Psycho Killer (4:19)
1,018,751 plays (216,125 listeners)
“Psycho Killer” is a song by Talking Heads from their 1977 album Talking Heads: 77, written by David Byrne, Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth. The band’s “signature debut hit” features lyrics which seem to represent the thoughts of a serial killer. Allmusic calls it a “deceptively funky New Wave/No Wave song … an insistent rhythm, and one of the most memorable, driving bass lines in rock & roll.”
“Psycho Killer” was the only song from the album to appear on the Billboard charts, peaking at 92 among Billboard Pop Singles. It placed 32nd on the Triple J Hottest 100 in 1989. It almost made the top ten in the Netherlands, peaking at #11 in 1977.
Lyrics
According to the preliminary lyric sheets copied onto the 2006 remaster of Talking Heads: 77, the song started off as a semi-narrative of the killer actually committing murders. Byrne has said of the song:
When I started writing this (I got help later), I imagined Alice Cooper doing a Randy Newman-type ballad. Both the Joker and Hannibal Lecter were much more fascinating than the good guys. Everybody sort of roots for the bad guys in movies.
The bridge lyrics are in French and include the prominent chorus line, “Qu’est-ce que c’est ?”, which translates in English to “What is it?”. The rest of the French lyrics are:
Ce que j’ai fait ce soir-là
Ce qu’elle a dit ce soir-là’
Réalisant mon espoir
Je me lance vers la gloire… OK
What I did, that evening
“Psycho Killer” was the only song from the album to appear on the Billboard charts, peaking at 92 among Billboard Pop Singles. It placed 32nd on the Triple J Hottest 100 in 1989. It almost made the top ten in the Netherlands, peaking at #11 in 1977.
Lyrics
According to the preliminary lyric sheets copied onto the 2006 remaster of Talking Heads: 77, the song started off as a semi-narrative of the killer actually committing murders. Byrne has said of the song:
When I started writing this (I got help later), I imagined Alice Cooper doing a Randy Newman-type ballad. Both the Joker and Hannibal Lecter were much more fascinating than the good guys. Everybody sort of roots for the bad guys in movies.
The bridge lyrics are in French and include the prominent chorus line, “Qu’est-ce que c’est ?”, which translates in English to “What is it?”. The rest of the French lyrics are:
Ce que j’ai fait ce soir-là
Ce qu’elle a dit ce soir-là’
Réalisant mon espoir
Je me lance vers la gloire… OK
What I did, that evening
Video
Added by tuchovgray
This is a music video I made of the talking heads super smash hit Psycho Killer
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Shouts
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forensicista wrote:
I forget how great this is, then I hear it again!
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kikikirsche wrote:
:-)))))
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rogums wrote:
Ohh....an all time fav song
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hobo8675309 wrote:
this is great.
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Arthur-Engler wrote:
yeah !
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traubster wrote:
I just figured out that there is French in this song.
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Theseeker2 wrote:
I´m so nervous...fafafafaffaffffafffafa
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fistofan0077 wrote:
This live version's really cool. I like it better than the recorded version (Which I love, by the way).
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Ariadane wrote:
"Psycho killer, qu'est-ce que c'est"?
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FlashingTeeth wrote:
Just classic.
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davidbowiegirl wrote:
Me too, all of their songs are better live. And that doesn't mean the studio versions are bad, not at all.
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blackpoolrock wrote:
Prefer it live.
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corazonmani wrote:
I like...alot
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OskiRocks wrote:
Got to disagree with you, gungh0. Are you forgetting "Life During Wartime"?
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rosebudz wrote:
oh yes...
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gungh0 wrote:
Best TH track.
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begumbeggy wrote:
run run run run run away!!
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Giusychevola wrote:
I love this song! ♥
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PowerPatty wrote:
love this track!
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gleisdreieck wrote:
Bruno, stop making sense! Greetings!
Talking Heads
Psycho Killer
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Recent Activity
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OdenStarbender, spence_12988, H2theoskie and 1 other person loved Talking Heads – Psycho Killer. 1 hour ago
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goodWeed tagged Psycho Killer with ‘gw alternative’. 8 hours ago
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venjiel added Psycho Killer to their Loved Tracks. 9 hours ago
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