Listening Notes: 1983 Part 4

Womack & Womack - Love Wars

I feel vaguely non-plussed for liking, almost loving, these somewhat sedate but well constructed songs. At times, this seems almost more like folk music than rhythm and blues, like Bill Withers. Maybe I would be fully in love if Linda sang all the time, but I don't think Cecil's ego could live with that. Whatever happened to them?

Richard Thompson - Hand of Kindness

You know the story - good songs about the divorce and the new love, great guitar, good band. It's just not "Shoot Out the Lights". Is that a fair measure? Normally I'd say no, but Richard walked out on Linda. So think of my unfair judgement as part of the settlement.

The B-52s - Whammy!

"Hi, my name is Ricky and I'm a Pisces and I will be sorely missed"

Talking Heads - Speaking in Tongues

If there ever was an inaccurate title it's this one. David Byrne couldn't speak in anything except fully formed paragraphs if his life depended on it. Having said that, I've come to quite like his control freak's version of getting gone. This album catches both him and the band at the moment when they hadn't left their art school sensibility behind. Which isn't to say that I don't prefer the album before and after.