Home Town (song)

"Home Town" is a song by the British new wave musician Joe Jackson released on Jackson's 1986 album, Big World. Written as an ode to his home of Portsmouth, "Home Town" was later released as the follow-up to his politically-charged single, "Right and Wrong". Despite its lack of chart success, the song has since attracted positive critical reception.

This article is about the Joe Jackson song. For similar uses, see Hometown § Music.
"Home Town"
Single by Joe Jackson
from the album Big World
B-side
Released1986
GenrePop rock
Length3:12
LabelA&M Records
Songwriter(s)Joe Jackson
Producer(s)David Kershenbaum
Joe Jackson singles chronology
"Right and Wrong"
(1986)		 "Home Town"
(1986)		 "Nocturne"
(1987)

Background

"Home Town," a song about the singer longing to return to his "home town," was written by Jackson as a nostalgic look-back on his childhood home of Portsmouth.[1][2] Jackson said of the song, "'Home Town' was a deliberate exercise in writing a nostalgic song. It's not something I tend to indulge in that much. I think it turned out quite well".[3] After performing the song in concert, Jackson joked, "That was a nostalgic song. I try to not write too many of those. But after a while, they're all nostalgic".[4]

In the song's lyrics, Jackson sings from the perspective of a busy city worker who longs to leave his current standing and return to his childhood home, which he doesn't even know is still there. Musically, the song is a soft rock song featuring a clean guitar track.

In addition to its appearance on Big World, "Home Town" was released as a single in 1986, following "Right and Wrong." It was backed with the Big World track "Tango Atlantico" in Britain and a live version of "I'm the Man" in America. "Home Town" did not chart in either country. Jackson later described the song "Dave" off of his 2019 album Fool as being "in a similar vein to 'Home Town'".[3]

Reception

"Home Town" has since received positive reviews from critics. Upon its release as a single, Michael Pilgrim of Record Mirror praised it as a "thoughtful guitar-based twiddler that's low key throughout".[5] Paul Taylor of the Manchester Evening News praised it as "another winner from Big World – one of the year's most exciting albums" and noted the "simple, twangy, sparse backing for a typically thought-provoking lyric".[6] In the AllMusic review of Big World, Jason Damas said that it was one of "the best moments" of the album, citing it as a highlight of the album.[7] The song was ranked number eight on Ultimate Classic Rock's list of the "Top 10 Joe Jackson Songs" by Dave Lifton, who said, "the nostalgic pull of a childhood, especially when the complexities of adulthood set in, is universal."[1]

Track listing

7-inch single (UK)[8]

  1. "Home Town" – 3:11
  2. "Tango Atlantico" – 2:58

7-inch single (France and Spain)[9]

  1. "Home Town" – 3:11
  2. "What's the Use of Getting Sober (When You're Gonna Get Drunk Again)" (Live) – 3:05

7-inch single (US, South Africa and Japan)[10][11][12]

  1. "Home Town" – 3:11
  2. "I'm the Man" (Live) – 3:54

12-inch single (UK)[13]

  1. "Home Town" – 3:11
  2. "Tango Atlantico" – 2:58
  3. "What's the Use of Getting Sober (When You're Gonna Get Drunk Again)" (Live) – 2:58
  4. "Steppin' Out" – 4:17

12-inch single (Spain)[14]

  1. "Home Town" – 3:11
  2. "What's the Use of Getting Sober (When You're Gonna Get Drunk Again)" (Live) – 2:58
  3. "Steppin' Out" – 4:17

Charts
Chart (1986) Peak
position
UK Singles Chart[15] 185
US AOR Tracks (Radio & Records)[16] 54

References
  1. Lifton, Dave (11 August 2015). "Top 10 Joe Jackson Songs". ultimateclassicrock.com.
  2. Larsen, Peter (5 October 2015). "Joe Jackson steps out with new songs in L.A. shows". Orange County Register. Ron Hasse. Retrieved 7 March 2019.
  3. "Joe Jackson". Record Collector. Retrieved 9 November 2019.
  4. Perciaccante, Joe (November 2015). "Joe Jackson At Town Hall". All About Jazz. Retrieved 6 May 2020.
  5. Pilgrim, Michael (24 May 1986). "Singles". Record Mirror. p. 12. ISSN 0144-5804.
  6. Taylor, Paul (3 June 1986). "Singles: Re-formed top dogs". Manchester Evening News. p. 10. Retrieved 12 May 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  7. Damas, Jason. "Big World". allmusic.com.
  8. Home Town (UK 7-inch single sleeve). Joe Jackson. A&M Records. 1986. AM 324.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  9. Home Town (French and Spanish 7-inch single sleeve). Joe Jackson. A&M Records. 1986. 390 113-7.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  10. Home Town (US 7-inch single sleeve). Joe Jackson. A&M Records. 1986. AM-2847.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  11. Home Town (South African 7-inch single labels). Joe Jackson. A&M Records. 1986. AMRS 1512.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  12. Home Town (Japanese 7-inch single sleeve). Joe Jackson. A&M Records. 1986. 7Y3018.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  13. Home Town (UK 12-inch single sleeve). Joe Jackson. A&M Records. 1986. AMY 324.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  14. Home Town (Spanish 12-inch single sleeve). Joe Jackson. A&M Records. 1986. 392 113-1.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  15. "Gallup Top 200 Singles". Gallup. 31 May 1986. Retrieved 16 November 2022 – via ukmix.org.
  16. "National Airplay: AOR Tracks". Radio & Records. No. 643. Radio & Records, Inc. 11 July 1986. p. 68. ISSN 0277-4860.
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