A “messy” final performance from Talking Heads members came in 1989 during a Tom Tom Club show.
Though the band would reunite for a tense set at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the four-piece did come together in 1989 for an impromptu performance during a Tom Tom Club performance at The New Ritz in New York on July 17, 1989. The thirteen-song set featured Jerry Harrison on the first encore song, David Byrne on the second, and then the full Talking Heads line-up on the show closer, Psycho Killer. Some viewers of the performance suggest this is the moment Byrne decided the band would never reunite again, while others were surprised he was relegated to backing vocals on the hit Talking Heads song.
Talking Heads had played their last full show together five years before this performance, on February 6, 1984. Their last performance together saw Byrne storm off the stage due to technical problems with the lamp used in This Must Be the Place. Five years later, Byrne would return to the stage with his Talking Heads bandmates for an incredibly energetic performance of Psycho Killer.
An upload of the performance to YouTube had fans speculate this show may be the reason Talking Heads never got back together. Talking Heads bassist Tina Weymouth takes lead on vocals, with a few changed lyrics to the classic.
One fan wrote: “This might be when David made his mind up that the Heads would never get back together.” Another added: “Wow at David Byrne relegated to background vocals, coming up with harmonies on the spot.” A third shared: “Had no idea this happened… was really under the impression that the Hall of Fame show was their only performance after they had essentially stopped playing live after Stop Making Sense tour.”
Other listeners have praised the “messy” Tom Tom Club version of Psycho Killer though, with one gig-goer alleging Byrne had been in the audience for a previous show and declined an invitation to join the group on stage.
The fan claimed: “A few months before this show, on May 29, 1989, I saw Tom Tom Club at The World in the East Village. David Byrne was in the audience, but he declined Tina’s invitation to join the band for the encore, Psycho Killer.
“That was disappointing, but the larger point is that Tom Tom Club had already worked up its own version of the song, and they used that arrangement here. I’d prefer a Talking Heads version, but this was a Tom Tom Club show, with Byrne, Harrison and Scales in special guest spots.”
Another hailed the Weymouth-led version, adding: “Kind of messy, but I love the energy- looks like lots of fun! Way to end the show with a bang!” A third viewer added: “While I can understand some of the negative vibe towards this particular performance, Tom Tom Club was also about being dancey and the club vibe.
“Talking Heads had a more controlled feel to it, even when it got as amped up as Stop Making Sense. So while this doesn’t exactly sound like the Talking Heads reunion people might have liked, credit where it’s due to David and Jerry Harrison for just rocking out as guest players and not getting hung up on it. (Plus, David seemed pretty into it doing Under The Boardwalk.)” A full setlist for the show, as well as footage of the performance, can be found below.
- Little Eva
- Genius of Love
- Wa Wa Dance
- Kiss Me When I Get Back
- Don’t Say No
- As Above, So Below
- I Confess
- Suboceana
- Shock the World
- Wordy Rappinghood
- Femme Fatale (The Velvet Underground cover with Jerry Harrison)
- Under the Boardwalk (The Drifters cover with David Byrne)
- Psycho Killer
