I feel a great sense of gratitude that the great conspiracy that is life and the universe unfolded in a way this week that I was able to see David Byrne perform in concert in Sydney. I saw Talking Heads perform at Narara ’84 as part of the Stop Making Sense tour, and it was one of the great performances of my life. Kids, work, money, fatigue, all those things often convince me or lead me not to make the effort to see something or to venture out, but something deep inside told me to book the tickets and go. I won’t pretend that I had been a big follower of Byrne post Talking Heads, so I did not know all of the songs that he would perform. There was a niggling, oh, what if you don’t like them. I joke with my kids that I don’t like / want new things, that there was enough music made before 1990 that they can just stop now. Yet part of my love for Talking Heads was that they kept making new stuff, kept challenging me with their moves and changes. When I buy my concert ticket, I want to know that I am going to enjoy the thing because I already know and enjoy the songs. Part of the endless circle of thoughts going round and round. Well, for once, those thoughts were quietened. The inner chatter was stilled. The concert opened with a song that I did not know, and it blew me away. Byrne alone with a brain in his hand. Through the first four songs – Here, Lazy, (neither of which were familiar to me) I, Zimbra, and Slippery People, tears of happiness ran down my face. I can’t do reviews, but I will share that feeling with you. It was that good. That was Tuesday evening, and now it is Sunday afternoon, and I am still on a high. The concert, the performance, the untethered band, the energy and dynamism, it blew this old man away. Absolutely loved it. What a great joy. Thank you.