David Byrne American Utopia Out Friday
David Byrne is 65. Yes, 65. This is the man who lit up my late teens by fronting Talking Heads, the most stimulating post-punk band of all. Their songs, from Psycho Killer to Heaven, still pack a punch today.
That chapter came to a bitter end in 1991, when Byrne went solo without spotting that it might have been wise to inform his bandmates first. He has stuck to his guns, refusing all offers to re-form and carving out a role as a modern renaissance man.
He has run a record label, co-authored musicals, exhibited his photographs and drawings, written a book called How Music Works, blogged about cycling in foreign cities and even designed bike racks. He’s on a road to everywhere.
American Utopia is David Byrne’s first fully solo album for 14 years and the minute you put it on, it grabs you. It’s an album for anyone who fears that we are running out of tunes
His last performance in London, at the Roundhouse in January, was a Powerpoint presentation. Entitled Reasons To Be Cheerful, it consisted of findings rather than his own ideas, but still bore the Byrne signature: authority plus awkwardness.
The one thing he hasn’t done for ages is release a fully solo album. Diverted by collaborations (with Brian Eno, Fatboy Slim and St Vincent), he has let 14 years go by since Grown Backwards. All of which makes American Utopia an event.
The minute you put it on, it grabs you. It grabs you by the hips, with blasts of electro-funk. It grabs you by the brains, with quirky lyrics (one track deals with religion, through the eyes of a chicken). And it grabs you by the heartstrings, with gospel-tinged melodies.
Musically, American Utopia, is close to late Talking Heads but it will appeal to anyone
This is an album for anyone who fears that we are running out of tunes. The chicken song, Every Day Is A Miracle, is a camp-fire singalong. Gasoline And Dirty Sheets has a verse like a chorus, a chorus like a football chant, and a bassline from heaven.
The weakest link is the title. ‘These songs don’t describe an imaginary or possibly impossible place,’ Byrne has said, ‘but rather attempt to depict the world we live in now.’ Whatever your politics, that doesn’t sound like a utopia.
His point, as at the Roundhouse, is that it’s better to stop moaning and find some positives. But the man who once sang ‘And you may ask yourself, how did I get here?’ is at his best just asking questions. He even surpasses himself by wondering: ‘Must a question have an answer?’ (Answer: no.)
Musically, American Utopia is close to late Talking Heads. If you fell for (Nothing But) Flowers, you’ll like Dog’s Mind; if you loved Slippery People, you’ll relish the rubbery rhythms of It’s Not Dark Up Here.
But the whole thing has a vitality that will appeal to anyone, young or old. The tour, due here in June, should be a stormer.
GIG OF THE WEEK
Jessie Ware Jazz Café, London
Rating: 
Jessie Ware shows she has the pipes of a backing singer and the presence of a star
Annie Mac, the Radio 1 DJ who also puts on gigs, found just the venue for Jessie Ware.
The Jazz Café is a club, so people can dance, and it’s tiny, so we can see Ware’s cheekbones, which are mesmerising.
Ware has the pipes of a backing singer and the presence of a star.
When the crowd start singing Say You Love Me, she improvises around them.
When somebody boos, she says: ‘No booing, thank you very much!’
On her own electro-soul songs, she’s good; on Neil Young’s Harvest Moon, even better. She should do a covers album.
Jessie Ware is on tour Mar 20-Apr 1. jessieware.com