They Laid Down The Law
I had no idea until I was researching today’s vegetable that there was some sort of Mesopotamia controversy. Reportedly it was supposed to be a whole album, but they abandoned the recording session (making it an EP). Also reportedly, they did not like the production by David Byrne, which was the wrong way to think because Mesopotamia is by far the greatest B-52’s achievement. I can understand how David Byrne might bother you, though, if you had to be around him a lot.
So when it came time for the 1991 CD release of Mesopotamia (doubled up with the unnecessary Party Mix), they remixed it. Wrong!
The B-52’s - Mesopotamia - original version available on the CD that has only the Mesopotamia EP on it (insound / amazon.co.uk
Jan 27th, 2008 at 1:39 am
So is this the original David Byrne version or the post-Byrne remix? Sorry for my confusion.
Jan 27th, 2008 at 10:58 am
Sorry for being confusing - I posted the original version.
Your question made me think it might be fun for people to compare versions — so I’ve uploaded the remix (from the “Nude On The Moon” anthology, and labeled the “Remix 1990″ version).
Get it here: http://www.mediafire.com/?0chw3j9ntjp
and play your own comparison game! It’s fascinating how small changes can have a huge impact on a song.
Feb 10th, 2008 at 10:25 pm
Thanks for the info on Mesopotamia. I must admit, I’ve overlooked that album. Time to check it out again.
I’ve included a link to your post over at Utahpolis.
Thanks again!