David Byrne
	Produced by Arto Lindsay, Susan Rogers, David Byrne
	Released on May 24, 1994
	US CHART POSITION #139 . . . UK CHART POSITION #44
	Find it at GEMM
45558-2 cover [high resolution scan]

T he self-titled David Byrne finds the artist covering familiar ground (Naked, Uh-Oh) without the Heads and horns. Compared to some of his more excessive efforts, David Byrne The Disc feels lean, stripped to the essence of bass/drums/guitar, heavy on mood and atmosphere. Minus the usual clutter, the songs take on a more personal tone, whether it’s the angst underneath a song like “Crash” or the heartfelt affection behind “My Love Is You.” There are still standoffishly slick and funky numbers that sound like Byrne’s earlier work (“Back In The Box,” “Lilies of the Valley”), but fans of hyperpop would do better to buy Uh-Oh or Rei Momo. Normally overstimulated, there’s a quiet intensity to Byrne’s work this time, heard in songs like “A Long Time Ago” and “Nothing At All.” Personally, I prefer Byrne as the man out of control, but I warm up to this disc a little more each time I hear it. The guitarist seems to have put the Latin experiment on hold, limiting the crossover to “Sad Song.” It’s rare to find a David Byrne disc that isn’t initially overwhelming; Uh-Oh dogged the listener out of the gate, Rei Momo by most accounts was equally relentless. From the vantage point of those works, David Byrne is restrained, boiled down to its essence without a forest full of extraneous sounds. It’s not a party record, but fans of David Byrne itching to get underneath all the greasepaint will appreciate this decaffeinated disc.

45558-2 back picture booklet

TRACK LISTING

1. A LONG TIME AGO    3:27
2. ANGELS    4:43
3. CRASH    4:28
4. A SELF-MADE MAN    3:51
5. BACK IN THE BOX    4:24
6. SAD SONG    3:03
7. NOTHING AT ALL    4:51
8. MY LOVE IS YOU    2:01
9. LILIES OF THE VALLEY    4:28
10. YOU & EYE    5:08
11. STRANGE RITUAL    6:51
12. BUCK NAKED    3:51
    
    All songs by David Byrne

CREDITS

DAVID BYRNE -- vocals, guitars, synthesizer, backing vocals, bells, balafon, clavinet
VALERIE NARANJO -- talking drum, slit drum, tambourine, percussion samples, kat, marimba, shaker
PAUL SOCOLOW -- bass, backing vocals
TODD TURKISHER -- drums, roto toms, doumbeck, frame drum, surdo, samples, trash can
Mark Agostino -- temple block (9), assistant engineer
Mark Edwards -- drone (11), technical coordination
Bebel Gilberto -- backing vocals (6,11)
Gina -- snare loop (11)
Sue Hadjopoulos -- percussion (10)
Bashiri Johnson -- shaker, coil chime, conga
Arto Lindsay -- guitar (5,6)
Dolette McDonald -- backing vocals (10)
John Medeski -- farsifa, organ
Marcus Rojas -- tuba (8)
Bill Ware -- vibraphone, marimba
Susan Rogers -- engineer, mixing
Michael Brauer -- mixing
Jean Baptiste Mondino -- photos
Robert Bergman-Ungar -- art direction

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