Road to Nowhere

For other uses, see Road to Nowhere (disambiguation).

"Road to Nowhere"
Single by Talking Heads
from the album 'Little Creatures'
B-side	"Give Me Back My Name"
Released	1985
Format	7" single
Recorded	October 1984-March 1985
Genre	New Wave
Length	4:19
Label	Sire Records
Writer(s)	David Byrne/Chris Frantz/Jerry Harrison/Tina Weymouth
Producer	Talking Heads
Talking Heads singles chronology
"The Lady Don't Mind" (1985) "Road to Nowhere" (1985) "And She Was" (1985)

"Road to Nowhere" is a song by Talking Heads, from the 1985 album Little Creatures. It also appeared on Best of Talking Heads, Sand in the Vaseline: Popular Favorites, the Once in a Lifetime box set and the Brick box set. The song was released as a single in 1985 and reached number 25 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks and number 6 in the British and German singles chart. It also made #8 on the Dutch Top 40.

Charlie Crist, in his unsuccessful 2010 run for the U.S. Senate in Florida, utilized the song in a campaign video without obtaining permission. David Byrne sued for copyright infringement and, in a legal settlement, Crist issued a video apology for his improper use.

Production

According to the sleeve of Talking Heads compilation Once in a Lifetime, Byrne added the choral intro after deciding the song in itself was embarrassingly simplistic and monotonous.

The video, released to promote the single, was directed by David Byrne and Stephen R. Johnson and features the band and various objects revolving, as if in their own "road to nowhere", and it was nominated for "Best Video of the Year" at the MTV Video Music Awards 1986. Some parts were shot in the back yard and pool of actor Stephen Tobolowsky, who was co-writing Byrne's film True Stories at the time.

Cover versions

• The Kalamazoo, Michigan based bluegrass band Greensky Bluegrass recorded a version of this tune on their 2007 release Live at Bell's.
• The British a cappella group The Flying Pickets covered the song on the album The Original Flying Pickets.
• The British folk-rock group Oysterband covered the song on the mini-album '25,' released to mark their 25th anniversary.
• The British Indie Rock band Editors covered the song for a Napster Session and released it as a B-Side to the re-issue of their single "Blood".
• The French band Indochine recorded a cover to support Reporters Sans Frontières.
• The French band Nouvelle Vague recorded a cover for their 2009 album 3.
• The song was featured in the 2008 documentary Young@Heart.
• The song was released as a single in 2010 by the band Linfinity with Spanish Harlem as the b-side.
• Australian singer-songwriter Sarah Blasko uses the lyrics and composition to end her song "Over & Over" on her 2009 album As Day Follows Night.