David Byrne talks about being autistic

I've heard that you have said what Tina Weymouth once said of you which I'm I think this was at a tender time and so I don't think she said it I think she said it and she wasn't as happy with you at this time but she said well you know he has Asperger's mm-hmm and then I didn't know what that was then yeah and then yeah after if some other friends had told me about the kind of the spectrum of Asperger's and autism and I thought oh yeah I can see that that certainly a different an earlier point in my life not so much now there's a part where I felt very uncomfortable socially and so I thought okay yes I can see that where I'll fit on that some of those things that yes see I identify with that it's the very functioning end of the autism spectrum yeah yes a very functional so I could certainly function fine but I but socially very uncomfortable probably the idea of observing and asking like am I supposed to do that is that the way that's what people do that probably goes along with it a little bit maybe kind of sort of an intense focus on kind of the songwriting or their artwork that I was doing at the time that kind of things bubbly so it's as other people have said a little bit isn't the worst thing in the world and when you I felt like you don't know however we are whatever you know we don't know how to be another way that's the way we are and you change over the years and become someone else someone different than you were before but but at that the earlier point that's who you are he's not you can't say oh I'm unhappy I wish I was more like this happy gregarious person who's so more socially adept I would just I figured I'm not I'll make friends with a socially adept person and they'll be the one that brings everyone what Paul encounters sounds very calculated but I don't I wasn't quite as much we all need guides we don't all need guides well pauline kael wrote this is way early on Byrne has it withdrawn disembodied sci-fi quality and though there's something unknowable and almost autistic about him he makes autism fun and at that time I hope you know you I'm sure you do what that means to the community with autism I mean that people are they're out of their minds happy so they just they think that's the greatest thing they've ever heard that you might even be a at some time have been a part of their community

Channel: talkinglegs

Views: 888,362

Keywords: david byrne, talking heads, autism, aspergers, david byrne autism

Id: vtX6emk6U5k

Length: 3min 7sec (187 seconds)

Published: Fri Aug 09 2019