This is an I-Heart podcast.

Guaranteed Human.

This is Lee Habib, and this is Our American Stories.

Music critic Malcolm Jack wrote this about the band The Talking Head song

Once in a Lifetime, quote,

It's a thing of dizzying power, beauty, and mystery.

It sounds like nothing else in the history of pop.

Musician Travis Morrison selected once in a lifetime as a perfect song saying, quote,

the lyrics are astounding. They are meaningless and totally meaningful at the same time.

That's as good as rock lyrics get, end quote.

Here's Greg Hengler with the story of the Talking Head song once in a lifetime.

In 1973, two Rhode Island art students, David Byrne and Chris France formed a band named the Artistics.

Here's David Byrne.

I was in a band with Chris, the drummer for a while, and we sort of drifted into New York

and then thought we'd have a serious try at a band.

Unable to find another band member in New York, they convinced Chris's girlfriend and future wife,

Tina Weymouth, to learn how to play the bass guitar and enlisted her into the band.

With David on guitar and vocals and Chris on drums, the three played their first show as the

Talking Heads in 1975, opening for the Ramones at CBGB's, the epicenter of New York punk rock. In late 76, Thire Records founder Seymour

Stein stumbled onto one of their shows. Here's Seymour Stein. I went down at C.B.'s,

and I'm standing out there, and all of a sudden I hear, when my love stands next to your love, you know,

and I said, what is this?

...