# Talking Heads — Once in a Lifetime

Talking Heads’s Once in a Lifetime (1980) appears on 2 of our lists — Post-Punk and The Waxonia Desk — The Hundred, highest at No. 5 in Post-Punk. Every verdict, in full.

- **Released:** 1980
- **Label:** Sire
- **On:** Post-Punk and The Waxonia Desk — The Hundred
- **Updated:** 2026-08-29
- **Artist:** [Talking Heads](https://waxonia.com/artist/talking-heads/)
- **Canonical page:** https://waxonia.com/track/talking-heads--once-in-a-lifetime/

## What 2 lists say

### No. 5 in [Post-Punk](https://waxonia.com/genre/post-punk/)

Eno and the band build a looped Afro-funk bed and David Byrne has a public breakdown on top of it. Post-punk's most joyful record is also its most panicked.

### Picked by [The Waxonia Desk — The Hundred](https://waxonia.com/selection/the-desk-the-hundred/)

A looped Afro-funk bed and a man having a public breakdown on top of it. Post-punk's most joyful record is also its most panicked, which is why it lasts.

## Listen

[Search Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/search/Talking%20Heads%20Once%20in%20a%20Lifetime) · [YouTube Music](https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=5IsSpAOD6K8)

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Hand-curated by Waxonia. We host no audio; all links point to streaming platforms.