"Take It on the Run" is a song by American rock band

REO Speedwagon REO Speedwagon (originally stylized as R.E.O. Speedwagon) is an American rock band from Champaign, Illinois. Formed in 1967, the band cultivated a following during the 1970s and achieved significant commercial success throughout the 1980s. The ...

off the band's ninth studio album ''

Hi Infidelity ''Hi Infidelity'' is the ninth studio album by American rock band REO Speedwagon, released on November 21, 1980 by Epic Records. The album became a big hit in the United States, peaking at number one on the ''Billboard 200''. It went on to become ...

'' (1980). The song was written by lead guitarist

Gary Richrath Gary Dean Richrath (October 18, 1949 – September 13, 2015) was an American guitarist, best known as the lead guitarist and a songwriter for the band REO Speedwagon from 1970 until 1989. Early life Richrath was born in Peoria, Illinois, on Octob ...

. "Take It on the Run" was the follow-up single behind the group's number-one hit, " Keep on Loving You". The single went

gold Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...

on April 17, 1989. "Take It on the Run" has appeared on dozens of "various artists"

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...

s, as well as several REO Speedwagon greatest-hits albums. The 2017 song " Messin' Around" by

Pitbull Pit bull is a term used in the United States for a type of dog descended from bulldogs and terriers, while in other countries such as the United Kingdom the term is used as an abbreviation of the American Pit Bull Terrier breed. The term was f ...

featuring

Enrique Iglesias Enrique Miguel Iglesias Preysler (; (born 8 May 1975) is a Spanish singer and songwriter. He started his recording career in the mid-1990s on the Mexican indie label Fonovisa and became the bestselling Spanish-language act of the decade. By the ...

interpolates "Take It on the Run".

Background

According to REO Speedwagon lead singer

Kevin Cronin Kevin Patrick Cronin (born October 6, 1951) is an American singer and songwriter, who is the lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, and pianist for the rock band REO Speedwagon. The band had several hits on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 throughout the ...

, the original title to the song was "Don't Let Me Down." Cronin said that: Cronin says that he insisted that the title should be "Take It on the Run" and that he added the line to the

refrain A refrain (from Vulgar Latin ''refringere'', "to repeat", and later from Old French ''refraindre'') is the line or lines that are repeated in music or in poetry — the "chorus" of a song. Poetic fixed forms that feature refrains include the vi ...

"You’re under the gun / So you take it on the run," which he says "either makes sense or it doesn’t, but it sure sung well and it sure rhymed, and it was a spur-of-the-moment thing that when I heard the rest of the song, that’s what I felt." The official songwriting credit names Richrath as the sole writer, but the liner notes for ''Hi Infidelity'' credit Cronin for "lyrical assistance". According to Cronin,

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group ...

was not convinced that "Take It on the Run" was good enough to be released as the follow-up single to " Keep On Loving You" and wanted to release "

In Your Letter "In Your Letter" is a song written by Gary Richrath that was first released on REO Speedwagon's 1980 album ''Hi Infidelity''. It was released as the fourth single from the album and just made the Top 20 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, peakin ...

" instead, but the band insisted on releasing "Take It on the Run." The song's music video was the ninth video played on

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

's first day, August 1, 1981. However, due to technical difficulties the video went to black just 12 seconds into the song, and never did finish.

Personnel

REO Speedwagon *

– lead and backing vocals, acoustic guitar *

– electric guitars * Bruce Hall – bass *

Neal Doughty Neal Allan Doughty (born July 29, 1946, in Evansville, Indiana) is an American keyboardist, best known as a founding member of the rock band REO Speedwagon and the only member to have played on every album. He formed the band in fall 1967, with or ...

– synthesizers *

Alan Gratzer REO Speedwagon (originally stylized as R.E.O. Speedwagon) is an American rock band from Champaign, Illinois. Formed in 1967, the band cultivated a following during the 1970s and achieved significant commercial success throughout the 1980s. T ...

– drums

Charts

It was released as a single in

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...

and reached number five on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart. It also reached number 19 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Sources

{{DEFAULTSORT:Take It On The Run 1980 songs 1981 singles REO Speedwagon songs 1980s ballads Hard rock ballads American pop rock songs Songs about infidelity Songs written by Gary Richrath Epic Records singles Song recordings produced by Kevin Beamish Song recordings produced by Gary Richrath Song recordings produced by Kevin Cronin