"Long Train Runnin" (or "Long Train Running") is a song recorded by American rock band

the Doobie Brothers The Doobie Brothers are an American rock band formed in San Jose, California in 1970. Known for their flexibility in performing across numerous genres and their vocal harmonies, the band has been active for over five decades, with their greate ...

and written by band member Tom Johnston. It was included on the band's third album, '' The Captain and Me'' (1973), and was released as a single by

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

, becoming a hit and peaking at No. 8 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100. It was

covered Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of ...

by the Italian band Traks in 1982, and then by the British girl group

Bananarama Bananarama is an English pop group formed in London in 1980. The group, originally a trio, consisted of friends Sara Dallin, Siobhan Fahey, and Keren Woodward. Fahey left the group in 1988 and was replaced by Jacquie O'Sullivan until 1991, when ...

in 1991. In 1993, the Doobie Brothers' version was

remix A remix, also sometimes called reorchestration or rework, is a piece of media which has been altered or contorted from its original state by adding, removing, or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, poem, or photograph ca ...

ed and charted again in several countries, including reaching No. 7 on the UK Singles Chart.

Origin

The tune evolved from an untitled and mostly ad-libbed jam that the Doobies developed onstage years before it was finally recorded. Its working title, according to Johnston, was "Rosie Pig Moseley" and later "Osborn". "I didn't want to cut it," Johnston later confessed. "...I just considered it a bar song without a lot of merit. Teddy empleman on the other hand, thought it had some." Templeman convinced Johnston to write words to the song. Johnston performed the lead vocal and the rhythmic guitar strumming that propels the song and also performs the harmonica solo.

Reception

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'' described it as "good-timey, good-harmony AM cooker." ''

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 ...

'' praised the Doobies' "fine harmony and musical prowess." ''

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 the "pulsating rocker should take the honors in 1973." ''Ultimate Classic Rock'' critic Michael Gallucci rated "Long Train Runnin the Doobie Brothers' second-greatest song, especially praising the guitar

riff A riff is a short, repeated motif or figure in the melody or accompaniment of a musical composition. Riffs are most often found in rock music, punk, heavy metal music, Latin, funk, and jazz, although classical music is also sometimes based ...

. The staff of ''

'' rated it as the Doobie Brothers' sixth-best song, noting how Johnston's and Patrick Simmons' "punchy guitars" contrast with "the jammy

polyrhythm Polyrhythm () is the simultaneous use of two or more rhythms that are not readily perceived as deriving from one another, or as simple manifestations of the same meter. The rhythmic layers may be the basis of an entire piece of music (cross-rh ...

s" in the

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 ...

and drums.

Personnel

Source: * Tom Johnston –

lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featur ...

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica incl ...

ARP synthesizer ARP Instruments, Inc. was a Lexington, Massachusetts manufacturer of electronic musical instruments, founded by Alan R. Pearlman, Alan Robert Pearlman in 1969. It created a popular and commercially successful range of synthesizers throughout the ...

vocals Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define sing ...

Patrick Simmons Patrick Simmons (born October 19, 1948) is an American musician best known as a founding member of the rock band The Doobie Brothers, with whom he was inducted as into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2020. Born in Aberdeen, Washington, he h ...

– guitar, ARP synthesizer, vocals *

Tiran Porter Tiran Calvin Porter (born September 26, 1948) is an American bass and guitar player, vocalist and composer, best known as a member of The Doobie Brothers from 1972 to 1980 and 1987 to 1992. Biography Early life Born in Los Angeles, California, ...

–

, vocals *

John Hartman John Hartman (March 18, 1950 – December 29, 2021) was an American drummer who was a co-founder and original drummer of the Doobie Brothers. At the band's inception, Hartman was the sole drummer. However, in late 1971, the group added drummer ...

–

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a percussion mallet, beater including attached or enclosed beaters or Rattle (percussion beater), rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or ...

, vocals *

Michael Hossack Michael Joseph Hossack (October 17, 1946 – March 12, 2012) was an American drummer for the rock band The Doobie Brothers. Biography Born in Paterson, New Jersey, Hossack was known as "Big Mike" to his former band members. He started playi ...

