Psycho Killer

For the video game, see Psycho Killer (video game).

"Psycho Killer"
U.S. vinyl edition cover
Single by Talking Heads
from the album Talking Heads: 77
LanguageEnglish, French
B-side
  • "Psycho Killer" (acoustic version)
  • "I Wish You Wouldn't Say That"
ReleasedDecember 1977
Recorded1977
Genre
Length4:19
LabelSire
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Talking Heads singles chronology
"Uh-Oh, Love Comes to Town"
(1977) 		"Psycho Killer"
(1977) 		"Pulled Up"
(1978)
Official audio
"Psycho Killer" on YouTube

"Psycho Killer" is a song by American rock band Talking Heads, released on their debut studio album Talking Heads: 77 (1977). The group first performed it as the Artistics in 1974.[6][7]

The band also recorded an acoustic version of the song featuring Arthur Russell on cello.[8] In the liner notes for Once in a Lifetime: The Best of Talking Heads (1992), Jerry Harrison wrote of the B-side of the single, "I'm glad we persuaded Tony [Bongiovi] and Lance [Quinn] that the version with the cellos shouldn't be the only one."

The band's "signature debut hit"[9] features lyrics which seem to represent the thoughts of a serial killer. Originally written and performed as a ballad,[10] "Psycho Killer" became what AllMusic calls a "deceptively funky new wave/no wave song" with "an insistent rhythm, and one of the most memorable, driving basslines in rock & roll."[1]

"Psycho Killer" was the only song from the album to appear on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, peaking at number 92. It reached number 32 on the Triple J Hottest 100 in 1989, and peaked at number 11 on the Dutch singles chart in 1977. The song is included in The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.[11]

  1. ^ a b Janovitz, Bill. "Psycho Killer – Song Review". AllMusic. Retrieved June 28, 2013.
  2. ^ "Talking Heads – Talking Heads: 77". Musicologia (in Italian). December 26, 2013. Retrieved June 30, 2021.
  3. ^ Potton, Ed (August 15, 2015). "David Byrne: composer, curator, cyclist — not just a Talking Head". The Times. Retrieved February 28, 2016.
  4. ^ "The 50 Best Song Interpolations of the 21st Century: Staff Picks". Billboard. October 28, 2021. Retrieved November 28, 2021.
  5. ^ Molanphy, Chris (June 29, 2018). "The Deadbeat Club Edition, Part 1". Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia (Podcast). Slate. Retrieved July 30, 2023.
  6. ^ Flynn, Clare (December 13, 2011). "Talking Heads, 'Chronology'". NPR. Retrieved September 13, 2012. CBGB in 1975, and see footage of an acoustic version of "Psycho Killer" from that performance
  7. ^ Smith, Andy (2003). Buckley, Peter (ed.). The Rough Guide to Rock (3rd ed.). Rough Guides. p. 1052. ISBN 978-1-85828-457-6. Byrne and Franz formed a quintet called The Artistic (they sometimes appeared as The Autistic), playing mainly 60s covers but throwing in the occasional Byrne original, most notably "Psycho Killer"
  8. ^ Tiller, Joe. "How Did I Get Here? 10 Talking Heads Facts You Probably Didn't Know". Dig. Retrieved November 27, 2022.
  9. ^ Jones, Chris (2003). "Talking Heads – Talking Heads 77 Review". BBC Music. Retrieved July 30, 2013.
  10. ^ "David Byrne talking about 'Psycho Killer'". SoundCloud. Retrieved July 30, 2013.
  11. ^ "Experience The Music: One Hit Wonders and The Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll". Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. Archived from the original on June 4, 2016. Retrieved April 27, 2015.