Love Train

Last updated
"Love Train"
LoveTrainEpicRecords.png
Cover of the German and Dutch release of the single by Epic
Single by the O'Jays
from the album Back Stabbers
B-side "Who Am I"
ReleasedDecember 20, 1972 [1]
RecordedSummer 1971 – 1972
Studio Sigma Sound, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Genre
Length2:59 (album version)
6:15 (extended version)
Label Philadelphia International
Songwriter(s) Kenneth Gamble, Leon Huff
Producer(s) Kenneth Gamble, Leon Huff
The O'Jays singles chronology
"992 Arguments"
(1972)		"Love Train"
(1972)		"Time to Get Down"
(1973)
Music video
"Love Train" (Official Soul Train Video) on YouTube
Side A of the US single Love train by o'jays US vinyl.png
Side A of the US single

"Love Train" is a hit single by the O'Jays, written by Gamble and Huff for the O'Jays' 1972 album Back Stabbers . Recorded at Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia, the house band MFSB provided backing. The song has been considered one of the first disco songs.

Contents

"Love Train" entered the Billboard Hot 100's top 40 on January 27, 1973, [4] the same day that the Paris Peace Accords were signed. The song's lyrics of unity mention a number of countries, including England, Russia, China, Egypt, and Israel, as well as the continent of Africa. It reached No. 1 on both the R&B Singles and the Hot 100 in February and March 1973, respectively, [5] and No. 9 on the UK singles chart and was certified gold by the RIAA. It was the O'Jays' first and only number one record on the US pop chart.

The single was a 2006 inductee into the Grammy Hall of Fame. [6]

Reception

Record World said of the single release that the "tune chugs right along with a Gamble and a Huff" and could become the biggest hit from the Back Stabbers album. [7]

Music video

The music video shows a group of people forming a human chain near a railroad station, while at the same time, some railroad cars are shown in motion. Throughout the video, more people join in the chain, which they call the "Love Train". It was recorded in 1973. [8]

Charts

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI) [15] Gold400,000‡
United States (RIAA) [16] Gold1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Cover versions

By early 1974, The Supremes' line-up (Wilson, Birdsong, and Payne) adopted the song to perform in live appearances. Hall & Oates covered it for the 1989 soundtrack to the film Earth Girls Are Easy . In 2016, Daryl Hall and his band also joined the O'Jays in a live version on Hall's Live from Daryl's House television show. The Rolling Stones played Love Train on their worldwide Licks Tour during 2002 and 2003. [17]

Roots rock band The Yayhoos' take on the song appeared on their 2006 release, Put the Hammer Down. Gospel group Doc McKenzie and the Hi-Lites did a rendition in 2003. In 2006 Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee performed "Love Train" for the ending credits of Final Destination 3 . [18]

"Love Train" was sampled in the 1973 break-in record, "Super Fly Meets Shaft" (US #31).[ citation needed ]

An Australasian cover was recorded in 1973 by Dalvanius Prime. [19] [ better source needed ]

Australian children's music group The Wiggles covered the song for their 2006 studio album, Racing to the Rainbow .

The song was featured in the popular long-running Coors Light series of commercials featuring the Silver Bullet Express train from approximately 2005 to 2011, returning as a Super Bowl and March Madness ad in 2024. [20] [21] [22]

It has also been referenced in the seventh part of the Japanese manga series, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Steel Ball Run, as part of the main antagonist Funny Valentine's ability, Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap: Love Train. [23]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Love Train / Who Am I - O'Jays". 45cat. Retrieved January 21, 2020.
  2. ↑ "Love Train: The Sound of Philadelphia". Blackgrooves.org. December 12, 2008.
  3. ↑ Breithaupt, Don; Breithaupt, Jeff (October 15, 1996). "What's So Funny 'Bout Peace, Love, and Understanding?: Utopian Pop". Precious and Few - Pop Music in the Early '70s. St. Martin's Griffin. p. 75. ISBN   031214704X.
  4. 1 2 Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN   0-89820-089-X
  5. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 438.
  6. ↑ "Grammy Hall Of Fame". Grammy.org. Retrieved July 30, 2025.
  7. ↑ "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. January 6, 1973. p. 1. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  8. ↑ "Love Train - The O' Jays". September 8, 2008. Archived from the original on December 18, 2021 – via YouTube.
  9. ↑ "Australian Chart Books". Australianchartbooks.com.au. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
  10. ↑ Canada, Library and Archives (July 17, 2013). "Image : RPM Weekly". Library and Archives Canada .
  11. ↑ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Love Train". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved June 22, 2017.
  12. ↑ "Cash Box Top 100 3/31/73". Tropicalglen.com. Archived from the original on March 22, 2016. Retrieved November 12, 2016.
  13. ↑ "Item". Bac-lac.gc.ca. July 17, 2013. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
  14. ↑ "Top 100 Hits of 1973/Top 100 Songs of 1973". Musicoutfitters.com.
  15. ↑ "British single certifications – O'jays – Love Train". British Phonographic Industry . Retrieved August 5, 2022.
  16. ↑ "American single certifications – O'jays – Love Train". Recording Industry Association of America . Retrieved June 21, 2019.
  17. ↑ "Love Train - The Rolling Stones". YouTube. October 12, 2012. Archived from the original on December 18, 2021.
  18. ↑ "TOMMY LEE Records 'Love Train' For Movie Soundtrack". Blabbermouth.net . January 19, 2006. Retrieved April 30, 2025.
  19. ↑ "Dalvanius & The Fascinations – Love Train / Chapel Of Love". Discogs.com. 1973.
  20. ↑ "How Coors Light's beer train became an icon". Molsoncoorsblog.com. 7 February 2024.
  21. ↑ "Coors Light's silver bullet train returns for Super Bowl with seats for fans". Marketingdive.com.
  22. ↑ "Coors Light Super Bowl ad gives fans a chance to ride on its silver beer train". Adage.com. January 23, 2024.
  23. ↑ "D4C Love Train". JoJo's Bizarre Encyclopedia - JoJo Wiki. Retrieved 2025-01-05.
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