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David Byrne Revives His Dancing Days at Opening Show of Eno Tour

9/17/08, 12:06 pm EST

Photo: Brian Hineline/Retna

No doubt drawing on lessons learned from his collaboration with choreographer Twyla Tharp, David Byrne took his sold-out show Zoellner Arts Center in Bethelehem, PA, and created a show that used his various collaborations with producer Brian Eno (including the recent Everything That Happens Will Happen Today) and bodies in motion to advance the ambiguous narratives his multi-cultural rock — think of it as modern dance for people who don’t like modern dance.

Byrne — looking fit, trim and sporting a magnificent shock of silver hair — handled all guitar duties with surprising aplomb, expertly replicating the pneumatic wheeze of chords on “Home” and the angular funk of “Cross Eyed And Painless.” He was backed by a keyboardist, drummer, bassist, percussionist, and three back up singers. By “Houses In Motion” the ensemble was joined by the dancers, who zig-zagged back and forth across the stage in ever-shifting formations, sometimes enjoining the backing singers in the choreography, and, just as often, Byrne himself, who even at 56 years old is still fleet of foot. Midway through “Once In A Lifetime,” one of the dancers literally vaulted Byrne while he took a guitar solo.

Following “Life During Wartime” — which turned the theater crowd into a de facto dance party — Byrne got a standing ovation (his third of the night) during the artsy hustle of “I Feel My Stuff,” which closed out the set. Byrne ended the night with a churchy, contemplative rendition of “Everything That Happens Happens Will Happen Today.” “Nothing is different, but nothing’s the same,” he sang, summing up the evening.

Set List
“Strange Overtones”
“I Zimbra”
“One Fine Day”
“Help Me Somebody”
“Houses in Motion”
“My Big Nurse”
“My Big Hands (Fall Through the Cracks)”
“Heaven”
“Home”
“The River”
“Crosseyed & Painless”
“Life is Long”
“Once in a Lifetime”
“Life During Wartime”
“I Feel My Stuff”

Encore
“Take Me to the River”
“The Great Curve”
“Everything that Happens Will Happen Today”

Related Stories:

Brian Eno’s Spore Soundtrack Reinventing Game Music

David Byrne & Brian Eno Reunite for Everything That Happens Will Happen Today

David Byrne & Brian Eno Launch New Album Website


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Comments

naji | 2/28/2009, 11:12 pm EST

luxury of an accident

ach | 12/10/2008, 10:07 am EST

three, count em, three encores in raleigh, NC. i can’t stop daydreaming about this amazing show/dance party.

RJR | 12/4/2008, 7:55 pm EST

Just caught the Northampton, MA show. As usual, DB was amazing. It was one big DB love fest. A standing ovation from the fifth song right through all three encores.

Riccini | 11/26/2008, 7:00 am EST

Incredible setlist!! please David come to south america

Jackson | 11/4/2008, 12:49 pm EST

DB was great at massey hall in toronto, he did 3 encores.

bigBalls | 10/25/2008, 12:23 pm EST

Does anyone know where to find Natalie? The dancer near DB’s left shoulder… Natalie: I Love You!

Anonymous | 10/9/2008, 1:43 am EST

I cannot wait to see him in Indianapolis on the 25th! lets make a dance party!!!!

Crocodilian | 10/7/2008, 12:14 am EST

DB finally looks happy to have written his own music . . . and the audience is happy to hear it. I haven’t ever seen him so plain “happy”– you could see the band felt good for him, and his Aspergers-y affect cracked from time to time, letting a bit of light in, so we could all see he was having a good time too.

What’s wrong with the fact that his poetic observations are also fabulous funk jams? Nothing.

Genius show. . . see it. Amidst the dross of under-talented, under-educated, over-rated “talent”, DB is the real thing, a genuine talent in top form, and this tour is him at his best.

berrisford boothe | 9/24/2008, 6:47 pm EST

david byrne’s music and person has been the soundtrack and inspiration for my life as an artist and individual. introduced to the talking heads by my physicist friend in college many years ago, i’ve agreed to trust david with whatever he deemed necessary to advance himself and his music. through him i found eno. through their efforts on ‘bush of ghosts’, them i made good art to their sampled musings. i never got to a “heads” concert and thought the opportunity for fervor had been missed. man, was i wrong! the inaugural gig @ zoellner was not only a tribute to byrne’s endurance but a wholesale offering to those of us who kept faith in him during the years. i never felt so respected as a fan. i’d like to conclude by saying that david byrne is “back.” but in truth he never left. he’s been filtering it all while we slept and now his music is back with enormous punch, subtlety and relevance. same as it ever was! thanks!…david!! don’t miss this show.

Anonymous | 9/22/2008, 9:37 pm EST

Byrne was great in Asheville. DANCE PARTY USA!

Naganath | 9/19/2008, 4:04 pm EST

Can’t wait for show tomorrow night!

Kobura | 9/18/2008, 3:10 pm EST

And just as fantastic as the show itself was the fact that it ran so smoothly! Kudos to the staff and administration of Zoellner Arts Center, especially Front of House, all the ushers were volunteers, and they did a fantastic job.

Anonymous | 9/18/2008, 2:14 pm EST

I went to the Baltimore show last night and it did not disappoint!

albert ross | 9/18/2008, 10:35 am EST

nice that they are avoiding the tri-state area. why is that?

anon | 9/18/2008, 9:57 am EST

The show was amazing, David Byrne rocked and i loved Zoellner Arts Center, such a great venue! I will be back for events in the future!

Anonymous mrk | 9/17/2008, 8:53 pm EST

A fantastic show.. To get the audience to absolutely roar and have everyone on there feet dancing from reserved Bethlehem PA is not easy to do, but they did it.

Anonymous | 9/17/2008, 6:54 pm EST

great set. except for that deushbag holding his cell phone literally 2 feet from byrnes face to get a picture. orchestra seats should be filtered…

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