Love → Building on Fire

"Love → Building on Fire"
Weymouth, Byrne, and Frantz
Single by Talking Heads
B-side	"New Feeling"
Released	February 1977
Format	7"
Recorded	1977, Sundragon Studios in NYC
Genre	New wave
Length	2:57
Label	Sire
Writer(s)	David Byrne
Producer(s)	Tony Bongiovi, Lance Quinn
Talking Heads singles chronology
"Love → Building on Fire" (1977) "Uh-Oh, Love Comes to Town" (1977)

"Love → Building on Fire" (also known as "Love Goes to Building on Fire") is a song by rock band Talking Heads, released as a single in 1977. The single preceded the band's first full album, and was later included on their compilation album Sand in the Vaseline. As the single was the first piece of music released commercially by the band, its release is cited as a milestone in the band's history in its Rock and Roll Hall of Fame entry.^[1]

The song did not appear on any of the band's original studio albums, though it was later added on a reissue of Talking Heads: 77. However, a live recording of the song is featured on their live album The Name of This Band Is Talking Heads.

Track listing

Personnel

The song was written by David Byrne. The original recorded version was produced by Tony Bongiovi. The horns in the song were arranged by Brad Baker and Lance Quinn. Mastered by Ted Jensen

Artistic impressions of the song

Jerry Harrison called "Love → Building on Fire" one of his favorite songs to play live, despite the fact the song was recorded before he joined the band. Harrison stated that he and Byrne "used to get a wonderful interplay of guitars that was a bit like early Television". However, he felt that the best live performances were never recorded.^[2]

Cultural references

The song title was referenced by author Will Hermes in 2011, who wrote a book entitled Love Goes to Buildings On Fire: Five Years in New York City That Changed Music Forever.

References