Ghost Town (Cheap Trick song)

"Ghost Town" is a song by the 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.[2] The song reached No. 33 on the Billboard Hot 100.[3]

"Ghost Town"
Single by Cheap Trick
from the album Lap of Luxury
B-side"Wrong Side of Love"
ReleasedOctober 1988[1]
GenreRock, power pop
Length4:02
LabelEpic Records
Songwriter(s)Diane Warren, Rick Nielsen
Producer(s)Richie Zito
Cheap Trick singles chronology
"Don't Be Cruel"
(1988)		 "Ghost Town"
(1988)		 "Let Go"
(1988)

"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.[4] A music video was filmed to promote the single.[5]

The song was released as a single in North America, Australia and New Zealand. In the US and Canada, it was released on 7" vinyl, and in Australia/New Zealand on 7" and 12" vinyl.[6] A same-sided 7" vinyl and promotional one-track CD version of the single was also issued in the US.[7][8] The B-side, "Wrong Side of Love", was taken from Lap of Luxury, and was written by Nielsen and Todd Cerney.[2] The Australian/New Zealand 12" vinyl release added a second B-side, "Don't Be Cruel".[9]

Critical reception

Upon release, Cash Box listed the single as one of their "feature picks" during November 1988. They commented: "A fine bit of writing by Nielsen and Dianne Warren, delivered with gusto by Zander on lead vocals. Cheap Trick is one of the most underrated bands ever."[10] In the review of Lap of Luxury, AllMusic described the song as a "grandly romantic power ballad."[11] Spin described the song as having "great vocal arrangements" and a "George Harrison soundalike guitar solo".[12]

Track listing
7" single
  1. "Ghost Town" - 4:02
  2. "Wrong Side of Love" - 3:59
7" single (US promo)
  1. "Ghost Town" - 4:02
  2. "Ghost Town" - 4:02
12" 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

Chart performance
Chart (1988) Peak
position
Japanese Singles Chart (Tokyo)[13][14] 35
New Zealand Singles Chart[15] 29
US Billboard Hot 100 Chart[3] 33
US Billboard Mainstream Rock Chart[16] 32

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

References
  1. "Cheap Trick - Ghost Town / Wrong Side Of Love - Epic - USA - 34-08097". 45cat. Retrieved 2018-03-02.
  2. "Cheap Trick - Lap Of Luxury at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
  3. "Cheap Trick Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 2018-03-02.
  4. Lawson, Robert (2017-11-13). Still Competition: The Listener's Guide to Cheap Trick - Robert Lawson - Google Books. ISBN 9781525512254. Retrieved 2018-03-02.
  5. "Cheap Trick - Ghost Town". YouTube. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
  6. "Cheap Trick - Ghost Town at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2018-03-02.
  7. "Cheap Trick - Ghost Town (CD) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2018-03-02.
  8. "Cheap Trick - Ghost Town (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2018-03-02.
  9. "Cheap Trick - Ghost Town (Vinyl) at Discogs". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2018-03-02.
  10. Cash Box newspaper - 12 November 1988 - Single releases - page 18
  11. Huey, Steve. "Lap of Luxury - Cheap Trick". AllMusic. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
  12. "SPIN - Google Books". July 1988. Retrieved 2018-03-02.
  13. "J-WAVE WEBSITE : TOKIO HOT100". J-wave.co.jp. Retrieved 2012-03-13.
  14. "Song artist 616 - Cheap Trick". Tsort.info. Retrieved 2012-03-13.
  15. Steffen Hung. "Cheap Trick - Ghost Town". charts.nz. Retrieved 2012-03-11.
  16. "Cheap Trick Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved 2018-03-02.
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