Fear Of Music
by Talking Heads

Fear Of Music by Talking Heads
Year: 1979
Release date: 1979-08-03
Overall rank: 237th   Overall chart history
Average Rating: 
84/100 (from 1,106 votes)
  Ratings distribution   Average rating history
Accolades:
Award Top 5 albums of 1979 (4th)
Award Top 100 albums of the 1970s (56th)
Award Top 500 albums of all time (237th)

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Product Details
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Talking Heads – Fear Of Music (Vinyl, 1979, Sire, Santa Maria Press) VG
Condition: Used


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Talking Heads Fear Of Music LP Viny Record 1979 SIRE Embossed Cover
Condition: Used


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Vintage Talking Heads Fear Of Music 12in Black Vinyl LP 1979 Fire Records
Condition: Used


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Talking Heads bestography

Fear Of Music is ranked 2nd best out of 17 albums by Talking Heads on BestEverAlbums.com.

The best album by Talking Heads is Remain In Light which is ranked number 26 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 27,325.

Talking Heads album bestography « Higher ranked (26th)
Remain In Light
This album (237th)
Fear Of Music
Lower ranked (339th) »
Speaking In Tongues

(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).

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Fear Of Music track list

  Track ratings The tracks on this album have an average rating of 84 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).

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Track pick (1000 - 100 votes) Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.

Fear Of Music rankings

Rankings summary
Overall rank: 237th | 1970s rank: 56th | 1979 rank: 4th

Fear Of Music collection

Fear Of Music ratings

Average Rating: 
84/100 (from 1,106 votes)
  Ratings distribution Help Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.

Showing latest 5 ratings for this album.  | Show all 1,106 ratings for this album.

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RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
80/100
 
3 days ago melisandre  Ratings distribution  26379/100
 
80/100
 
03/18/2026 13:56 JacobMullis  Ratings distribution  74388/100
 
80/100
 
03/14/2026 10:39 slimharpo  Ratings distribution  1,48369/100
 
85/100
 
03/11/2026 09:15 Tamthebam  Ratings distribution  23,03069/100
 
65/100
 
03/07/2026 08:19 Rockdrigo  Ratings distribution  11379/100

Rating metrics: Help Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)

This album is rated in the top 1% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 83.8/100, a mean average of 82.9/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 83.9/100. The standard deviation for this album is 12.6.

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Fear Of Music comments

Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 50 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
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Rating:  
55/100
From 09/09/2024 10:47 | #305202
This comment is beneath your viewing threshold.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -4 votes (0 helpful | 4 unhelpful)
Rating:  
70/100
From 02/09/2024 01:25 | #301856
An interesting record.
Unfortunately with some subpar tunes in the middle of some funky tracks.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 01/15/2024 15:22 | #301205
Best album of the seventies for me. I was twenty when I bought it and I couldn’t imagine that it was even better then More Songs About Buildings and Food which I played a whole year every day .
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 02/27/2023 21:10 | #294529
A pretty good record that only dips in quality occasionally but the highs overshadow these issues anyway. The opening track encapsulates what this album is perfectly with its strange but engaging tone and its diverse instrumentation. This record is really a stepping stone to what would come after and it is thoroughly enjoyable to be able to go on this adventure with the group as we see their sound become refined. Where the album peaks for me is the two track run of Air and Heaven which is just exceptional and is some of the best work the group put out in my opinion. Overall, it can be inconsistent at times but it is so full of personality and quality that this can be overlooked for the most part.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 08/07/2022 04:30 | #288214
Great stuff! Well worth a listen!
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
90/100
From 06/23/2022 17:29 | #286618
Their best 70s album and most consistent in quality, every song is good in my opinion except Animals which I don't like that much.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 05/18/2022 16:25 | #285477
It’s a frenetic album. So many words to sing, so many notes to play, so many beats to hit…all stuffed into 40 minutes or so. At the end, you’re left feeling a bit exhausted and a lot uplifted.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
90/100
From 03/24/2022 22:34 | #283334
Just terrific throughout.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 11/15/2021 13:31 | #276293
Very good actually
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 11/15/2021 13:30 | #276292
good
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
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Best Albums of 1979
1. London Calling by The Clash
2. The Wall by Pink Floyd
3. Unknown Pleasures by Joy Division
4. Fear Of Music by Talking Heads
5. Off The Wall by Michael Jackson
6. Entertainment! by Gang Of Four
7. Breakfast In America by Supertramp
8. Rust Never Sleeps by Neil Young & Crazy Horse
9. Highway To Hell by AC/DC
10. Reggatta De Blanc by The Police
11. Tusk by Fleetwood Mac
12. Damn The Torpedoes by Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers
13. Ambient 1: Music For Airports by Brian Eno
14. Metal Box by Public Image Ltd.
15. Armed Forces by Elvis Costello And The Attractions
16. The B-52's by The B-52's
17. Specials by The Specials
18. Setting Sons by The Jam
19. 154 by Wire
20. Singles Going Steady by Buzzcocks