Tom Tom Club | ||
| Allmusic Biography : Tom Tom Club began life as a side project for Talking Heads members Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth, who adopted a light, tropical dance style that won them a gold album in Tom Tom Club in 1981 and a Top 40 single in "Genius of Love." They continued to make albums under this moniker between Heads production projects: Close to the Bone (1983) and Boom Boom Chi Boom Boom (1989). They even toured as Tom Tom Club in the summer of 1989. When the Heads broke up in late 1991, Tom Tom Club became Frantz and Weymouths main outlet. They released Dark Sneak Love Action in 1992, but soon took time away from working with one another to concentrate on other projects. A Talking Heads reunion minus David Byrne resulted in the two coming back together, and so after eight years of an inactive Tom Tom Club, the two came together and released The Good the Bad and the Funky. The next year, a live album marked their exotic and fun live reunion shows. In 2012, the band offered up Downtown Rockers, an EP of new material very true to their earliest work, featuring guest appearances from likeminded newcomers Wild Belle. | ||
 | Album: 1 of 8 Title: Tom Tom Club Released: 1981 Tracks: 12 Duration: 1:03:09 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Wordy Rappinghood (12" mix) (06:28) 2 Genius of Love (extended mix) (05:34) 3 Tom Tom Theme (01:24) 4 LÉléphant (04:51) 5 As Above, So Below (05:23) 6 Lorelei (05:05) 7 On, On, On, On... (03:33) 8 Booming and Zooming (04:35) 9 Under the Boardwalk (05:46) 10 Lorelei (remix) (06:17) 11 Wordy Rappinghood (remix) (06:42) 12 Genius of Love (long version) (07:28) |
| Tom Tom Club : Allmusic album Review : "Who needs to think when your feet just go?" So sings Tina Weymouth on Tom Tom Clubs debut album. And rightly so -- this was the sunny break in the islands that the rhythm section of Talking Heads wanted, and they got it, away from the art-school intellectualism that had resulted in the classic but understandably very unsunny Remain in Light. This album, a collection of funky, sprightly little tunes recorded in Barbados with Weymouths sisters, husband, and drummer Chris Frantz, and several of the members of the Remain in Light tour group: Adrian Belew, guitar, and Steven Stanley, percussion. Ironically, hoping to toss off a fun album under the radar, the group came out with an album, the best tracks of which, "Genius of Love" and "Wordy Rappinghood," became enormously influential throughout the 80s and 90s, eventually getting ripped off wholeheartedly for Mariah Careys "Daydream." The album also marks a point in music history when the New York alternative scene and the burgeoning hip-hop scene were influencing each other, when both parties were on to something new. Its a snapshot of a time, and still holds together fairly well. | ||
 | Album: 2 of 8 Title: Close to the Bone Released: 1983-07 Tracks: 8 Duration: 37:16 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Pleasure of Love (06:28) 2 On the Line Again (04:56) 3 This Is a Foxy World (03:35) 4 Bamboo Town (03:55) 5 The Man With the 4‐Way Hips (05:47) 6 Measure Up (05:03) 7 Never Took a Penny (03:31) 8 Atsababy! (Life Is Great) (03:58) |
| Close to the Bone : Allmusic album Review : Sure, it was tough to come up with a follow-up to their hit debut album, but Close to the Bone is quite a fine album in retrospect. There is a sense of Tom Tom Club repeating themselves, but then again, its a formula that they created: a trio of female singers over bouncy reggae and hip-hop-inspired beats, with a dash of Talking Heads art-school sensibilities. "Pleasure of Love" rides the coattails of "Genius of Love," perked up with Wally Badarous swirling keyboards. Lyrics are Dionysian and silly paeans to love, equivalent to James Rizzis artwork on the cover, with occasional dips into social commentary ("On the Line Again" spins a tale of the downside of club culture). Tina Weymouth and sisters Lani and Laura make good with the harmonies, smooth and icy. Fans of "Genius of Love" wont be disappointed. | ||
