Radiohead’s name comes from a song in Portuguese

The expression “radio cabeza” was used long before the creation of the English band… in a song by Chico Buarque.

Em 1985 became popular in Brazil, a theme performed by , one of the most influential artists in the country.

In the song, called “The Last Blues”the expression is used “Head Radio”to refer to the imagination of the character in the lyrics, who sees the scene of a woman dancing blues in the room.

It was Chico Buarque himself who told, many years later, the ridiculous story of how the expression reached the ears of Thom Yorke. It all started with another band, equally known to rock lovers: Talking Heads.

The fact was revealed by Buarque in an interview, when recalling a football game in Lisbon, where Radiohead drummer Phil Selway was present.

Selway was on the bench and Chico Buarque said: “Listen, don’t sit there frowning because your band’s name was stolen from one of my songs.”

David Byrnemember of the American band that produced hits such as “Psycho Killer”, ended up heard the song by chance, and liked it so much that, the following year, he released the song “Radio Head” do disco “True Story” (1986).

However, back in 1985, a band was formed in England, with the now unmistakable Thom Yorke as lead singer. It turns out that the English band, called at the time On a Friday, era grande fã de Talking Heads.

The name On a Friday ended up being vetoed by a record company with which the band would sign a six-month contract: the band was asked to change their name. There you have it: directly from a song in Portuguese, Radiohead, or Rádio Cabeça, are still the hit we know today.

But they wouldn’t have been able to sign the record deal if they hadn’t been saved… Chico Buarque. And the rest is history.