Tina Weymouth

Tina Weymouth
Weymouth at the Austin Music Awards, SXSW festival, 2010
Background information
Birth name	Martina Michèle Weymouth
Born	November 22, 1950 (1950-11-22) Coronado, California United States
Genres	New wave, rock and roll, art rock
Occupations	Musician, songwriter
Instruments	Vocals, bass, synthesizer, guitar
Labels	EMI, Sire
Associated acts	Talking Heads, Tom Tom Club, Gorillaz
Website	www.tomtomclub.nl
Notable instruments
Höfner 500/2 Club Bass Veillette-Citron Standard Bass

Martina Michèle "Tina" Weymouth (born November 22, 1950, Coronado, California) is an American musician, best known as a founding member and bassist of the New Wave group Talking Heads and its side project Tom Tom Club (co-founded with husband and Talking Heads drummer Chris Frantz).

Profile

Weymouth is of French heritage on her mother's side. Weymouth was a cheerleader in high school. As a bass guitarist, she combined the minimalist art-punk basslines of groups such as Wire and Pere Ubu with danceable, funk-inflected riffs to provide the bedrock of Talking Heads signature sound. Her sound is often very syncopated (i.e. reggae/funk) in feel, combining low fundamental notes with higher flourishes in clipped, staccato rhythms. Weymouth joined Talking Heads as bass guitarist at the request of then-boyfriend, Chris Frantz.

Life outside Talking Heads

Weymouth on bass, Toronto, May 13, 1978

Full members of the Compass Point All Stars, Weymouth and Frantz formed the Tom Tom Club in 1980, which kept them busy during a fairly long hiatus in Talking Heads activity. When it became obvious that Talking Heads frontman David Byrne had no interest in another Talking Heads album, Weymouth, Frantz, and Jerry Harrison reunited without him for a single album called No Talking, Just Head under the name "The Heads" in 1996, featuring a rotating cast of vocalists.

She also co-produced the Happy Mondays' 1992 album Yes Please! and has recently contributed backing vocals and percussion for the alternative rock virtual band Gorillaz; the backing vocals were provided for the character Noodle. Weymouth has been critical of Byrne, describing him as "a man incapable of returning friendship."

Weymouth was also a judge for the 2nd annual Independent Music Awards to support independent artists' careers.

Weymouth collaborated with Chicks on Speed on their cover of the Tom Tom Club's "Wordy Rappinghood" for their album 99 Cents in 2003 along with other female musicians such as Miss Kittin, Kevin Blechdom, Le Tigre, and Adult.'s Nicola Kuperus. "Wordy Rappinghood" became a moderate dance hit in Europe, peaking at number five on the Belgian Dance Chart, and at number sixty-six on the UK Singles Chart.

Personal life

Weymouth is the daughter of Vice Admiral Ralph Weymouth (USN, Retired) and Laure "Lo" Weymouth. She and Frantz have been married since 1977. They live in Fairfield, Connecticut and have two sons, Robin and Egan. Tina Weymouth has six other siblings, including Lani and Laura Weymouth, who are collaborators in The Tom Tom Club.

Her older brother, Yann Weymouth, was married to Lally Weymouth, a daughter of Katharine Graham, a publisher of the Washington Post for many decades. Her niece, Katharine Weymouth, currently serves as publisher of the Washington Post.

Equipment

• Höfner 500/2 Club Bass — Two pickup with single-cutaway hollowbody, purchased in 1978
• Veillette-Citron Standard 4 String — Neck Through, teal green
• Fender Mustang Bass — Used in early Talking Heads performances
• Fender Jazz Bass — Used for Tom Tom Club live performances
• Steinberger L-Series Bass — Seen during Little Creatures period
• Fender Swinger — Seen in Stop Making Sense during the performance of This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody)