Me Back My Name" which seems to be David Byrne asking for his privacy back after becoming a pop culture superstar. Come to think of it, that's the entire album, and even with the annoying cuts (as well as Byrne's lyrical fixation on having been domesticated by the love of his life, costume designer Adelle Lutz) are actually quite listenable compared to all the crap I had to put up with working in record stores for ten years. "Little Creatures" isn't Talking Heads' strongest hour, but weak Talking Heads is still better than 99.9% of the punk/rock/pop ever composed, so you can do a lot worse. It is a very difficult record to dislike & I recommend it without hesitation to anyone with an interest.
One subject that I see a lot of folks commenting on in regards to Talking Heads is trying to pick a "first CD" recommendation for young listeners who would like to find out what the fuss is all about with this band. While it was a commercial success I wouldn't choose "Little Creatures" but would nod towards either their early minimalist masterpiece "More Songs About Buildings And Food" or the critical heavyweight, "Speaking In Tongues", which really broke open the floodgates for them. "Little Creatures" is probably for later on once you've gotten used to David Byrne's histrionics and become comfortable with the band's sound. By then you'll also have a better feel for why it was so disappointing to fans at the time compared to that which came before it, even if now 20 years down the road it's sounding pretty good again.
4/5
Rating:
- I'm back in High School!I grew up with these timeless performers. It takes me back to happy times as a teen.
Rating:
- Good for picking up a party or drivingThe Talking Heads have put out some great music in the 1980's up to the mid 90's but I think this album was when they reached a creative pinnacle in their melodic style. David Byrne has the kind of creative mind which produces lyrics and music in a unique way. Because their music was always considered obscure, even within their category, they tended to attract a sub mainstream audience. "Speaking in Tounges" was their first record to get noticed but even so, it was considered eclectic. Then "Stop Making Sense" (the movie) came out and mainstream was going to see it and buying Talking Heads recordings, followed by the soundtrack for "True Stories."
What I like about it is that it's uplifting, fun, and energetic. The music makes you want to get up and dance. The words are sometimes weird, funny, and strong statements about our society. I've also put in some great driving time in our old Saab, listening to this CD. When it ends, you find the last hour seemed to go by quickly and you're almost there!
Rating:
- Eclectic, poignant and it began my musical appreciationLittle Creatures was an album a friend of mine who ran a record store in the 80's in Newport, Rhode Island, gave to me when I was first discovering the magic of Mike Stipe. I was into very different styles of music, but knew about Talking Heads during its heydey days at CBGB's and their connection at RISD. David Byrne was a voice of his generation. I was very young when I first heard 'Little Creatures'. My friends laughed at me, as at that time Beastie Boys were the towering inferno of adolescence. 'And She Was' and 'Road To Nowhere' I would belt out in my room to screams from my mother to turn that blasted, awful, talentless music off. :)
There is just something whimsically magical, and almost ambient about Little Creatures and the voice of Byrne. It's music that seems to fit into every situation, which is why so many directors, including Stone, has used their music in scenes which called for something that indeed isn't smashing rock and roll, and too soft to be called Byrne.
Really a fantastic album, by one of the greatest bands ever.