David Byrne Songs Ranked
David Byrne (/bɜːrn/; born 14 May 1952) is a British-American singer, songwriter, musician, record producer, artist, actor, writer, music theorist, and filmmaker, who was a founding member and the principal songwriter, lead singer, and guitarist of the American new wave band Talking Heads. Byrne has released solo recordings and worked with various media including film, photography, opera, fiction, and non-fiction. He has received Academy, Grammy, and Golden Globe Awards, and he is an inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as part of Talking Heads. Here are all of David Byrne’s songs ranked.
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12. Here (American Utopia, 2018)
“Amazing, intricate, original and thoughtful concept album that has been turned into one of my very favorite musicals. There’s such an astonishing variety of singers and styles that appear on this album, and I love the way it tells the story in terms of these snippets of emotion and vivid moments.”
11. Life Is Long (Everything That Happens Will Happen Today, 2008)
“‘Life is Long’ is perhaps the best of them all – being essentially an adult contemporary pop song but it is instantly loveable with its simple catchy melody and brass embellishment.”
10. This Must Be the Place (American Utopia, 1994)
“I think it’s pretty safe to say at this point that David Byrne is the king of weird pop music. He has had an incredibly illustrious career, and has released probably dozen of albums that I enjoy to some degree. And that actually kind of puts him in a precarious position.”
9. Glass, Concrete & Stone (American Utopia, 2004)
“I love David Byrne- there are so man layers to his songs. This song makes me feel like crying, reminds how empty life can leave a person feeling- “it is just a house, not a home’ is one of the most telling lines I can think of- How everything we think is strong and secure is actually just ‘glass, concrete and stone’- none of it means anything, only how people interact with their environments and each other. “Let my body and soul be my guide’ is a great way to end it. “
See more: David Byrne Albums Ranked
8. Make Believe Mambo (Rei Momo, 1989)
“This just sounds like David Byrne having fun, using latin grooves to create a foot-tapping summer atmosphere. It’s far from perfect and few of the songs stand out on their own but the album, as a whole, is a great soundtrack to a sunny day.”
7. Like Humans Do (Look into the Eyeball, 2001)
“While I can’t recommend this album to anyone who isn’t already a converted David Byrne fan (and if you are, you are familiar with this album already), I’ll stand by the brilliant pop single, Like Humans Do.”
6. I Dance Like This (American Utopia, 2018)
“If you want the most blatant example of tonal dissonance, look at the opening song ‘I Dance Like This’, where for the hook Byrne shifts from more elegant keys to a jagged, pulsating and staccato electronic beat that doesn’t fit any sort of transition.”
5. Tiny Apocalypse (Grown Backwards, 2004)
“Maybe that’s the best thing about _Grown Backwards:_ I always appreciated Byrne’s talent as a lyricist, a guitarist, and an artist, but I never expected that he was be a great singer on top of all of that.”
See more; Talking Heads Albums Ranked
4. Every Day Is A Miracle (American Utopia, 2018)
” absolutely love the undeniably fun “Every Day is a miracle”, with its uplifting chorus and optimistic instrumental. “This is That” is another great cut that offers a more meditative instrumental and Byrne’s usual entangled lyricism that seems to be about the moment in which a person becomes infatuated with another, but I’m not sure.”
3. Who (Love This Giant, 2012)
“As a huge Talking Heads and David Byrne fan I was curious so I picked this up. It is very different from the Talking Heads but the rhythms and horns flow so well together. The more I listen to it the more I enjoy it. I discovered St Vincent on this album and she basically steals the show. Very glad I took a chance on this.”
2. Strange Overtones (Everything That Happens Will Happen Today, 2008)
“I don’t think the timing quite works, but I like to think that this song is about the inspiration between David Byrne and St. Vincent’s collaborative album, mostly because of lines like ”You’re in the next apartment I hear you singing over there and ‘Strange Overtones in the music you are playing/I’ll harmonize’.”
1. Everybody’s Coming To My House (American Utopia, 2018)
“Everybody’s Coming to My House is just classic David Byrne, but with influence from a lot of modern pop music ideas. I think with this album, in particular, the songs I enjoy are typically the most eclectic ones, and fortunately, there are plenty.”
