It’s always fun to see big bands play NPR Music’s Tiny Desk concert series, as groups attempt to squeeze all their members into the small office. This week it’s the one and only David Byrne, whose current band numbers 13, including him. Interestingly, though, David’s tour for his new album ‘Who Is The Sky?’ is designed to have all its musicians performing close to one another, so apparently it wasn’t as hard as it may seem.
David Byrne has a long history of staging elaborate live shows, often with a sprawling cast of musicians, highly choreographed dancing and unusual instrumentation. So when we learned he wanted to have more than a dozen performers at the Tiny Desk, playing everything from cello, saxophone and marimba to a Brazilian timbau and zabumba (not to mention various guitars and keys), we weren’t sure we’d be able to fit it all in. It turns out his latest tour, for the album Who Is The Sky?, is well designed for our roughly 10 by 11-foot space. Though Byrne and his band do normally spread out across large stages, the set design for each show is almost completely bare, without any cables or amps, and the artists wear or carry compact, custom-made instruments to make it easier to move, almost like a marching band.
David & his band played “Everybody Laughs” and “Don’t Be Like That” from the new album, & then treated Tiny Desk to a couple of Talking Heads songs “Nothing But Flowers” and “Life During Wartime.”
It was a bucket-list performance for the Tiny Desk. Afterward, as the rest of the band and crew dispersed, Byrne hopped on a rented bike for a solo ride through the District on a beautiful, fall afternoon.
SET LIST “Everybody Laughs” “Don’t Be Like That” “(Nothing But) Flowers” “Life During Wartime” MUSICIANS David Byrne: vocals, guitar Mauro Refosco: percussion, music director Ray Suen: guitar, bass, violin, music director Kely Pinheiro: bass, cello Daniel Mintseris: keys Stephane San Juan: drums Tim Keiper: percussion Yuri Yamashita: percussion, marimba Tendayi Kuumba: background vocals Sasha Rivero: background vocals Hannah Straney: background vocals Sean Donovan: background vocals Jordan Dobson: saxophone, background vocals
Meanwhile, David has just shared a new playlist perfect for the season, which you can also view at the link below: ‘Christmas Music for People Who Hate Christmas Music’. It includes songs from Run-DMC, Willie Nelson, Lyle Lovett, Yellowman, Prince, Sufjan Stevens, The Staple Singers, Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, Neko Case, Tierra Whack, Phoebe Bridgers, The Decemberists, Sabrina Carpenter, Captain Beefheart & more, & he ends things with his own “Fat Man’s Comin’”.
The Fat Angel Sings 