Talking Heads Burn Down House At Rock Hall Ceremony

03/19/2002 12:00 AM, Yahoo! Music
Kastle

(3/19/02, 12 a.m. ET) -- Talking Heads, the New York-based art-rock band who had hits with "Psycho Killer," "Burning Down the House," and "Once In A Lifetime," were inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame by Anthony Kiedis of Red Hot Chili Peppers on Monday (March 18) night in New York City.

Kiedis joked in his speech about how listening to Talking Heads could somehow make librarians sexier. The Peppers' frontman also took a moment to tease Pearl Jam frontman Eddie Vedder for his extended 17-minute induction speech for the Ramones.

The original members of Talking Heads put their legal battles behind them and reunited for the first time in years to accept their induction into the Hall Of Fame, leading drummer Chris Frantz to remark, "I'd like to thank the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame for giving this band a happy ending. I'd also like to thank the music fans of New York City in particular. Thank you." Bassist Tina Weymouth, lead singer David Byrne, and guitarist Jerry Harrison also expressed their thanks upon induction.

Talking Heads then took to the stage to perform "Psycho Killer," "Burning Down The House," and "Life During Wartime." Latter-day touring members of Talking Heads Bernie Worrell (of Parliament/Funkadelic) and Steve Scales joined the original members during their performance.

Talking Heads formed in New York in the mid-1970s. They releases eight studio albums and two live albums, before becoming inactive in 1988. They pioneered the use of avant-garde songs structures, stark alienating sounds, and world rhythms, as well as a ground-breaking visual style in their album covers, performances, and videos.

-- Chad Dougatz, New York

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