Talk Normal: The Laurie Anderson Anthology
Encyclopedia
Talk Normal: The Laurie Anderson Anthology is a retrospective of the seven albums recorded by American experimental music
composer Laurie Anderson
for Warner Bros. Records
.
Experimental music
Experimental music refers, in the English-language literature, to a compositional tradition which arose in the mid-20th century, applied particularly in North America to music composed in such a way that its outcome is unforeseeable. Its most famous and influential exponent was John Cage...
composer Laurie Anderson
Laurie Anderson
Laura Phillips "Laurie" Anderson is an American experimental performance artist, composer and musician who plays violin and keyboards and sings in a variety of experimental music and art rock styles. Initially trained as a sculptor, Anderson did her first performance-art piece in the late 1960s...
for Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
.
Disc 1
- O SupermanO Superman"O Superman " is a 1981 song by experimental performance artist and musician Laurie Anderson. Part of the larger work United States, "O Superman", a half-sung, half-spoken, almost minimalist piece unexpectedly rose to #2 on the UK Singles Charts in 1981. Prior to the success of this song, Anderson...
(For Massenet) - 8:21 (from Big ScienceBig Science (album)Big Science is the 1982 debut album by avant-garde artist Laurie Anderson and the first of a 7-album deal she signed with Warner Bros. Records. It is best known for the 8-minute epic "O Superman", which reached #2 in the UK. The album is minimalist and monochrome in sound, and like a great deal of...
) - From the Air - 4:35 (from Big Science)
- Big Science - 6:22 (from Big Science)
- Born, Never Asked - 4:57 (from Big Science)
- It Tango - 3:02 (from Big Science)
- Gravity's Angel - 6:04 (from Mister HeartbreakMister HeartbreakMister Heartbreak is the second album by avant-garde artist, singer and composer Laurie Anderson, released in 1984.Considered more mainstream than its predecessor, Big Science, the album's lead track, "Sharkey's Day" formed the basis of a popular music video. Author William S...
) - Excellent Birds - 3:13 (Laurie Anderson/Peter GabrielPeter GabrielPeter Brian Gabriel is an English singer, musician, and songwriter who rose to fame as the lead vocalist and flautist of the progressive rock group Genesis. After leaving Genesis, Gabriel went on to a successful solo career...
) (from Mister Heartbreak) - Langue D'Amour - 6:15 (from Mister Heartbreak)
- Sharkey's Day (Single Edit) - 4:07 (from Mister Heartbreak)
- Walk the Dog - 6:42 (from United States LiveUnited States LiveUnited States Live was the third album release by avant-garde singer-songwriter Laurie Anderson. Released as a 5-record boxed set , the album was recorded at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in New York City in February 1983.United States was Anderson's magnum opus performance-art piece featuring...
) - Cartoon Song - 1:12 (from United States Live)
- So Happy Birthday - 6:22 (from United States Live)
- City Song - 3:33 (from United States Live)
- The Big Top - 2:51 (from United States Live)
- Dr. Miller - 5:18 (Laurie Anderson/Perry HobermanPerry HobermanPerry Hoberman , is an installation artist who has worked extensively with machines and media. His career has included stints with Laurie Anderson and the USC Interactive Media Division....
) (from United States Live) - Lighting Out for the Territories - 3:11 (from United States Live)
Disc 2
- Smoke Rings - 7:03 (from Home of the BraveHome of the Brave (soundtrack)Home of the Brave was the fourth album release by Laurie Anderson, issued in 1986. Released by Warner Bros. Records, it was a partial soundtrack album of her concert film of the same title....
) - Talk Normal - 5:31 (from Home of the Brave)
- Language is a Virus - 4:14 (from Home of the Brave)
- Credit Racket - 3:32 (from Home of the Brave)
- Strange Angels - 3:50 (from Strange Angels)
- Baby Doll - 3:37 (from Strange Angels)
- Coolsville - 4:34 (from Strange Angels)
- My Eyes - 5:28 (from Strange Angels)
- The Dream Before - 3:03 (from Strange Angels)
- The Day the Devil - 3:59 (Laurie Anderson/Peter Laurence GordonPeter Laurence GordonPeter Gordon is an American experimental composer and musician, whose music draws from influences as diverse as jazz, opera, rock and world music...
) (from Strange Angels) - Speak My Language - 3:38 (from Bright RedBright RedBright Red is the title of performance artist Laurie Anderson's sixth album, released by Warner Bros. in 1994.The album continues the more pop-oriented direction Anderson launched with Strange Angels...
) - Love Among the Sailors - 2:51 (from Bright Red)
- Poison - 3:45 (Laurie Anderson/Brian EnoBrian EnoBrian Peter George St. John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno , commonly known as Brian Eno or simply as Eno , is an English musician, composer, record producer, singer and visual artist, known as one of the principal innovators of ambient music.Eno studied at Colchester Institute art school in Essex,...
) (from Bright Red) - In Our Sleep - 2:34 (Laurie Anderson/Lou ReedLou ReedLewis Allan "Lou" Reed is an American rock musician, songwriter, and photographer. He is best known as guitarist, vocalist, and principal songwriter of The Velvet Underground, and for his successful solo career, which has spanned several decades...
) (from Bright Red) - Night in Baghdad - 3:28 (from Bright Red)
- The Night Flight from Houston - 1:33 (from The Ugly One with the JewelsThe Ugly One with the JewelsThe Ugly One with the Jewels is the title of a primarily spoken-word album released by Laurie Anderson on Warner Bros...
) - The Rotowhirl - 3:54 (from The Ugly One with the Jewels)
- The Ouija Board - 4:11 (from The Ugly One with the Jewels)
- The End of the World - 5:00 (from The Ugly One with the Jewels)