The Drag

Sorry for the lack of posts lately, my computer was down and well, it sent me spiralling into this massive backlog of things to take care of. I couldn't get the darn thing to boot. But I'm back, with a bunch of things to take care and share with you guys.

First off, let's talk about the Talking Heads. Rhino's been up to their old tricks again and have gone and re-released a bunch of their albums. I know, I know...another re-release. The question is, are they worth the price? Bottom lin: YES! I ended up with a copy of True Stories and Little Creatures, so let me qualify my recommendation based on these two re-releases.

The re-releases mainly differ in three ways from the original: some additional tracks, remixed and re-mastered mixes and the use of a Dual Layer Disc - one side is a CD, the other a DVD. The additional tracks are nice, but for the most part a bit of a letdown. The one stand out being "Papa Legba” – Pops Staples vocal version." The vocals on this are great, having given the lead to Pops Staples instead of David Byrne. But the Dual Layer Disc is where the excitement begins. See, when they re-mastered these (supervised by Jerry Harrison) they went one step further by re-mixing them for 5.1 surround sound for the DVD side of the disc. Now, I'm not always a big fan of this, it can become too gimmicky for my taste. But they did an excellent job with these discs. With a nice 5.1 setup, the sound is much richer and fuller, room--filling. It transformed the music into more of an experience. The DVD side also includes some music videos from the albums as well. In the case of Little Creatures, this means you get the music for And She Was, which has always been a favorite of mine. So, if you have any inclination to purchase these...run out and do it. Well worth the price.

Rhino's also throwing a little listening party, so head on over there!

Here's the full track listing of these two releases:



LITTLE CREATURES
DualDisc Tracklisting

1. “And She Was”
2. “Give Me Back My Name”
3. “Creatures Of Love”
4. “The Lady Don’t Mind”
5. “Perfect World”
6. “Stay Up Late”
7. “Walk It Down”
8. “Television Man”
9. “Road To Nowhere”
Bonus Tracks
10. “Road To Nowhere” – early version*
11. “And She Was” – early version*
12. “Television Man” – extended mix
Video Content
13. “And She Was” – music video, 1985
14. “Road To Nowhere” – music video, 1985



TRUE STORIES*
DualDisc Tracklisting

1. “Love For Sale”
2. “Puzzlin’ Evidence”
3. “Hey Now”
4. “Papa Legba”
5. “Wild Wild Life”
6. “Radio Head”
7. “Dream Operator”
8. “People Like Us”
9. “City of Dreams”
Bonus Track
10. “Papa Legba” – Pops Staples vocal version, 5.1 mix*
Video Content
11. “Wild Wild Life” – music video, 1986
12. “Love For Sale” – music video, 1986

*this is the "official" list, but curiously the actualy release of True Stories also contains the bonus tracks "Wild Wild Life (extended mix)" and "Radio Head (Tito Larriva Vocal Version)"

Here's the Amazon link as well as the link to the Rhino product page.

I'll be back over the next couple of days with some more tracks and reviews. Stay tuned.

TechTag: Music