Last Train to London

"Last Train to London"
"Last Train to London"
	UK single
Single by Electric Light Orchestra
from the album Discovery
A-side	"Confusion" (UK)
B-side	"Down Home Town" (US)
Released	9 November 1979 (UK); January 1980 (US)
Recorded	1979
Studio	Musicland Studios, Munich, West Germany
Genre	Disco;
Length	4:31
Label	Jet
Songwriter(s)	Jeff Lynne
Producer(s)	Jeff Lynne
Electric Light Orchestra singles chronology
Discovery track listing
	9 tracks Side one "Shine a Little Love"; "Confusion"; "Need Her Love"; "The Diary of Horace Wimp"; Side two ; "Last Train to London"; "Midnight Blue"; "On the Run"; "Wishing"; "Don't Bring Me Down";
Music video
	"Last Train to London" on YouTube

"Last Train to London" is a song from the English rock band Electric Light Orchestra (ELO), the fifth track from their album Discovery.

The song was released in 1979 in the UK as a double A-side single with "Confusion". It peaked at number 8 in the UK Singles Chart.^[1] However, in the US the two songs were released separately, with "Confusion" in late 1979 followed by "Last Train to London" in early 1980. It peaked at number 39 on the Billboard Hot 100.^[2]

Background

There was a certain period when it seemed we spent years on trains going back and forth from Birmingham to the various TV and radio stations in London.
— Discovery remaster (2001), Jeff Lynne

Critical reception

Billboard described the song as having a "catchy pop melody with Beatlesque vocal qualities and a smooth layered sound."^[3] Cash Box said that the song has "a frothy pop melody" and "a bouncy R&B-tinged rhythm line," making it sound somewhat like Heatwave's 1977 single "Boogie Nights."^[4] Record World said that "The electronic dance beat and lilting vocals are as timely as they are engaging."^[5]

Something Else! critic S. Victor Aaron found it to be "more formulaic" than "Shine a Little Love", the other "disco thumper hit from Discovery."^[6]

Personnel

According to JeffLynneSongs.com^[7]

Jeff Lynne – vocals, guitar, piano, synthesizer
Bev Bevan – drums, percussion
Richard Tandy – grand piano, synthesizer, electric piano, clavinet
Kelly Groucutt – bass, vocals

Additional personnel

Louis Clark – orchestra conductor

Chart history

Chart (1979/80)	Peak position
Irish Singles Chart^[8]	9
UK Singles Chart^[1]	8
Canada (RPM)^[9]	28
US Billboard Hot 100^[2]	39
US Cash Box Top 100 Singles	36

Certifications


Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)^[10]	Silver	250,000^{^}
^{^} Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Atomic Kitten sample

In 2002 British girl group Atomic Kitten sampled the hook of the song in their single "Be with You". The song was released as a double A-side with the song "The Last Goodbye". The single peaked at No. 2 in the UK.^[11]

References

^ ^a ^b "Electric Light Orchestra". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 5 March 2013.
^ ^a ^b "Electric Light Orchestra – Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 5 March 2013.
^ "Top Single Picks" (PDF). Billboard. 1 December 1979. p. 52. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
^ "CashBox Singles Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. 1 December 1979. p. 20. Retrieved 1 January 2022.
^ "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. 1 December 1979. p. 1. Retrieved 11 February 2023.
^ Aaron, S. Victor (14 February 2011). "Guilty pleasures: Jeff Lynne and the Electric Light Orchestra". Something Else!. Retrieved 13 May 2023.
^ "Jeff Lynne Song Database – Song Details". jefflynnesongs.com. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
^ "The Irish Charts – All there is to know". Irishcharts.ie. Retrieved 6 March 2013. Enter Electric Light Orchestra in the Search by Artist field, then click Search.
^ "RPM Top 100 Singles – March 8, 1980" (PDF).
^ "British single certifications – ELO – Confusion/Last Train To London". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
^ Van der Kiste, John (2017). Electric Light Orchestra: Song by Song.

External links

Review at allmusic

This 1970s rock song–related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.

[OCC-1] "Electric Light Orchestra". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 5 March 2013.

[AM-2] "Electric Light Orchestra – Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 5 March 2013.

[3] "Top Single Picks" (PDF). Billboard. 1 December 1979. p. 52. Retrieved 7 July 2020.

[cb-4] "CashBox Singles Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. 1 December 1979. p. 20. Retrieved 1 January 2022.

[5] "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. 1 December 1979. p. 1. Retrieved 11 February 2023.

[6] Aaron, S. Victor (14 February 2011). "Guilty pleasures: Jeff Lynne and the Electric Light Orchestra". Something Else!. Retrieved 13 May 2023.

[7] "Jeff Lynne Song Database – Song Details". jefflynnesongs.com. Retrieved 14 March 2024.

[8] "The Irish Charts – All there is to know". Irishcharts.ie. Retrieved 6 March 2013. Enter Electric Light Orchestra in the Search by Artist field, then click Search.

[9] "RPM Top 100 Singles – March 8, 1980" (PDF).

[United_KingdomELOConfusion/Last_Train_To_LondonsingleCertRef-10] "British single certifications – ELO – Confusion/Last Train To London". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 3 July 2024.

[11] Van der Kiste, John (2017). Electric Light Orchestra: Song by Song.

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