By Ryan J. Nims
Very few musical acts have a career trajectory that has taken them from pop music to making art that is completely non-commercial, helping to create a new genre in the process. Such is the story of Talk Talk, a band that started making synth-pop but ended up flaunting expectations and becoming post-rock innovators. Originally released in 1997 by EMI, The Very Best of Talk Talk has just been remastered and reordered by Parlophone as a chronological story of the band’s career.
I have been a fan of this band for decades and consider them one of my favorite bands of all time. Since the tracklist is ordered chronologically, let’s dive into the history of the band, track-by-track:
Talk Talk was formed in London in 1981 by former vocalist of punk band The Reaction Mark Hollis, fretless bass player Paul Webb, drummer Lee Harris, and synth player Simon Brenner. The band took its name from The Reaction’s song “Talk Talk Talk Talk,” which would be re-recorded by the fledgling band as “Talk Talk.” While it was released as the second single from The Party’s Over (EMI, 1982), it was the first of Talk Talk’s songs to gain any traction on music charts.
“Today” was the band’s first track to reach the top 20. The single version on this compilation is edited from the version released on the debut album. Featuring a funky fretless bass line from Webb and chanting vocals on the chorus, the song is infectious and catchy.
“Have You Heard the News” was not released as a single, though it did make it onto the original 1997 compilation. The song is moody and, according to Hollis, refers to the guilt felt by a person who has been in an accident, though it is not their fault. Following the release of The Party’s Over, Brenner left the band, and Tim Friese-Greene was brought in as the unofficial fourth band member, producing, co-writing, and performing some keyboards on every release after.
The title track of the second album (EMI, 1984), “It’s My Life” was a moderate hit for the band, though not one of their highest-charting singles. Some may recognize the track from its 2003 remake by American band No Doubt, which was a chart success and was nominated for a Grammy. Notably, for the music video, Mark Hollis refused to lip sync, instead keeping his mouth closed while wiggling black shapes cover his mouth.
Inspired by a novel called The Dice Man by Luke Rinehart in which a man uses the roll of a die to make decisions for him, “Such a Shame” was a hit in Europe charting in the top 10 in many countries, though it failed to break the UK top 50. It was a moderate dance hit in the US. The video features the band performing, while Hollis makes various emotive facial expressions. The dice motif is carried through to the video.
Album opener “Dum Dum Girl” was released as the third single from It’s My Life. It was not a huge commercial success but is a catchy song nonetheless.
The Colour of Spring (EMI, 1986) marked a turning point for the band. The synths were replaced by organ and piano, while Harris switched from electronic to acoustic drums. Harris’s playing on earlier albums was good but seemed to be limited by the robotic textures of the electronic instruments. His drumming became more complex and warm once he switched to acoustic kits. “Life’s What You Make It” was the first song that I really recognized from the band, and the one that turned me into a fan! Built around a bouncy piano riff and some powerful drumming by Lee Harris, the song notably features no bass, with Webb performing only backing vocals.
The second single “Living In Another World,” featuring Steve Winwood on organ, was a top 40 hit in Europe. This song has an especially entertaining music video, featuring the band suspended upside down from a piano with a wind machine blowing on the trio as they sing.
“Give It Up” is another organ-heavy pop song, which didn’t quite crack the UK top 50. The lyrics are vague and open to interpretation. They may have to do with nature, religion, or humanity, depending on who you ask.
“April 5th” features some of the sparse instrumentation the band would become known for in their later work; this track feels like the pivot point between the band’s pop work and their more experimental period. If the album’s theme is spring, this song exemplifies it, with lyrics referencing young love and nature.
“Time It’s Time” is another piano-heavy track, which builds to an epic pop song with chorus vocals. Despite the more experimental nature of some of the songs, The Colour of Spring ended up being Talk Talk’s highest-selling studio album. It is hard to say if this is my favorite album, as I’ve listened to their latter two albums far more often, but The Colour of Spring was the first of their studio records that I bought.
The recording sessions for the follow-up album Spirit of Eden (Parlophone, 1988) were fueled by musical experimentation and hours of editing. Upon completion, EMI was unsure how to sell the album and released an edited-down version of “I Believe In You” as the only single. The song is a cautionary tale about the dangers of heroin addiction; though not specifically written about him, Hollis’s brother Ed would succumb to the ravages of the drug in early 1989. The edited version loses a little of the punch of the original album track, wiping out the entire instrumental middle section.
An edited version of “Eden” follows. Again, the edit is not as good as the album track. In particular, some of the cuts to make this song fit into about four minutes just seem jarring as compared to the original. Thematically, “Eden” has a lot of religious imagery and seems to deal with salvation. Throughout Talk Talk’s existence, but especially in the latter records, Hollis’s lyrics touch on Christian imagery, though not always with reverence.
Album closer “Wealth” is a sparse track seemingly featuring only Tim Freise-Greene and Mark Hollis on organ and piano respectively. Probably my least favorite song on Spirit of Eden, in the context of the album, it is a nice calm ending and offers a breather to the intensity of the 6-minute “I Believe in You.”
In the midst of EMI’s displeasure with Spirit of Eden, Paul Webb’s departure, and protracted legal battles, Talk Talk were successfully released from their contract and signed with jazz label Verve to produce their final album Laughing Stock (Verve/Polydor, 1991). If Spirit of Eden was their attempt at moving farther away from radio-friendly music, Laughing Stock was the logical final step – longer recording sessions with more session musicians (some accounts claim as many as 50 musicians recorded parts for the album, though only about 16 ended up in the final mix), before being meticulously edited to meet Hollis and Friese-Grene’s vision. Moody, jazzy, experimental, and completely devoid of a single, the album was not well received at the time. However, over the years, it has become lauded as a masterpiece and has proven highly influential on a great many musicians who followed in its wake. The sole track from this compilation, “New Grass,” is definitely one of the album’s stand-out tracks. Harris’s kraut rock-inspired drums are played with mechanical precision, the guitars are sorrowful, and Hollis’s vocals tinged with spirituality. I refer to this song as my “comfort song” as whenever I get stressed out, I put it on (many times on repeat) and let the music calm my nerves.
Following the release of the final album, Talk Talk quietly disbanded. Hollis released the solo album Mark Hollis (Polydor, 1998), which followed a similarly minimalist sound as the latter Talk Talk records–albeit with acoustic instrumentation–before retiring completely from the music industry. Hollis passed away in 2019. Harris and Webb have remained in the music industry, often working together on various projects, such as their short-lived post-rock project .O.rang, and Webb’s more recent releases under the name Rustin Man. Harris co-produced, co-wrote, and performed on one of my favorite albums of 2024, Lives Outgrown by Portishead singer Beth Gibbons (Domino, 2024)
More than anything, Talk Talk was a band that lived by integrity. They followed their muse without compromising art in the interest of greater commercial viability. Nearly every release featured the artwork of painter James Marsh, further giving the band a sense of consistency, even through an ever-evolving series of albums. Because of the chameleon-like nature of the band’s discography, their music may appeal to a diverse group of music fans! Though the band was only around for ten years, and mostly through the 80s, much of their music feels timeless. Though I wish more songs from Laughing Stock were represented on this compilation, The Very Best of Talk Talk offers listeners a great primer to the music of Talk Talk.