 | Album: 3 of 8 Title: Boom Boom Chi Boom Boom Released: 1988 Tracks: 11 Duration: 43:43 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Call of the Wild (04:13) 2 Kiss Me When I Get Back (04:00) 3 Wa Wa Dance (03:58) 4 I Confess (04:56) 5 Challenge of the Love Warriors (03:07) 6 Suboceana (04:42) 7 Dont Say No (04:22) 8 Shock the World (03:46) 9 Little Eva (03:52) 10 Femme Fatale (02:48) 11 She Belongs to Me (03:54) |
 | Album: 4 of 8 Title: Dark Sneak Love Action Released: 1992-05-26 Tracks: 12 Duration: 57:50 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Love Wave (05:13) 2 Sunshine and Esctasy (05:09) 3 You Sexy Thing (03:46) 4 Who Wants an Ugly Girl (04:54) 5 Say I Am (04:54) 6 Irresistible Party Dip (05:11) 7 Dark Sneak Love Action (04:21) 8 Innocent Sex Kiss (04:00) 9 Dogs in the Trash (04:28) 10 My Mama Told Me (04:33) 11 As the Disco Ball Turns (05:48) 12 Daddy Come Home (05:27) |
| Dark Sneak Love Action : Allmusic album Review : Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz of Talking Heads fame gather together with friends and produce another episode in the Tom Tom Club saga -- the sort of thing youd get if you straightened Talking Heads out and hit the dancefloor, except more so. The result is an intelligent album you can dance to and be amused by, though its not daffy -- just full of humor. The cover of "You Sexy Thing" was one surprise here; the bagpipes on "Daddy Come Home" were even better. | ||
 | Album: 5 of 8 Title: The Good The Bad and the Funky Released: 2000 Tracks: 14 Duration: 1:04:38 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Allmusic Wikipedia AlbumCover | 1 Time to Bounce (04:07) 2 Who Feelin It (05:56) 3 Happiness Cant Buy Money (05:43) 4 Holy Water (04:00) 5 Soul Fire (03:38) 6 Shes Dangerous (04:24) 7 Shes a Freak (03:52) 8 (CMon) Surrender (05:03) 9 Love to Love You Baby (04:34) 10 Superdreaming (04:43) 11 Lesbians by the Lake (04:17) 12 Let There Be Love (05:45) 13 Time to Bounce Dub (04:07) 14 Dangerous Dub (04:24) |
| The Good The Bad and the Funky : Allmusic album Review : This aptly titled release from 80s art rockers and Talking Heads side project Tom Tom Club is indeed good, bad, and funky. Tina Weymouth and Chris Frantz have explored a stunning amount of musical styles within the confines of this album, with every song sounding like it was produced by a different group. The use of a variety of vocalists, including Weymouth, who at times sounds like a 16-year-old Japanese girl instead of her more mature self, as well as Mystic Bowie and Charles Pettigrew only seems to heighten the variety of sounds offered. The lyrics are simple, yet clever, and laid over a variety of sampled tracks, scratching, and other turntablism and live instrumentation. The resulting sound ranges from dub to dance-pop to spacy funk. The variety does allow for some unevenness, however, though duds like the repetitive and spare "Time to Bounce" are more than balanced by gems like "Happiness Cant Buy Money" and the instrumental cleverness of "Lesbians by the Lake," among others. | ||
 | Album: 6 of 8 Title: Live @ The Clubhouse Released: 2002-02 Tracks: 18 Duration: 1:40:34 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% AlbumCover | 1 Suboceana (06:57) 2 Time To Bounce (04:34) 3 Punk Lolita (04:38) 4 Soul Fire (03:49) 5 Who Feelin It (05:41) 6 Happiness Cant Buy Money (05:01) 7 Sand (06:03) 8 Shes Dangerous (04:34) 9 The Man With The 4-Way Hips (12:50) 10 Bootleg Movie (01:34) 1 Genius of Love (07:17) 2 Band Introduction (01:57) 3 You Sexy Thing (05:08) 4 Holy Water (04:23) 5 Wordy Rappinghood (08:16) 6 As Above So Below (06:19) 7 96 Tears (03:59) 8 Take Me to the River (07:30) |
