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Rei Momo (1989)

Where the lyrics of Rei Momo take you, and where it was really made.

Built on Latin styles and mostly sung in English, this was David Byrne's first solo album after Talking Heads, yet it reached only number 54 on the UK Albums Chart.

Key places

Atlantic Studios, New York (1989)

Recording site Atlantic Studios (New York City) — Recording credits list Atlantic Studios in New York as one of the studios where Rei Momo was recorded. Google Maps · Apple Maps

How to get there: See the map for directions.

Album story

Overview

• Rei Momo: debut solo studio album by American musician David Byrne
• Second studio album overall, after the 1981 collaboration My Life in the Bush of Ghosts
• Released on 3 October 1989
• Mostly sung in English, with guest appearances by Kirsty MacColl, Willie Colón and Celia Cruz

Background

• Draws on Latin styles from Cuba (rumba, mozambique, mambo, chachachá, bolero), the Dominican Republic (merengue), Puerto Rico (bomba), Colombia (cumbia, mapeyé) and Brazil (samba, pagode)
• Co-released by Luaka Bop and Sire
• Byrne's first solo album after Talking Heads

Recording

• Recorded at Atlantic Studios in New York
• Also recorded at Right Track Studios in New York, in May and July 1989
• Mixed at Right Track Studios
• Mixed by Jon Fausty and Steve Lillywhite
• Mastered by Jack Skinner
• Record company credited as Warner Communications

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · es.wikipedia.org · it.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com

Tracklist

Sources: musicbrainz.org

Artist

Formation

• Born May 14, 1952 in Dumbarton, Scotland; family moved to Canada and then Arbutus, Maryland, USA.
• Co-founded Talking Heads in New York City in 1975 as founding member, principal songwriter, lead vocalist and guitarist.

Members

• Byrne was the youngest member of Talking Heads; Jerry Harrison joined in 1977.

Career

• Talking Heads released eight studio albums, seven of them certified gold or platinum, and disbanded in 1991; inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002.
• Solo career began in 1981 with My Life in the Bush of Ghosts (with Brian Eno), with solo work accelerating after Talking Heads' hiatus in 1988.
• Worked across film, theatre, opera, fiction and non-fiction; won an Academy Award, a Grammy, a Special Tony Award and a Golden Globe.
• Collaborators include Brian Eno, Fatboy Slim, Ryuichi Sakamoto, St. Vincent and X-Press 2.

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Reception

At release

• Co-released by Luaka Bop and Sire on 3 October 1989
• Three songs, "Loco de Amor", "Good and Evil" and "Office Cowboy", were left off the LP
• Those three songs are included on the cassette and compact disc editions
• David Byrne performed "Dirty Old Town" and "Loco de Amor" on Saturday Night Live's Thanksgiving show in 1989
• The album mixes Latin styles from Cuba, the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Colombia and Brazil and is mostly sung in English

Reappraisal

• The album was well-received by critics
• In a retrospective review for The Guardian, Alexis Petridis wrote that Byrne's first post–Talking-Heads solo album is a cut above the late-1980s pop albums that dabbled in world music
• Petridis also called the record an underrated joy
• Rei Momo is Byrne's second studio album overall, following the 1981 collaboration My Life in the Bush of Ghosts

Records

• UK Albums Chart: number 54
• Billboard chart: number 71

Sources: en.wikipedia.org

Trivia

• Three songs, "Loco de Amor", "Good and Evil" and "Office Cowboy", were left off the LP and appear only on the cassette and CD editions
• Willie Colón, Johnny Pacheco and Celia Cruz appear on the album courtesy of Fania Records
• All songs are by David Byrne except where indicated in the credits

Sources: en.wikipedia.org · www.discogs.com · es.wikipedia.org

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