THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, July 19, 1994 TAG: 9407190351
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Music review
SOURCE: BY MARK MOBLEY, MUSIC CRITIC
LENGTH: Short : 40 lines
In 1979 it would have seemed impossible - arch, self-conscious, caterwauling David Byrne as a cabaret artist. But it has come to pass.
The former Talking Heads front man brought his new four-piece band to the Boathouse on Sunday. He shed both his jittery Heads persona and his later incarnation as dapper leader of large Latin bands. This relaxed, long-haired Byrne sang like a champ and gave the crowd what it wanted, which was Talking Heads hits.
He dug deep into his varied catalog. The opening acoustic set started with ``A Long Time Ago,'' the first and best song on his new self-titled record. He moved on to ``Tiny Town'' and ``Don't Want To Be Part of Your World,'' tunes from previous solo discs. Byrne stripped them down from a dozen instruments to just guitar, bass and hand drums. ``Road to Nowhere'' and ``And She Was'' also got the unplugged treatment.
In the electric portion of the show, Byrne cannily preceded his recent single ``Angels'' with a pass at the Heads song it copies, ``Once In A Lifetime.'' But most of the new material was less interesting. ``My Love Is You'' sounded like Paul McCartney on holiday in Brazil. Byrne's friendliness had an odd effect on Heads songs. ``Don't Worry About The Government'' didn't quite work because he didn't sound like a guy who worries much about anything. ``Psycho Killer'' and ``Life During Wartime'' were turned into good-natured groove tunes, which is perhaps what they were all along.
The revelations were in the encores. ``Love Goes To Building On Fire'' was the only Heads tune that would have sounded at home on ``David Byrne.'' And the final number was a stroke of genius. In the ``La-da-de, La-da-da'' of Crystal Waters' ``Gypsy Woman,'' Byrne provided a glimpse of the man he once was. by CNB