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Rhino is taking Talking Heads fans to the river with their next deluxe edition: a 3CD/Blu-ray edition of the group’s 1978 sophomore album More Songs About Buildings and Food.

Available July 25, the box will include the remastered album alongside a bonus disc of rare studio material (including four unreleased alternate takes and a host of material included on previous expansions) and a live set recorded at the Entermedia Theatre in New York City, just about a month after the album was released. Video of highlights from that same show feature on the Blu-ray, along with footage from a show later that year at the Sproul Plaza in Berkeley, CA, as well as the original in high-resolution stereo along with remixes in 5.1 surround and Dolby Atmos by the band’s Jerry Harrison and engineer Eric “E.T.” Thorngren (who passed away last year). All four band members – Harrison, David Byrne, Chris Franz and Tina Weymouth – have co-signed the project, offering recollections of the period in the 60-page hardcover book packaging alongside rare and unseen photos. (The box follows up similar sets for debut Talking Heads: 77 and Stop Making Sense.)

After the warm critical reception of Talking Heads: 77, More Songs About Buildings and Food aimed to shake things up slightly. The group pushed themselves out of their comfort zone in two ways, picking an unexpected locale for the sessions – Compass Point Studios in The Bahamas – and an unusual collaborator to produce. Brian Eno, then best known for his solo ambient work, early tenure in the U.K. band Roxy Music and contributions to David Bowie’s Low and “Heroes”, came on as producer, expanding the boundaries of Talking Heads’ taut post-punk into something even more left-field. The gambit paid off: for the first time, the group placed both an album and a single – the simmering Al Green cover “Take Me to the River” – into the Top 40 of the Billboard charts. The band’s collaborations with Eno would continue over their next few albums, taking them in even more unique and critically acclaimed directions into the 1980s.

The Buildings and Food reissue is available in a variety of formats. Several are exclusive to the band’s store, including a 4LP set featuring all the audio from the 3CD/Blu-ray edition and several that include replicas of four international 7″ singles with picture sleeves. All are available July 25 and can be pre-ordered at the links below. (As an Amazon affiliate, we earn from qualifying purchases.)

More Songs About Buildings and Food (Deluxe Edition) (Sire/Rhino R2 727389, 2025)

3CD/Blu-ray: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada
2LP: Amazon U.S. / Amazon U.K. / Amazon Canada / Rough Trade (Red) / D2C Exclusive (2LP/4×7″)
4LP: D2C Exclusive (and 4LP/2×7″)

* previously unreleased

CD/LP 1: Original album remastered (released as Sire SRK 6058, 1978)

1. Thank You for Sending Me An Angel
2. With Our Love
3. The Good Thing
4. Warning Sign
5. The Girls Want to Be with the Girls
6. Found a Job
7. Artists Only
8. I’m Not in Love
9. Stay Hungry
10. Take Me to the River
11. The Big Country

CD/LP 2: Rarities

1. Thank You for Sending Me An Angel (Alternate Version)
2. With Our Love (Alternate Version) *
3. Found a Job (Alternate Version) *
4. The Good Thing (Alternate Version) *
5. Warning Sign (Alternate Version)
6. Electricity (Instrumental)
7. The Girls Want to Be with the Girls (Alternate Version) *
8. I’m Not in Love (Alternate Version)
9. Artists Only (Alternate Version)
10. The Big Country (Alternate Version)
11. Thank You for Sending Me An Angel (Country Angel Version)

Tracks 1, 5-6 and 9 from Bonus Rarities & Outtakes – Sire/Rhino (digital – no cat. #), 2006
Tracks 8 and 10-11 from More Songs About Buildings and Food (Expanded Edition) – Sire/Warner Bros./Rhino R2 76450, 2006

CD 3/LP 3-4: Live At the Entermedia Theatre, New York, NY – 8/10/1978 *

1. No Compassion
2. Warning Sign
3. The Book I Read
4. Stay Hungry
5. Artists Only
6. The Girls Want to Be with the Girls
7. Uh-Oh, Love Comes to Town
8. With Our Love
9. Love -> Building on Fire
10. Don’t Worry About the Government
11. The Good Thing
12. Drugs
13. The Big Country
14. New Feeling
15. Pulled Up
16. Psycho Killer
17. Take Me to the River
18. Found a Job
19. Thank You for Sending Me An Angel

Blu-ray

• Original album in hi-res stereo, 5.1 surround and Dolby Atmos mix
• Live At the Entermedia Theatre, New York, NY – 8/10/1978 *
  • Uh-Oh, Love Comes to Town
  • The Girls Want to Be with the Girls
  • The Good Thing
  • Take Me to the River
  • Found a Job
  • Thank You for Sending Me An Angel
• Live At Sproul Plaza, Berkeley, CA – 11/27/1978 *
  • The Big Country
  • Warning Sign
  • The Book I Read
  • Stay Hungry
  • Artists Only
  • The Girls Want to Be with the Girls
  • The Good Thing
  • Uh-Oh, Love Comes to Town
  • Psycho Killer
  • I’m Not in Love
  • Pulled Up

7″ Singles with D2C Exclusive

• Take Me to the River (Edit) b/w Thank You for Sending Me An Angel (“Country Angel” Version) (U.S. picture sleeve – Sire SRE 1032, 1978)
• Take Me to the River (Edit) b/w Found a Job (U.K. picture sleeve – Sire SIR 4004, 1978)
• Take Me to the River (Edit) b/w Thank You for Sending Me An Angel (“Country Angel” Version) (Japanese picture sleeve – Sire SFL 2383, 1978)
• The Good Thing b/w Found a Job (Netherlands picture sleeve – Sire SRKS 601, 1978)