– drums,

congas The conga, also known as tumbadora, is a tall, narrow, single-headed drum from Cuba. Congas are stave (wood), staved like barrels and classified into three types: quinto (drum), quinto (lead drum, highest), tres dos or tres golpes (middle), an ...

timbales Timbales () or pailas are shallow single-headed drums with metal casing. They are shallower than single-headed tom-toms and usually tuned much higher, especially for their size.Orovio, Helio 1981. ''Diccionario de la música cubana: biográfic ...

Charts

Original release

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Remixes

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Other reissues

Certifications

Traks version

In 1982, Italian band Traks covered the song. This version charted in France and in West Germany, where it peaked at No. 62 and No. 18, respectively.

Track listing

* 7" single Polydor 2040 365 #"Long Train Runnin (short version) – 3:30 #"Drums Power" – 4:27

Charts

Bananarama version

English pop trio

's version of "Long Train Runnin'" appeared on their fifth studio album, '' Pop Life'' (1991), and was released as the album's third single in the UK. The group discovered the song when they were browsing through the record collection of

Youth Youth is the time of life when one is young. The word, youth, can also mean the time between childhood and adulthood (Maturity (psychological), maturity), but it can also refer to one's peak, in terms of health or the period of life known as bei ...

, producer of the ''Pop Life'' album. They needed one more tune to complete ''Pop Life'' and decided to go with a cover. The song reached No. 10 in Portugal, No. 18 in Ireland and No. 30 in the UK.

Critical reception

Larry Flick Larry Flick is an American journalist, former dance music columnist, single reviewer, and Senior Talent Editor for ''Billboard'' magazine, where he worked for 14 years. Now he produces and hosts Sirius XM radio shows. Flick started in the musi ...

from ''

'' wrote, "

offers a

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...

version of the Doobie Brothers' classic rocker "Long Train Running". Produced by

, this first single from the forthcoming '' Pop Life'' album features guitar work from the

Gipsy Kings Gipsy Kings (originally Los Reyes) are a musical group founded in 1979 in Arles, France. The band, whose members have Catalans, Catalan heritage, play a blend of Catalan rumba, flamenco, Salsa music, salsa, and Pop music, pop. They perform mos ...

, which provides a tough, rustic edge to an otherwise light and campy track. A fun one that could cross into radio territory."

Chuck Eddy Chuck Eddy (born November 26, 1960) is an American music journalist. Life and career Chuck Eddy was born in Detroit, Michigan. After starting his journalism career with ''The Village Voice'' and ''Creem'', where he published one of the first nati ...

from ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...

'' said that "those

techno Techno is a genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempos being in the range from 120 to 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central rhythm is typically in common time ( ) and often ...

flamenco Flamenco () is an art form based on the various folkloric music traditions of southern Spain, developed within the Gitanos, gitano subculture of the region of Andalusia, and also having historical presence in Extremadura and Region of Murcia, ...

gods" help engineer the song "into a scary locomotive blues."

Everett True Everett True (born Jeremy Andrew Thackray on 21 April 1961) is an English music journalist and musician. He became interested in rock music after hearing The Residents, and formed a band with school friends. He has written and recorded as The ...

from ''

Melody Maker ''Melody Maker'' was a British weekly music magazine, one of the world's earliest music weeklies; according to its publisher, IPC Media, the earliest. In January 2001, it was merged into "long-standing rival" (and IPC Media sister publicatio ...

'' commented, "They have a new single out. They've thought up a new, crap, out-of-time dance routine and they're gonna have another hit. All in all, Bananarama give this rather chaotic world a reassuring sense of order, don't they?"

Music video

The Bananarama music video for "Long Train Running", directed by Nick Egan, features the group members dressed in Spanish gowns while attending a soirée with various guests at a castle. Scenes at a decorated dining table alternate with shots from bedrooms.

Track listing

* UK CD single NANCD 24 #"Long Train Running" (radio version) – 3:31 #:Remixed by Mark 'Spike' Stent #"Long Train Running" (Alma De Noche Mix) – 6:40 #:Remixed by Mark 'Spike' Stent #"Long Train Running" (Flamenco CD Mix) – 4:57 #"Outta Sight" – 4:30

Charts

References

{{authority control 1973 songs 1973 singles 1982 singles 1991 singles Bananarama songs The Doobie Brothers songs London Records singles Music videos directed by Nick Egan Music Week number-one dance singles Polydor Records singles Song recordings produced by Ted Templeman Songs about trains Songs written by Tom Johnston (musician) Warner Records singles