Talking Heads Announce New Book

Talking Heads are getting the band back together—for a new book. David Byrne, Tina Weymouth, Jerry Harrison, and Chris Frantz have announced Talking Heads: New Feeling, set to arrive on May 18. The release date also marks the 50th anniversary of the group’s debut album, Talking Heads: 77.

“For this book, we pulled out handwritten lyrics, original album sketches, and private photos, some of which haven’t left our archive in over 40 years,” Harrison told publisher Abrams Books in an interview today. New Feeling features original essays from all four members, plus contributions from Lorde, Debbie Harry, Karl Ove Knausgaard, Jeff Bridges, and more.

The new book also gathers behind-the-scenes photos from the 1984 concert film Stop Making Sense, which returned to theaters for a limited engagement in 2023. In an interview ahead of that re-release, Harrison told Pitchfork’s Andy Cush that seeing the film again “revives the joy we had together,” adding: ”It’s certainly tugging on the heartstrings of how much I loved everybody." Prior to promoting the film’s remaster, the band had not made an appearance together in decades.

It’s been a big month for Talking Heads fans. On October 1, the group detailed plans to share a freshly remastered, super-deluxe edition of their third album Fear of Music, That LP, coming November 13 on Rhino, expands the original track list with a number of alternate versions, studio outtakes, and previously unreleased full recordings of two concerts from the era. Its release will coincide with the launch of a new SiriusXM station dedicated to the band.

Hattie Lindert is an associate staff writer at Pitchfork. A former editor at Resident Advisor, she has written for Rolling Stone, The FACE and The A.V. Club, among others. She’s based in New York, and born and raised in Vermont. ... Read More