The Los Angeles Times from Los Angeles, California • Page 234

When It Stops Making Sense, It's Time to Call It Quits concentrated on various solo pursuits. The fact that Talking Heads was not always his first priority angered bassist Tina Weymouth, drummer Chris Prantz and keyboardist Jerry Harrison, who talked venomously last summer about their feared leader in a GQ magazine story titled "Byrned-Out." In the article, the three whined about Byrne's solo projects and the could do that kind of musical and lyrical stuff and succeed with it." Jon Bream TALKING II: Byrne's new solo album, titled "Uh Oh" and due in February, incorporates every style he has explored, from salsa to. Talking Heads-style rock. "For a few years, it was like I almost had to distance myself from anything that sounded at all reminiscent of Talking Heads," he said. "Now I can allow myself to kind of admit that that's part of what I do, that's some of my strongest writing.

So I shouldn't be afraid to write in that style." Byrne described the album as "more radio friendly" than such recent projects of his as the orchestral work "The Forest" and the 1989 South American-flavored album "Rei Momo." He plans to hit the road with a band, playing music from all phases of his career, including Heads numbers. Frantz and Weymouth, meanwhile, are working on a fourth album by their band the Tom Tom Club. The Milwaukee-based son, without a record contract after two solo albums, is concentrating on producing, having worked recently with Poi Dog Pondering, Live and Psychefunkapus. COOL RECEPTION: While the highflying Hammer and Ice Cube albums are nestled in the Billboard Top 10, some other rap albums that were released with great expectations haven't done so well. Young M.C.'s "Brainstorm" peaked at No.

66 shortly after its release in late August and started plummeting fast quite a comedown for an artist whose previous album was a smash hit. Another disappointment has Talking Heads from left, Tina Weymouth, David Byrne, Jerry Harrison, Chris Frantz have broken up (this ain't no foolin' around). POP EYE dim prospects for a Talking Heads album (the last one was "Naked" in 1988) or tour (the last one was in '84). "What are we human doormats?" asked Frantz. None of the three were available for comment on Byrne's latest announcement, but a representative of Talking Heads' manage ment company confirmed the termination of the group and maintained that it was done amica bly.

The four musicians did get their heads together long enough to finish a handful of old tracks to be included in a CD box set, "Popular Favorites 1976-91 Sand in the Vaseline." The 33-song collection was supposed to have been in stores for the holiday season, but the quartet didn't finish the new material until fall, so it won't be out until late summer. The set will feature up to six new numbers, though Byrne isn't in iii i i i.i j. SoQrtal 'Wi HAVE PETER DECEMBER AMY ETRA due this week. Another possible piece in the box set is titled "Popsi-cle," which was built from leftover tracks from sessions for 1980's "Remain in Light" and '88's "Naked" albums. Asked to assess the acclaimed band's contribution to the pop world, Byrne replied: "I think we made things seem possible that people might have thought weren't possible before, whatever that means that you could look nerdy on stage and get away with it, that you didn't have to do the standard rock 'n' roll posturing, that you favor of including more than four.

In fact, he termed one of those four "not up to snuff." He said the band was contractually obliged to contribute only two new pieces. One new tune, "Sax and Violins," is on the soundtrack to Wim Wen-ders' movie "Until the End of the World." The soundtrack album is i lii i lmlkm -I il j. i jr-i ir jan Gusst Talking Heads are speaking to each other again but not in the recording studio. To paraphrase the band's "Life During Wartime," there ain't been no farewell tour, ain't been no press release, ain't been no feuding around at least no feuding lately. But David Byrne has made it official.

"You could say we've 'broken up' or call it whatever you like," Byrne told Pop Eye. "We're still on speaking terms. We see each other once in a while. As far as I'm concerned, we haven't had like a huge fight. But things ran their course." The status of the pioneering new-wave rock group had been in doubt for some time as Byrne QUIET STORM 103.0 FM WELCOMES JOE SAMPLE dec MANLY MOONDOG 12 THE THREE K00LKATS FEAT.

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