"Long, Long Way from Home" is a song written by Mick Jones,

Lou Gramm Louis Andrew Grammatico (born May 2, 1950), known professionally as Lou Gramm, is an American singer and songwriter. He is best known as co-founder and original frontman of the rock band Foreigner from 1976 to 1990 and again from 1992 to 2003, ...

and Ian McDonald that was initially released on Foreigner's debut album. It was the third single taken from the album.

Lyrics and music

The lyrics refer to a person leaving a small town to try to succeed in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

("I left a small town for the apple in decay") and the loneliness he feels there. According to Gramm, the lyrics are autobiographical, reflecting his experience moving to

from his hometown of

Gates, New York Gates is a town in Monroe County, New York, United States. The town is named after General Horatio Gates. The population was 29,167 at the 2020 census. Gates and North Gates are census-designated places within the town. It is a suburb of Roch ...

, outside of Rochester. Gramm and Jones have stated that this was the first song they worked on together. The song features a

clavinet The Clavinet is an electric clavichord invented by Ernst Zacharias and manufactured by the Hohner company of Trossingen, West Germany, from 1964 to 1982. The instrument produces sounds with rubber pads, each matching one of the keys and respond ...

Reception

The single was released in November 1977. It reached number 20 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in 1978. It was also a hit in Canada, reaching #22. ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' described "Long, Long Way from Home" as a "sparkling rocker" with "urgent and soulful" vocals and a "hard driving hypnotic rhythm" propelled by the guitars and

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

. ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', is an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' said that it "has an uplifting beat, with a sinewy lead vocal by Lou Gramm." ''

Record World ''Record World'' magazine was one of three major weekly music industry trade magazines in the United States, with ''Billboard'' and '' Cashbox''. It was founded in 1946 as ''Music Vendor''. In 1964, it was changed to ''Record World'' under the ...

'' said that Foreigner "ought to have its third straight hit with this powerful, tuneful rocker." ''Ultimate Classic Rock'' critic Eduardo Rivadavia rated it as Foreigner's 2nd most underrated song, while ''Classic Rock'' critic Malcolm Dome rated it their 4th most underrated song. Music author Kent Hartman described the song as an "anthem-like FM favorite." ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' critic John Milward rated it as the best song on ''Foreigner'', comparing Gramm's vocal delivery to

Paul Rodgers Paul Bernard Rodgers (born 17 December 1949) is an English-Canadian singer. He was the lead vocalist of numerous successful rock bands, including Free (band), Free, Bad Company, The Firm (rock band), the Firm and The Law (English band), the L ...

Bad Company Bad Company were an English rock supergroup formed in London in 1973 by singer Paul Rodgers and drummer Simon Kirke (both ex- Free), guitarist Mick Ralphs (ex- Mott the Hoople) and bassist Boz Burrell (ex-King Crimson). Kirke was the only m ...

, and saying that the synthesizer and saxophone give it a bit of

Roxy Music Roxy Music are an English rock music, rock band formed in 1970 by Bryan Ferry (lead vocals/keyboards/principal songwriter) and Graham Simpson (musician), Graham Simpson (bass). By the time the band recorded their Roxy Music (album), first albu ...

's sophistication. ''Billboard'' critic Gary Graff rated "Long, Long Way from Home" as one of McDonald's 10 best recorded saxophone performances, and as Foreigner's 2nd greatest song based in part on the strength of McDonald's performance. Co-writer Mick Jones has rated it as one his favorite Foreigner songs.

In popular culture

* The song was featured in the 13th episode of ''

Supernatural Supernatural phenomena or entities are those beyond the Scientific law, laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin 'above, beyond, outside of' + 'nature'. Although the corollary term "nature" has had multiple meanin ...

s 4th season, and the 2nd episode of its 5th season.

References

{{Authority control 1977 singles Foreigner (band) songs Songs written by Mick Jones (Foreigner) Songs written by Lou Gramm Songs written by Ian McDonald (musician) 1976 songs Atlantic Records singles