David Byrne - The Catherine Wheel
#751
By Paul Zickler
David Byrne
Songs From The Catherine Wheel
Genre: Soundtrack Artifact
Allen’s Rating: 4.5 out of 5
Paul’s Rating: 3.75 our of 5
Highlights:
His Wife Refused
My Big Hands (Fall Through the Cracks)
Eggs in a Briar Patch
What a Day That Was
Review:
“The Catherine Wheel” was a collaboration between David Byrne and choreographer Twyla Tharp. It debuted at the Winter Garden Theatre in New York in September of 1981 and was performed a total of 12 times as part of Tharp’s season of Broadway dance productions. Also included were shows featuring the music of Bruce Springsteen, Supertramp, and the Beach Boys. One of the pieces from the original Byrne ballet -- titled “The Golden Section” (after the gold-colored costumes of the dancers) -- was later performed by the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater. “The Catherine Wheel” was well reviewed: The New Yorker mentioned “dancing of astonishing beauty and power,” and the New York Times remarked, “the choreography is Miss Tharp at her best.”
So then there’s this album. I mean, can you call it that? Isn’t it just some songs given to a choreographer by the lead singer of a pop group? You might think so, if you knew nothing about Talking Heads, nothing about David Byrne, and even more crucially, nothing about Brian Eno.
Yeah, did I mention Eno produced this? I mean, it was 1981 and it was David Byrne, so it probably goes without saying. But just to confirm, here are the musician credits for a couple of the tracks:
Eggs In A Briar Patch
Bass, Vibraphone [Vibes] – Brian Eno
Drum [Gung Gong] – John Chernoff
Guitar [Floating Guitars] – Adrian Belew
Keyboards – Jerry Harrison
Performer [Horses] – David Byrne
Cloud Chamber
Drum [Large Drum] -- Jerry Harrison
Percussion [Kitchen Metals] -- David Byrne
Performer [Water Pot] -- Twyla Tharp
So is it a forgotten Talking Heads masterpiece, or is it My Life In The Bush of Ghosts Part 2? Sadly, it’s neither. There’s clearly the African polyrhythmic influence that animated Remain in Light, here more explicitly attributed to John Miller Chernoff, who goes from being a huge influence to an actual collaborator -- Chernoff plays congas on a couple of tracks and even gets a writing credit for “Big Business.” There are definitely some Bush of Ghosts-style experimental pieces, including “Briar Patch” with its eerie/silly spoken voice sample (“Unsaved people don’t have any means of deliverance. None!”). There are also some actual songs: “His Wife Refused,” “My Big Hands (Fall Through the Cracks),” “Poison,” “Big Blue Plymouth.” Each one feels like it would have fit somewhere in the band’s discography. In fact, “What a Day That Was” actually ended up on Stop Making Sense, albeit in a far more exciting live band version.
Actually, listening to that song really brings out why this album isn’t more interesting. Sure, Jerry plays on some songs, Belew’s weird guitars are all over the place, and Bernie Worrell adds some funky clavinet. But no Chris and no Tina. None of the incredible manic energy of the 1980 tour. Nothing that rivals the spacey computer perfection of Remain in Light.
It’s possible that Byrne & Eno saw this as another opportunity to mess around and make something magical. Thing is, lightning rarely ever strikes twice. I can certainly imagine this as the soundtrack to a very cool modern dance show, but am I going to put it on and listen intently the way I would to Fear of Music? Nope, not likely. Might I put it on as background music to some creative project I’m working on? Maybe. But why would I, when Bush of Ghosts exists? I’d probably go so far as to throw “His Wife Refused” and “My Big Hands” onto a Spotify playlist, but that’s about it.
Calling it an album just invites comparison with the otherworldly stuff David Byrne was responsible for during this incredibly fertile period of his life. It’s safer to just see it as an artifact of that period, an interesting project, a soundtrack. Viewed on those terms, it works just fine.
https://open.spotify.com/album/5DyoXk3EjmrhbqUv0FiFA6?si=8UIlXllKRMevgEdxBZL5gw
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