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Talking Heads Talking Heads: 77 [Super Deluxe Edition]
Talking Heads's Talking Heads: 77 [Super Deluxe Edition] recontexualizes the debut as a vital historical snapshot, where the danceable funk and minimalist nervousness that defined early new wave feel newly lucid. Across five professional reviews the box earns an 83/100 consensus score, and critics consistently point to “Psycho Killer” and “New Feeling” as the record's gravitational center while live gems like “Take Me to the River (Live at CBGB, New York, NY, 10/10/1977) - 2024 Remaster” and “Who Is It?” emerge as standout moments in the expanded sequence.
Reviewers praise the remastering and archival approach for sharpening the guitars and tightening the grooves, making restraint feel like a weapon and the band's early experimentation sound crisp rather than tentative. Record Collector and Classic Rock highlight the oddball minimalism and Tina Weymouth's propulsive bass, Uncut and Under The Radar celebrate the CBGB live set's road-tight energy, and Consequence values rarities such as the Arthur Russell acoustic “Psycho Killer” as meaningful context rather than mere curios. Across professional reviews critics agree the alternates and outtakes amplify why the best songs on Talking Heads: 77 still register as fresh.
While some alternate pop versions pale next to the originals, the prevailing critical consensus frames the Super Deluxe extras as essential for completists and curious listeners alike. The collection functions both as a document of youthfully contained anxiety and as a revelatory listen that places these tracks within the larger arc of the band's career, making the set a compelling purchase for fans and a persuasive critical reappraisal of the debut.
Critics' Top Tracks
The standout songs that made critics take notice
Psycho Killer - 2024 Remaster
2 mentions
"Psycho Killer, with its attempt to emulate Otis Redding, is so wonderful because of what is not in there."— Record Collector
Who Is It? - 2024 Remaster
1 mention
"the band drop straight into the taut, stop-start funk of “Who Is It?"— Uncut
Who Is It?
1 mention
"Weymouth’s infiltrating bass lines on tracks like “Who Is It?"— Under The Radar
The same goes for the alternate version of “Psycho Killer,” with Arthur Russell on cello.
Track Ratings
How critics rated each track, relative to this album (0-100). Only tracks that made critics feel something are rated.
Uh-Oh, Love Comes to Town - 2024 Remaster
New Feeling - 2024 Remaster
Tentative Decisions - 2024 Remaster
Happy Day - 2024 Remaster
Who is It? - 2024 Remaster
No Compassion - 2024 Remaster
The Book I Read - 2024 Remaster
Don't Worry About the Government - 2024 Remaster
First Week/Last Week...Carefree - 2024 Remaster
Psycho Killer - 2024 Remaster
Pulled Up - 2024 Remaster
Sugar on My Tongue - 2024 Remaster
I Want to Live - 2024 Remaster
Love Goes to a Building on Fire - 2024 Remaster
I Wish You Wouldn't Say That - 2024 Remaster
Psycho Killer (Acoustic Version) [feat. Arthur Russell] - 2024 Remaster
Uh-Oh, Love Comes to Town (Alternate Pop Version) - 2024 Remaster
New Feeling (Alternate Pop Version) - 2024 Remaster
Pulled Up (Alternate Pop Version)
Stay Hungry (1977 Version) - 2024 Remaster
First Week/Last Week...Carefree (Acoustic Version) - 2024 Remaster
I Feel It in My Heart - 2024 Remaster
Psycho Killer (Alternate Version)
Love Goes to a Building on Fire (Live at CBGB, New York, NY, 10/10/1977) - 2024 Remaster
Uh-Oh, Love Come to Town (Live at CBGB, New York, NY, 10/10/1977) - 2024 Remaster
Don't Worry About the Government (Live at CBGB, New York, NY, 10/10/1977) - 2024 Remaster
Take Me to the River (Live at CBGB, New York, NY, 10/10/1977) - 2024 Remaster
The Book I Read (Live at CBGB, New York, NY, 10/10/1977) - 2024 Remaster
New Feeling (Live at CBGB, New York, NY, 10/10/1977) - 2024 Remaster
A Clean Break (Let's Work) [Live at CBGB, New York, NY, 10/10/1977] - 2024 Remaster
No Compassion (Live at CBGB, New York, NY, 10/10/1977) - 2024 Remaster
Thank You for Sending Me an Angel (Live at CBGB, New York, NY, 10/10/1977) - 2024 Remaster
Who Is It? (Live at CBGB, New York, NY, 10/10/1977) - 2024 Remaster
Pulled Up (Live at CBGB, New York, NY, 10/10/1977) - 2024 Remaster
Psycho Killer (Live at CBGB, New York, NY, 10/10/1977) - 2024 Remaster
Stay Hungry (Live at CBGB, New York, NY, 10/10/1977) - 2024 Remaster
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What Critics Are Saying
Deep insights from 5 critics who reviewed this album
Cl
Critic's Take
The reissue’s outtakes and CBGB live performances only bolster why these songs stand out on this expanded edition.
Key Points
-
The album’s core strengths are tight, bare-bones funk, precise arrangements, and a nervous energy that uses restraint as a weapon.
Themes
Critic's Take
Mark Moody praises the package most for its live centerpiece, arguing the CBGB set makes Talking Heads: 77 [Super Deluxe Edition] essential. The remaster and alternate takes are described as worthwhile and interesting, even if some "alternate pop" versions pale next to the originals. Overall Moody writes that the live recording slots in nicely with Stop Making Sense and The Name of This Band is Talking Heads, making the box irresistible to completists and fans of the best tracks on Talking Heads: 77.
Key Points
-
The CBGB live recording is the release's strongest asset, showcasing the band’s onstage pedigree and standout bass-driven tracks.
-
The remaster and alternate takes add archival interest, though some alternate pop versions pale beside the studio originals.
Themes
Critic's Take
Sam Richards praises the remaster for making the guitars trebly and crisp and the rhythms perfectly designed to induce dancing - it’s in those songs that Byrne’s controlled mania becomes thrilling rather than merely eccentric. This edition therefore underlines why the best songs on the album still sound like the start of something new rather than a nostalgic curio.
Key Points
-
The album’s strengths are its fresh, trebly remaster, danceable rhythms, and the revelatory CBGB live performance.
Themes
Re
Critic's Take
This edition is presented as a fascinating document of the first 18 months, and it is those muscular, funky performances that mark the best songs on Talking Heads: 77 and explain their lasting influence.
Key Points
-
The album's core strengths are its weird minimalism, road-tight performances, and the CBGB live document that captures a playful, experimental young band.
Themes
Critic's Take
The package reads like a definitive look back, balancing remastered originals with demos and live electricity to show why these are the best tracks on the set. In short, it is a massive, carefully curated document that foregrounds the songs that made the band essential.
Key Points
-
The box set’s core strength is its archival breadth: remasters, unreleased rarities, and the exclusive Live at CBGB recording.