Jerry Harrison
Talking Heads’ Jerry Harrison: ‘We’re Thinking…We’re Going to Jail in Yugoslavia ’
Musician and producer Jerry Harrison joined Talking Heads in 1974 after several years with the Modern Lovers. Here he shares what he calls “the craziest” week on tour. As told to SPIN Managing Editor Liza Lentini. Jerry Harrison (Credit: Roberta Bayley/Redferns) There were two shows in Italy with Talking Heads. One, we were playing in Bologna. At that time, bands had not been going to Italy because rival promoters would disrupt the concerts. Eventually there was a truce with the promoter who represented the Communist Party, our promoter, and we were playing Bologna, which is fairly leftist city, which has wonderful things like free public transportation and stuff like that, as well as, among the best food in Italy. We set up in this field and we have no idea how many people are comin...
Talking Heads’ Chris Frantz Recalls Band’s Tense Final Meeting
Talking Heads drummer Chris Frantz breaks down the turbulence of the band’s final days in his newly issued memoir, Remain in Love — including a particularly awkward group meeting in 1991 where singer David Byrne allegedly yelled, “You should be calling me an asshole.” Byrne’s quote seemingly implies an internal struggle: that the frontman had long wanted to break up the band but his bandmates aimed to continue. But Frantz says that he and the other members, bassist Tina Weymouth and guitarist Jerry Harrison, maintained their composure during the encounter. “We had heard this before, so we thought, ‘If we keep our cool, this will blow over and we’ll get to do another Talking Heads record,’” the drummer told The Guardian. Instead, everyone moved on to other projects: Byrne with hi...
