Review: David Byrne
3 days ago , by Richard Lutz
IT’S BEEN A FIFTY YEAR CAREER FOR THE TALKING HEADS STAR. BUT, SAYS RICHARD LUTZ, HE STILL MAKES WAVES
Glasgow: Any one of the 3000 fans in this city’s Armadillo Arena was aware of a singular fact. David Byrne, heading his stage show, was born and spent his early years 15 miles up the River Clyde in the town of Dumbarton.
So, a homecoming of sorts for the 73 year old troubadour. And in David Byrne’s own tricky way, he used the huge LED backdrop to project…what else…the maternity hospital where he was born. Cheers from those that knew the Victorian building and more than cheers, more like a continuous wave of noise and celebration, as Byrne piled through a half century of classics (Burning Down The House, Psycho Killer, Once in A Lifetime) and new stuff from his latest album Who Is The Sky.
There’s no doubt this tour is a follow on from his American Utopia extravaganza which used huge visuals, nonstop marching bands, dance and lots of percussion to create a new animal of half rock show, half concept arts production.
The Scots crowd loved it. The massive overwhelming backdrops were stunning, filling the stage with light, images of sunny fields, Byrne’s home and even Trump’s ICE thugs chasing kids through the American streets.
But overall, it’s an upbeat night out. Byrne bangs home the human craving that people need people and how the crush of the pandemic made that need more obvious. His whimsical anecdotes in the fast paced show are filled with this theme and makes much of his view of this rattled world.
Byrne is backed by a 12 piece marching band, tellingly comprised of four percussionists using Latino rhythms that drive the show and raise the roof. Glasgow gave a raucous welcome back to a native son.
*Touring this spring and summer.
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Julia Neall
We saw him in Hammersmith this week so amazing
Stan/ Birmingham
Sounds like an amazing night
DG
Going in Manchester
Lorna Hankinson
Glad to hear he’s still burning down the house.
Tony Fitzpatrick
He’s a creative force of nature. Tried again and again to get tickets but sadly missed this wonderful homecoming. He’ll no doubt have stayed AirBnB in his hame toon….???
Bella Houston
Saw him a few years ago – stunning
Rachel V. Callow
Saw his American Utopia on tv. Live must be amazing.
Cookie
If we hadn’t got tickets to see the show in Manchester next week I
should have found this a painful read!
Jack Devlin
🤩
Bobby Gibb
I always like his song ‘Sand in the Vaseline’
Carla Jay
Byrne didn’t overdo the roots bit although he did point out where his Scottish family were sitting and gave them a nod before he started the show. He seemed to appreciate (and was maybe a tad overwhelmed by) the raucous Glasgow audience. It’s a rare talent to combine PsychoKiller and non ironic spiel about the Buddha and appeal to the tanked up on Tennents lads sitting in front of us. Great night x
William Lutz
Saw that show in San Francisco. GREAT!!
It was a flash back to Talking Heads and a jump into the present. He’s the ultimate showman for the 21 st century.
Evan
Never knew David Byrne was Scottish. We saw the show last October when he came to Portland. Spectacular for sure and possibly the most joyful concert I’ve experienced
S McL
Gutted I didn’t see him
Abel Gee
Cool😎
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