Elba Ramalho is a northeastern singer who came out in the 80's in the MPB scenery. She has performing also in the pop arena. In some albums like Leão do Norte she stuck to the purest renditions of northeastern forró, turned viable through the current "new-forró" trend in Brazil. In this album, she is somewhat inscribed in her preferred style (more comprehensible commercially), a crossover northeastern/MPB/pop. Here she covers a selection of correct folkloric tunes or old hits, purely northeastern; the rest consists in a good selection of hits by more recent eminent northeastern composers, where she is uneven: when she performs in the pure northeastern idiom she is perfect. When she tries to adapt to pop styles and even fado renditions, her metallic emission, her diction, and other characteristics of her singing make her less capable. "Baioque," the title track, is a
Chico Buarque tune made famous by Maria Bethânia in the 70's, meaning a fusion between BAIão and rOQUE (rock). The album also has "Pavão misteryoso," a hit in the voice of its writer, Ednardo, interpreted as a pop ballad; "S.O.S.," by
Raul Seixas, a rock where she is uncomfortable in a very literal vocal rendition and backed by a drum machine; "Paralelas," by Belchior, in a pop ballad version; "Vila do sossego," by
Zé Ramalho, also a pop ballad; "Vamos fugir," by
Gilberto Gil, reggae; "Zanzibar" (Armandinho/Fausto Nilo), the best arrangement/interpretation in the beautiful, swinging Bahian groove; "Os argonautas," a fado by Caetano, idiom in which she isn't at easy; "Relâmpiano," recent hit by Lenine/Moska, a northeastern xote, where she is perfect; a medley of northeastern xotes, equally convincing rendition; the northeastern quadrilha "A música do nosso amor," also perfect; a correct marcha-rancho version for the delicate folkloric "Ciranda da rosa vermelha"; "Tambor do mundo," a good merengue-pop-baião; and an excellent selection of frevos.