“Road to Nowhere” was one of Talking Heads’ last sizable hits – their last hit to get certified for sales in the UK even if it didn’t chart on the Hot 100. It comes from their sixth album, their left turn into Americana-influenced music, and it open with a gospel choir, which was fairly unusual for both them and pop music in the ’80s.
Rogê is a Brazilian singer and guitarist, formerly of bossa nova group Doces Cariocas. He plays a variety of Brazilian popular music styles including samba rock.
From the get-go, Rogê’s approach is different. There’s no choir, only gentle guitar and hand-played percussion. About 20 seconds in, he starts singing softly and he is backed by echoey choir-esque vocals, which is just a slight homage to the original.
A minute in, the song proper gets going, with thumping organic percussion, strident guitar and Rogê’s vocal. The backing vocals come back, though they are always kept at a distant. Synths bubble up through the mix but mostly stay in the background except for accompanying the wordless hook. There’s a keyboard bass break and later he vamps on his acoustic before the song fades out with keyboards and the choir.
It’s a pretty radical version of the song, even though it still mostly sound recognizably like “Road to Nowhere” when he’s singing. The weird Americana-new wave hybrid of the original is completely gone, replaced by Brazilian rhythms and 21st century production. Check it out:
