Talking Heads Unveil Super Deluxe Reissue of 'Fear of Music'

Talking Heads will reissue their 1979 album Fear of Music as a super deluxe edition on Nov. 13, packed with rarities and previously unreleased music.

Every edition contains a remastered version of the original album plus two full concerts from the Fear of Music tour. The band recorded the first on Aug. 24, 1979, at the Berklee Performance Center in Boston. They taped the second on Nov. 17, 1979, at the Capitol Theatre in New Jersey. Nearly all of the song performances appear here for the first time.

Fear of Music (Super Deluxe Edition) will be available in three configurations: a 3CD/Blu-ray set, a 6LP vinyl box, and a 2LP version. The Blu-ray carries new Dolby Atmos, 5.1 surround, and high-resolution stereo mixes. It also includes the band's performance of two songs in England for the BBC's Old Grey Whistle Test, among them a live rendition of "Life During Wartime," which Talking Heads have already shared on their YouTube channel.

The vinyl and CD super deluxe editions ship with a 60-page hardcover book featuring photographs and liner notes by Will Hermes, author of Love Goes to Buildings on Fire: Five Years in New York That Changed Music Forever.

Fear of Music arrived on Aug. 3, 1979, and found Talking Heads — Tina Weymouth, David Byrne, Chris Frantz, and Jerry Harrison — reaching their highest position on the Billboard 200 to date, peaking at Number 21.

The reissue lands amid renewed attention on the band's catalog, and the inclusion of two near-complete live shows from the Fear of Music tour gives listeners their first chance to hear that era of the group's live work in official form.