"Ghost Town"
Single by Cheap Trick
from the album Lap of Luxury
B-side"Wrong Side of Love"
ReleasedOctober 1988
GenreRock, power pop
Length4:02
LabelEpic
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Richie Zito
Cheap Trick singles chronology
"Don't Be Cruel"
(1988)		 "Ghost Town"
(1988)		 "Let Go"
(1988)

"Ghost Town" is a song by American rock band Cheap Trick, released in 1988 as the third single from their tenth studio album Lap of Luxury. It was written by Diane Warren and guitarist Rick Nielsen, and produced by Richie Zito. The song peaked at number 33 on the Billboard Hot 100.[1]

"Ghost Town" dated back to 1981 when Nielsen recorded a demo of the song during sessions for the band's One on One album. The song remained undeveloped until the sessions for Lap of Luxury when Warren added some contributions to the finished song.[2]

Music video

The song's music video was directed by Nick Morris and produced by Fiona O'Mahoney.[3] It achieved heavy rotation on MTV.[4]

Critical reception

Upon its release, Billboard commented, "What starts off sounding like vintage ELO develops into a yearning plea highlighted by Zander's vocal."[5] Cash Box listed the single as one of their "feature picks" during November 1988. They stated, "A fine bit of writing by Nielsen and Warren, delivered with gusto by Zander on lead vocals. Cheap Trick is one of the most underrated bands ever."[6] In a review of Lap of Luxury, Spin noted the "great vocal arrangements" and a "George Harrison soundalike guitar solo".[7] Steve Huey of AllMusic described the song as a "grandly romantic power ballad".[8]

Track listing

7-inch single

  1. "Ghost Town" - 4:02
  2. "Wrong Side of Love" - 3:59

7-inch single (US promo)

  1. "Ghost Town" - 4:02
  2. "Ghost Town" - 4:02

12-inch single (US promo)

  1. "Ghost Town" - 4:02
  2. "Don't Be Cruel" - 3:08
  3. "Wrong Side of Love" - 3:59

CD single (US promo)

  1. "Ghost Town" - 4:02

Personnel

Cheap Trick

Production

  • Richie Zito - producer
  • Phil Kaffel - engineer, mixer
  • Jim Champagne, Bernard Frings, Mike Tacci, Bob Vogt, Toby Wright - second engineers

Charts

Chart (1988–89) Peak
position
New Zealand Singles Chart[9] 29
US Billboard Hot 100[1] 33
US Billboard Album Rock Tracks[10] 32
US Cash Box Top 100 Singles[11] 20

References

  1. 1 2 "Cheap Trick Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 2018-03-02.
  2. ↑ Lawson, Robert (2017-11-13). Still Competition: The Listener's Guide to Cheap Trick - Robert Lawson - Google Books. ISBN 9781525512254. Retrieved 2018-03-02.
  3. ↑ "Music Video: New Videoclips". Billboard. Vol. 100, no. 47. Billboard Publications, Inc. November 19, 1988. p. 43. ISSN 0006-2510.
  4. ↑ "Music Video: The Clip List". Billboard. Vol. 100, no. 52. Billboard Publications, Inc. December 24, 1988. p. 58. ISSN 0006-2510.
  5. ↑ "Single Reviews". Billboard. Vol. 100, no. 45. Billboard Publications, Inc. November 5, 1988. p. 69. ISSN 0006-2510.
  6. ↑ Cash Box newspaper - 12 November 1988 - Single releases - page 18
  7. ↑ "SPIN - Google Books". July 1988. Retrieved 2018-03-02.
  8. ↑ Huey, Steve. "Lap of Luxury - Cheap Trick". AllMusic. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
  9. ↑ Steffen Hung. "Cheap Trick - Ghost Town". charts.nz. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
  10. ↑ "Cheap Trick Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 2018-03-02.
  11. ↑ Downey, Pat; Albert, George; Hoffman, Frank (1994). Cash Box Pop Singles Charts, 1950-1993. Englewood, Colorado: Libraries Unlimited, Inc. p. 60. ISBN 1563083167. Retrieved September 28, 2022.
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