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From the frenetic rhythms of “Crosseyed and Painless” to the existential mystery of “Once in a Lifetime,” the songs of Talking Heads’ “Remain in Light” album motivated audience members to dance when the band toured in 1980, Adrian Belew recalls.
Guitarist Belew was there on the road and also in the studio for “Remain in Light,” hired as a guest musician to help execute the funk-meets-new-wave vision of band members David Byrne, Jerry Harrison, Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz.
Keyboard player-guitarist Harrison and Belew are back on tour together, 32 years after Talking Heads disbanded, to grab their chance to approximate the joyful performances of the 1980 tour. Their 2023 “Remain in Light” tour will make a Feb. 26 stop at the Egyptian Room in Old National Centre.
“People really relate to the music, even those who weren’t of age to see it,” Belew said during a phone interview. “They all dance and have a great time.”
Belew, also known for his work with Frank Zappa and David Bowie, splits lead-vocal duties with Harrison and other members of the 11-person “Remain in Light” band.
“I don’t try to sound like or imitate David Byrne so much, because that’s not the idea,” Belew said. “We’re just trying to represent the spirit and joy of that particular time and kind of music.”
Although Belew’s formal connection to Talking Heads ended in the early 1980s, he maintained contact with Harrison. Belew said the “Remain in Light” revival was embraced by Harrison, who served as producer on 1990s albums by the bands Live, the Verve Pipe and Big Head Todd & the Monsters.
“I said to Jerry, ‘I think the world needs something that’s upbeat and happy,’ because that’s what Talking Heads did in their day,” Belew said. “You couldn’t go anywhere in the world without hearing Talking Heads music somewhere, in a restaurant or bookstore or wherever.”
On the 1980 tour, the band’s other hired gun was Parliament-Funkadelic keyboard player Bernie Worrell. Worrell died in 2016, and the four members of Talking Heads haven’t shared a stage since their 2002 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Byrne, Harrison, Weymouth and Frantz, in collaboration with producer Brian Eno, were a cohesive unit, however, when drawing inspiration from Afrobeat master Fela Kuti as a departure point for the recording of “Remain in Light.”
“I love the rhythmic aspect to it,” said Belew, who grew up in Cincinnati and now lives in Nashville, Tennessee. “They were all influenced by that kind of music as well as reggae and some other things. In that era, there was a fever for that [sound] among a lot of people.”
Belew said “Remain in Light” was recorded in layers, meaning no musicians were playing at the same time.
“Everyone came in and played one single part for the entire song,” he said. “Then they would add another part and another and another until they had so many layers of things they could switch back and forth between them with the recording console.”
Belew contributed parts on guitar during a single day’s work in the studio.
“They told me, ‘We want you to just put your headphones on and stand around until you feel like this is where there should be a guitar solo and then play a guitar solo,’ ” Belew said. “I waited and listened and listened and thought, ‘OK, it should be about here.’ I played the guitar solo, and I could see through the studio window into the control room that they were jumping up and down really excitedly. I thought, ‘That went pretty well.’ ”
One of Belew’s friends and musical heroes, Jeff Beck, died in January at age 78. Belew said he marveled at Beck’s ability to make his guitar solos resemble a human voice.
Beck’s death “struck hard for me because he was the one person out there in the world of guitar playing that I kind of played for, if you know what I mean,” said Belew, whose credits include work with Nine Inch Nails and his 1989 solo single “Oh Daddy.”
“When you get to a certain point, you would like to impress your heroes if they’re still around,” Belew said. “He’s the one for me.”
Jerry Harrison & Adrian Belew: Remain in Light
- When: 8 p.m. Feb. 26.
- Where: Egyptian Room in Old National Centre, 502 N. New Jersey St.
- Tickets: $35 to $59.50.
- Info: Visit livenation.com.
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