Trivia / Talking Heads: 77

• Creator Backlash: The members of the band have expressed dissatisfaction with Tony Bongiovi's pop-oriented production of the album.
• Executive Meddling: Bongiovi tried to push Talking Heads in a pop direction, as evidenced by the female backing vocals and horns on the alternate versions of "Uh-oh, Love Comes to Town" and "New Feeling" heard on the Once in a Lifetime box set. Talking Heads themselves wanted to expand their instrumentation on the album to differentiate it from their live shows, but Bongiovi's interpretation of the request was considerably different from theirs, leading Ed Stasium to have them record when Bongiovi was busy working on the construction of his studio, the Power Station.
• Enforced Method Acting: Attempted by Bongiovi during the recording of "Psycho Killer", but ultimately thwarted; Bongiovi handed David Byrne a butcher knife because he thought it'd help him get into character, but Byrne pushed back at this.
• Pop-Culture Urban Legends: A popular rumor following the album's release posited that "Psycho Killer" was a Ripped from the Headlines riff on the Son of Sam killings, as perpetrator David Berkowitz was apprehended the previous month. The band themselves denied this, but admitted that the timing was pretty freaky.
• What Could Have Been: The album was nearly produced by Lou Reed, who caught the band at a CBGB gig and wanted to give them a recording contract. However, a legal consultant the band hired discovered that the contract would've given Reed full ownership of the album, and they turned him down as a result (though still remained on friendly terms).

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