Carlos Sales rescues one of the great classics of Brazilian music in his new version of “Tocando em Frente”. With the striking sound of the steel guitar, the singer and musician offers a unique perspective for the song composed by Almir Sater and Renato Teixeira. Alongside renowned music producer Rick Ferreira, Sales reinvents himself as a sound sculptor, exploring new layers and giving new meaning to one of the most beautiful everyday chronicles of country music.
Originally released in 1984, in the midst of a Brazil under the shadow of dictatorship and waiting for democracy, “Tocando em Frente” conveyed a message of resistance and hope in difficult times. Today, almost 40 years later, the song remains relevant in a Brazilian society that faces contemporary challenges, such as polarization and economic crises. The song resounds like an anthem of perseverance, inspiring Brazilians to face adversity and maintain hope for a better future.
Carlos Sales, known for his authorial work, expands his artistic trajectory by assuming the role of interpreter. With previous releases, such as the albums “Assim” and “Pra Lá de Serio”, and the singles “Festa no Céu” and “Gostoso Demais”, the musician always seeks to convey a positive perspective and promote human connections. Now, with “Tocando em Frente”, he adds another chapter to his career, shedding new light on an eternal song. The single is available now on all major music platforms.
Why did you choose to re-record the song “Tocando em Frente”? What does this song represent for you?
I decided to record the song Tocando em Frente to fulfill an old desire, this song has actually always been part of my guitar repertoire at home, it is a song that I always sang naturally so I had this desire for a long time to fulfill this version that had my face the arrangement and the way of interpreting these lyrics, which always touched me
You brought a new sound to the music, replacing violas with steel guitars. How did this idea come about and what impact do you hope to achieve with this different approach?
From the beginning, my idea of the arrangement was that it was something different from the original song, but without distancing and respecting the way the song was born, so that was it. The idea from the beginning was that this song happened in a crescent, the arrangement starts minimalist, just a keyboard pad, synthesizer and just the voice. The bass only comes in at the front and the guitar arrives little by little, and the guitar that was added later was Rick Ferreira who recorded it, super scratching! And he recorded acoustic guitars, steel guitar – which also only comes in from the middle of the song onwards, further corroborating the initial idea of the crescent arrangement, always respecting the original work.
“Tocando em Frente” was released almost 40 years ago and is still considered a timeless song. How do you think it remains relevant today?
The lyrics of this song touches people in an optimistic way, in my opinion it has a message that makes us lift our heads and move forward, a message of overcoming obstacles and I think this is a timeless theme, it will always be present in everyone’s mind. everyone and therefore, at every moment, it is reinvented while the message remains intact. She touches everyone!
What was it like working with renowned music producer Rick Ferreira on this re-recording? What were his contributions to the result?
For the arrangement I had the illustrious presence of Rick Ferreira, super producer and the track only has me and him playing. I played part of keyboards, bass, drums and he played part of strings, acoustic guitar, steel guitar and played a piano too. Rick is my partner. we’ll do others, but he makes a lot of difference in the track. The experience he has of having worked for so many years with Belchior, Raul Seixas, Erasmo Carlos and many others, adds a lot to my music, he really is very experienced, he has his signature on the sound of the music, he entered there and transformed the music , recorded a baritone guitar too, this song has this curiosity, in addition to the steel guitar and guitars, he played a baritone guitar. I just have to thank Rick, he’s a master, a great idol and it’s a luxury to have him on the track.
Besides being a musician, you are also a talented drummer. How was the transition to taking on the role of interpreter on this project? What motivated you to explore this new facet?
Some people ask me how this change of drummer was, because I’ve always been a drummer, since I was very young, to sing and play and what I can say about it is that it was very natural, practically at the same age that I started playing drums, I started the guitar at home – obviously the drums were the instrument most present in my life, it was what threw me onto the stage. It was on the drums that I played in many places, it gave me musical experience and an even greater account of playing my songs, playing the guitar and singing at the front, but that was very natural, because I already did it at home and the act of composing for me always it was therapy, something natural, it was never a study, or anything like that, it really is a desire to put ideas out in the form of music, I’ve always done that and that’s why I keep doing it.
In addition to “Tocando em Frente”, you released other singles and albums throughout your career. How would you describe the evolution of your sound and musical style over time?
This version that I released just now was not planned, it was just an old desire, but I keep doing my original work, I even have new music to be released soon and that’s it, the idea is to keep releasing new songs and also not stop releasing making versions, I think it’s really cool when we manage to imprint our identity on a song that people already know – and love – it facilitates people’s curiosity to know my songs too, I do this naturally and will continue to do so.
What’s it like balancing your solo career with working as a drummer on other artists’ projects? How do these experiences influence your music?
In parallel to the authorial shows I’ve been doing, where I also interpret these versions. I keep playing the drums, accompanying some artists, I recently had the experience of playing again with Arnaldo Brandão, I keep playing with Baia, I had the recent opportunity to play some shows with Milton Guedes, it was a great experience and that also fulfills me professionally, it feeds me my soul. So, I keep singing my original work, but I would also like to keep playing the drums, one thing doesn’t prevent the other.
You’ve already had the opportunity to perform at major events and share the stage with renowned artists. What have been some of the most defining moments of your career so far?
Whenever I’m asked what the coolest moment of my career was, I need to divide it into two stages: my career as a drummer, which is accompanying artists, and there’s my authorial career. As a drummer I had the opportunity to play at Rock in Rio and Lollapalooza. Lollapalooza was very special, we played on the main stage before Pearl Jam, both with Mauricio Baia. Anyway, these two were indeed standout moments in my career as a drummer. Still with Baia, I played in Europe, a lot of cool things happened! Now, in my authorial career, which is more recent, I think the most outstanding moment was the program “Experiment”, on the Bis channel. An authorial program that has a very wide reach, it is shown on national television and there I was able to talk a little about my career and play my songs alongside my band.
In addition to music, you mentioned the importance of conveying a positive outlook and fostering human connections. How do you seek to achieve this goal through your art?
Art, it has the power to touch, to change people, be it music, plastic arts, a theater play, where many times we are touched by a text and leave transformed after that experience, music also has this power very strong, very intense. A privilege to make music in that sense, to know that you can move a person. So many times I receive messages from people saying that they cried with my music, anyway, this is very gratifying. It’s not for that, crying, that we do lol, we do it because it’s also touched by the music and let it out, but it’s obvious that when we see this energy replicated and divided, it amplifies our feeling of being alive. Living without art is not enough!
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