David Byrne and the Talking Heads Put on a Top-Notch Show with Stop Making Sense

I usually find myself checking out of the Saturday Night Live musical performances. It's not that I'm too hip for the room when it comes to pop music, I'm as big of a sucker for a bubbly pop ditty as anybody. Too often, though, the performances just aren't very interesting. They're usually blocked, staged and executed in a rote manner, a singer and accompanying band members just staying in place against an undecorated set. For a major live television performance, you should be bringing some real panache, don't be afraid to embrace your creative side! By contrast, the recent David Byrne SNL musical performance was the epitome of what these guest appearances should be!


Byrne and his accompanying band members were laid against colorful and fun backgrounds and weren't afraid to revel in delightful dance choreography. Too many SNL musical performances are forgettable but how could anyone forget Byrne being this much fun to watch? That same sense of creativity when it comes to performing for a crowd is alive and well in the 1984 concert film Stop Making Sense. Directed by Jonathan Demme, Stop Making Sense is comprised of footage from an assortment of shows Byrne and his band Talking Heads performed at Hollywood's Pantages Theater in December 1983. Over the course of this documentary, the group performs sixteen tunes. For each of these songs, Byrne and company bring out new & distinct sets and costumes, no two songs are exactly alike in their presentation.

The proceedings begin restrained, with Byrne and the Talking Heads performing Psycho Killer on a sparse stage. Subsequently, more platforms get brought out onstage and that's when the performances in Stop Making Sense become truly elaborate. Eventually, there are gigantic screens behind the musicians projecting images reflecting the themes of certain songs while smoke is generated to imbue a sense of awe to specific parts of the concert. Towards the end of the documentary, a colorful graffiti-covered backdrop is brought out for a performance of Genius of Love by female members of the Talking Heads calling themselves the Tom Tom Club. This digression is just as fun to watch as it is unexpected.

Of course, the most iconic part of Stop Making Sense's commitment to memorable visual elements is that oversized suit David Byrne dons for the song Girlfriend is Better. That piece of attires been lampooned everywhere from Documentary Now! to Muppets Tonight. It still proves to be an effective costume even after the avalanche of parodies but it's extra impressive how it's not the only eccentric visual detail in Stop Making Sense. Byrne's gigantic suit might be the most iconic part of Stop Making Sense but it's far from the only example of this concert documentary dropping something visually memorable. Not only are aspects of the event like Byrne's suit unique & creative on their own merits but they also serve as a fantastic visual accompaniment to the equally idiosyncratic tunes that the Talking Heads perform.

Songs like Found a Job with such bizarre but top-shelf lyrics deserve equally high-quality unorthodox production elements. Thus, the concert chronicled in Stop Making Sense becomes a perfect blend of snazzy sights and catchy sounds. Capturing all of this is director Jonathan Demme, whose work behind the camera does a great job of capturing images as flashy as the on-stage sets and costumes. I especially was impressed by how well Demme captured shots that beautifully contrasted the predominately black backdrop of the stage with the vibrant costumes of the performers. Byrne in a bright white outfit clutching a lit-lamp against a black void is just of numerous powerful images. Even divorced entirely from the music that would still be a great shot.

Of course, it's impossible to separate anything in Stop Making Sense from its music. After all, this is a concert film and it's certainly up there with Beyonce: Homecoming as one of the best entries in the genre. The directing, the costumes, the sets, they're all great in Stop Making Sense but the music alone is enough to make this one exemplary. Tunes that make heavy use of the vibe of the excited crowd particularly turn out to be memorable. The best example of this is Take Me to the River, whose performance here makes use of the elated spirit of the audience to turn it into something akin to a gospel tune. Nearly four decades after it was performed, you can still practically feel the pulsating excitement of everyone in this room as they chant the Take Me to the River chorus.