David Byrne Takes a Unique Approach to Audiobook

A year after releasing his Bicycle Diaries, book, David Byrne unveils an audio book version. The former Head Talking Head, however, decided to take an intriguing approach to the spoken word edition: instead of employing a simple narrative, he is making the book available in several podcast-style chapters.

The audio book will feature music by Byrne and presented as it was more of a radio broadcast. Byrne explains on his website:

After this book came out in hardback about a year ago, I wondered to myself, what if the audiobook for this project was more like a cross between a podcast and a radio show instead of the usual author or actor reading in silence? […] I did one chapter (New York) as a test… I felt it did indeed do what I imagined it could; when you heard the tinkle of glasses and silverware during a restaurant “scene,” boom!—you immediately felt you were there.

Byrne was never a conventional sort, as most of his fans know, and his experiment may have changed the way audio books will be done in the future as more creative leaders catch on. While fans would have likely been satisfied with a straight read, Byrne had the foresight to offer a new experience to those who already have read the Bicycle Diaries over the past year.

Each chapter is available individually, exclusively on Byrne’s website.