28 Once in a Lifetime

TALKING HEADS 1980

“Once in a Lifetime” began during jams at Compass Point Studios in the Bahamas as the band worked on its Afro-funk-influenced album Remain in Light. Producer and co-writer Brian Eno wanted to ditch the tune until David Byrne started performing his “same as it ever was” monologue like an evangelical preacher, which somehow sharpened his message about questioning identity and reality. Said Byrne, “We operate halfawake or on autopilot and end up with a house and family and job . . . and we haven’t really stopped to ask ourselves, ‘How did I get here?’ ”