A Legendary Meeting (My "Mick and Keith")

Dude, he shook my hand. Chris Frantz, drummer of Talking Heads and Tom Tom Club fame, shook my motherfucking hand. If you had told me earlier in the day as I did my laundry that later on that very evening I would be face to face with one half the membership of one of the most important bands-nay things, to have ever impacted my life, I wouldn't have believed it. But there I was, a mere hour ago from the time I'm writing this, at LA's Echoplex standing feet away from the single most badass of all female rock bassists, (and let me tell you, that's quite a lineage) Tina Weymouth and her equally amazing partner in crime, the aforementioned Mr. Frantz. And I couldn't have been a bigger nerd when my moment came. But you know what? I wouldn't have had it any other way.

Anyone who knows me well enough knows just how much Talking Heads meant, and continue to mean, to me. Growing up geek, the music of Byrne, Harrison, Frantz and Weymouth proved to me that you could be nerdy and cool; hip in fact. Their music gave me a cocksure swagger the most punishing punk, the most brutal metal could never achieve. This was music that made me feel proud to be on the on the outs, never quite in step with what's going on, what's happening (even if, for a brief moment in the 1980's, Talking Heads was in fact what was happening). It's for this that this little band from New York forever has my gratitude and admiration. I know some people would kill to meet Paul McCartney or Eric Clapton but as far as I'm concerned, on the night of October 10th, 2010, I just met my Mick and Keith.

As the group in front of me wrapped up its conversation with Weymouth and Frantz and I slid into place, I locked eyes with the demure Tina... and almost immediately began to fumble over my words.

"I can't tell you how big of an influence you've had on me over the years."

"Oh, are you a musician?"

"No, no, (not a very good one anyway). It was just an honor to see you perform."

"Who should I make it out to?"

"Uh... oh.. just Joe. Just Joe's fine. Please come back again soon!"

"We will!"

And like that, it was over.

As I drove back home, I put on "Naked," perhaps my least favorite Talking Heads album but one that I began to appreciate ever more so the closer I got to my apartment. I've always felt it was the band's most self conscious work and there was something about it that prevented me from embracing it the same way I embraced "Fear of Music" or "True Stories" on first listen. However, for some reason, none of that mattered anymore. Maybe it's because I just met two of the people who helped commit this music to disc but one thing's for sure: I'll never be able to listen to this album the same way again.

So here's to you Mr. and Mrs. Frantz, where ever you are, for showing a nervous kid from Orange County a certain modicum of kindness as he met two of his heroes and allowing him the chance to be all nerdy and stuff.