Back on the Chain Gang
Pretenders
Become A Better Singer In Only 30 Days, With Easy Video Lessons!
I found a picture of you, oh oh oh oh What hijacked my world that night To a place in the past We've been cast out of? Oh oh oh oh Now we're back in the fight We're back on the train Oh, back on the chain gang A circumstance beyond our control, oh oh oh oh The phone, the TV and the news of the world Got in the house like a pigeon from hell, oh oh oh oh Threw sand in our eyes and descended like flies Put us back on the train Oh, back on the chain gang The powers that be That force us to live like we do Bring me to my knees When I see what they've done to you But I'll die as I stand here today Knowing that deep in my heart They'll fall to ruin one day For making us part I found a picture of you, oh oh oh oh Those were the happiest days of my life Like a break in the battle was your part, oh oh oh oh In the wretched life of a lonely heart Now we're back on the train Oh, back on the chain gang
Become A Better Singer In Only 30 Days, With Easy Video Lessons!
Written by: Christine Hynde
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, WORDS & MUSIC A DIV OF BIG DEAL MUSIC LLC
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
10 facts about this song
Band's Influence"Back on the Chain Gang" is a song by English-American rock band the Pretenders, which was formed in 1978.
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Chart PerformanceThe song reached number 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 17 in the UK Singles Chart in 1983, making it the band's biggest hit in the United States.
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Album InclusionAlthough the song was released as a single, it was later included in the Pretenders' 1984 album "Learning to Crawl".
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Tragic InspirationThis song was written by the band's leader, Chrissie Hynde, and was inspired by the death of the Pretenders' guitarist, James Honeyman-Scott, who died of a drug overdose in 1982.
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Tribute to BandmateThe lyrics of "Back on the Chain Gang" serve as a tribute to James Honeyman-Scott, expressing the sadness and resilience the band felt in the wake of his death.
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Musical StyleThe song is noted for its jangly guitar sound, which draws on the 1960s pop music that influenced Hynde, and its distinctive harmonica solo.
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Writing TechniqueHynde started the song in the traditional way, with a title and a concept, but wrote it in a stream-of-consciousness manner.
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Cover Versions"Back on the Chain Gang" has been covered by a number of artists, including Morrissey, who released his own version of the song in 2018.
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Music VideoThe music video for "Back on the Chain Gang" features the band performing in a warehouse, with the images of the band members interspersed with footage of working-class people.
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LegacyIn 2018, the song gained a new surge in popularity when it was used in an episode of the popular TV show "This Is Us".
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Citation
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"Back on the Chain Gang Lyrics." Lyrics.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 20 Sep. 2024. <https://www.lyrics.com/lyric/30778374/Pretenders/Back+on+the+Chain+Gang>.
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