 | Album: 7 of 8 Title: Genius of Live Released: 2010-09-28 Tracks: 23 Duration: 2:00:24 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Genius of Love (07:15) 2 She’s Dangerous (04:24) 3 Wordy Rappinghood (08:13) 4 Time to Bounce (04:33) 5 Punk Lolita (04:47) 6 The Man With the 4-Way Hips (10:10) 7 As Above So Below (06:11) 8 Suboceana (06:52) 9 Who Feelin’ It (04:25) 10 Happiness Can’t Buy Money (04:58) 11 Holy Water (04:23) 12 Band Introduction (02:19) 1 Genius of Love 2001 (Money Mark remix) (04:43) 2 Genius of Love 2001 (Ozomatli remix) (03:38) 3 Genius of Love 2001 (DJ Bitman dub remix) (04:03) 4 Genius of Love 2001 (The Pinker Tones remix) (05:47) 5 Genius of Love 2001 (Kinky remix) (05:48) 6 Genius of Love 2001 (Monareta remix) (05:20) 7 Genius of Love 2001 (Mexican Institute of Sound remix) (02:54) 8 Genius of Love 2001 (Poncho remix) (04:20) 9 Genius of Love 2001 (Isa GT "Natural Fun" remix) (03:42) 10 Genius of Love 2001 (King Coya remix) (04:52) 11 Genius of Love 2001 (Señor Coconut "Atomtom™’s Deutscher Heaven" remix) (06:39) |
 | Album: 8 of 8 Title: Downtown Rockers Released: 2012-09-11 Tracks: 9 Duration: 44:52 Scroll: Up Down Top Bottom 25% 50% 75% Spotify Allmusic AlbumCover | 1 Downtown Rockers (04:08) 2 Wont Give You Up (04:29) 3 You Make Me Rock and Roll (04:17) 4 Kissin Antonio (03:42) 5 Sweets to the Sweet (04:34) 6 Downtown Rockers (E-Dub mix) (06:35) 7 Downtown Rockers (Arthur Baker superstar DJ mix) (07:35) 8 Kissin Antonio (Entro & Ginseng short mix) (05:44) 9 Kissin Antonio (DJ Latin Bitman mix) (03:47) |
| Downtown Rockers : Allmusic album Review : Spinning off from Talking Heads in the early 80s, Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth gave their parent band a run for its money as far as killer party bands went with Tom Tom Club. Their rock-solid rhythms and skeletal grooves were more concerned with getting down than getting artsy, and their limited discography yielded a few of the most timeless dance-rock tracks of all time. With the five-track EP Downtown Rockers, the band offers its first new studio material since 2000s mixed-bag The Good the Bad and the Funky. At first blush, the title track sets the listener up for disappointment. "Downtown Rockers" is a spoken list of key players from the gritty early days of New Yorks Lower East Side rock scene, with Frantz ominously uttering "The Ramones! Television! Suicide! Blondie!" and the like over a backdrop of decidedly unfunky hard rock guitars and borderline cheesy keyboard flourishes. Somewhere in the middle of the song, however, it stops feeling like an out-of-touch vie for a comeback and becomes genuinely fun. Its B-52s-like affectations on the singsongy chorus and just enough of that patented N.Y.C. mystery meld into an unexpectedly catchy party jam. The song goes on a little longer than the run-of-the-mill rehash from any given reunited 80s group, establishing the sense of groove that made Tom Tom Club brilliant to begin with. Even at odds with some dubious production, the song gets over, reminding us how "Genius of Love," arguably the bands best track, was little more than a similar list of inspiring musicians with a little more of a story to it. Things go uphill from there, with every song feeling more natural, relaxed, and groovy than the last. "Wont Give You Up" finds Weymouths detached vocals floating somewhere over a pseudo-reggae groove, bursts of electronic space drums and spooky keyboards wrapping around the songs minimal rhythmic backbone. Like-minded newcomers Wild Belle make guest appearances as well, with Natalie Bergman adding slippery guest vocals to "You Make Me Rock and Roll" and her bandmate brother Elliot playing saxophone throughout the EP. Downtown Rockers can sound nostalgic at times, from the subject matter to the instrumentation and even the very essence of the songs. In this case, however, its the best possible kind of nostalgia. Nothing about the band looking back on incredible times in a rich musical or personal history comes off as desperate or cloying here, primarily because Tom Tom Club still have the goods to produce irresistibly funky tunes. Their approach is basic and there are moments of yesteryear reflection, but (with the exception of a few too many crunchy guitars) almost everything on this EP fits perfectly in place with a band that nailed the vibe of a simple good time decades prior. Some things never change, and hopefully the inspired magic of Tom Tom Club and their ability to cultivate an atmosphere of instant celebration will remain one of those things. | ||