Talking Heads Album: “Popular Favorites 1976-1992/Sand In The Vaseline”

So, I guess you would say I'm a jerk for saying this but what happened to music? I wasn't alive during the 80's and I have grown up with the "music" of the 90s and early 2000s. I don't really listen to it anymore because I have discovered that this is around. Honestly, find me a rap cd that has the contingency of "And she was", "Burning down the house", "Psycho Killer", or their cover of "Take me to the river". Talking heads are amazing. Their instruments sound GOOD together, not just like a heavy metal bang. Oh, and have you noticed there's actually a tune to the song, making it possible to whistle it? These two cds cover just about every category of loudness, some uprising, some moderate, and some that lull you to sleep. This is completely amazing that this one band is able to create such a beautiful, yes beautiful, mix of noise. do yourself a favor and buy this cd to save music!

If you want to know why Talking Heads are SUCH an influential band (and still light years ahead of much of what passes for music today), this must be the place! You get some amazing electicism, from the frenetic funk of "Crosseyed and Painless" to the Latin tinge of "Mr. Jones." Obviously, once you sample the appetizers here, it should lead you to some meaty main courses like "Remain in Light," "Speaking in Tongues" and the underrated "Naked." Still, this is the best TH for a road trip when you can only take so much of one artist. Now that I think about it, TH should be the soundtrack for ANY road trip, even if you're on the road to nowhere.

This was my favorite album during my college years and I can really say nothing bad about it at all. Every song is excellent, and the production values are top notch. It's the best comp album I own. Too bad they're not all this good!

Talking Heads is one of those rare bands with the distinction of making smart pop music accesible for the masses. The double disc "Sand in the Vaseline" is a good reflection of their career. I first became familar with them in the early eighties when songs like "Burning down the House" was all over FM radio and MTV. Disc 2 represents this era thoroughly, and includes some smaller hits that I forgot about until I bought the CD.

The pleasant surprise was Disc 1. Disc 1 focuses more on their earlier music from the late 70's, like "Life During Wartime." While I was familar with these hits as well, some of the more obscure songs on Disc 1 became my favorites on either disc. "Sugar on My Tongue" and "I Wish You Wouldn't Say That" stood out immediately as I was listening to them for the first time. I also liked some of the last songs on Disc 2 that they released before finally disbanding. "Sax and Violins" and especially "Lifetime Piling Up" come to mind. But that's what a good band does. Good bands produce timeless music throughout the decades that stand the test of time. This is a thorough compilation of a good band and a starting point for those becoming familiar with Talking Heads for the first time.

I appreciate the title of this 2-disc set 'Popular Favorites..." because there is NO such thing as "Best of" when it comes to this rock-fusion group (you are right - I did NOT say "new wave"). If you haven't collected every album they have or if you have just had the great good fortune to have discovered Talking Heads, then this is the CD set for you...unless you have quite a bit more moola and can afford their entire collected box-set then I say GO FOR IT. There are few groups that I would consider buying their life's work - but Talking Heads is definitely at the top, maybe, just maybe behind The Beatles...or maybe Traffic....hmmmmmmmmm - have to give that some thought. Anyway, BUY THIS IF YOU ARE UNABLE TO AFFORD THEIR ENTIRE BOX-SET COLLECTION!! And that is close to being an order - if you love good music and are musically eclectically-minded. Enjoy!