B-side "New Feeling" Format 7" Length 2:57 | Released February 1977 Genre New wave | |
Recorded 1977, Sundragon Studios in NYC | ||
"Love → Building on Fire" (also known as "Love Goes to Building on Fire") is a song by rock band Talking Heads, released as a single in 1977. The single preceded the band's debut album by seven months. As the single was the first piece of music released commercially by the band, its release is cited as a milestone in the band's history in its Rock and Roll Hall of Fame entry.
Contents
The song did not appear on any of the band's original studio albums, though it was later included on their 1992 compilation album Sand in the Vaseline: Popular Favorites and as a bonus track on a reissue of Talking Heads: 77. A live recording of the song is featured on their live album The Name of This Band Is Talking Heads.
Personnel
The song was written by David Byrne. The original recorded version was produced by Tony Bongiovi. The horns in the song were arranged by Brad Baker and Lance Quinn. Mastered by Ted Jensen
Artistic impressions of the song
Jerry Harrison called "Love → Building on Fire" one of his favorite songs to play live, despite the fact the song was recorded before he joined the band. Harrison stated that he and Byrne "used to get a wonderful interplay of guitars that was a bit like early Television". However, he felt that the best live performances were never recorded.
In popular culture
The song title was referenced by author Will Hermes in 2011, who wrote a book entitled Love Goes to Buildings On Fire: Five Years in New York City That Changed Music Forever.