The Road to Hell (song)

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"The Road to Hell"
Roadtohell.JPG
Single by Chris Rea
from the album The Road to Hell
A-side "The Road to Hell (Part 2)"
B-side
Released2 October 1989 (1989-10-02)
Length
  • Part 1: 4:52
  • Part 2: 4:32
Label Magnet Geffen (US)
Songwriter(s) Chris Rea
Producer(s) Jon Kelly
Chris Rea singles chronology
"Working on It"
(1989)		"The Road to Hell"
(1989)		"That's What They Always Say"
(1989)
Music video
"The Road to Hell" (Official Music Video) on YouTube

"The Road to Hell" is a two-part song written by British singer-songwriter Chris Rea and released on the album of the same name. It was released as a single, with only part 2 on the A-side of the 7-inch. The single is Rea's biggest success in the United Kingdom, peaking at number 10 on the UK Singles Chart. The song was inspired by the frustrations of M25 and M4 motorway rush-hour traffic. [1] [2]

Contents

Critical reception

William Shaw of Smash Hits left an ironic review on a single and considered it remarkable "for being irredeemably depressing" and "sounding exactly like an old Dire Straits song." [3]

Track listings

7-inch singleMagnet YZ431

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."The Road to Hell (Part 2)"4:35
Side two
No.TitleLength
1."He Should Know Better"3:55

12-inch singleMagnet YZ431T

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."The Road to Hell (Parts 1 & 2)"9:20
Side two
No.TitleLength
1."Josephine (La Version Française)"5:37

CD singleMagnet YZ431CD (3-inch) and YZ431CDP (5-inch)

No.TitleLength
1."The Road to Hell (Parts 1 & 2)"9:20
2."Josephine (La Version Française)"5:37
3."He Should Know Better"4:37

CD single (US promo)Geffen PRO-CD-3874

No.TitleLength
1."The Road to Hell (Part 2) (Edit)"4:10
2."The Road To Hell (Parts 1 and 2) (UK Edit)"6:49
3."The Road To Hell (Part 2) (LP Version)"4:30


Cassette singleMagnet YZ431C

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."The Road to Hell (Part 2)"4:35
2."He Should Know Better"3:55
Side two
No.TitleLength
1."The Road to Hell (Part 2)"4:35
2."He Should Know Better"3:55

Charts

Chart (1989–1990)Position
Australia (ARIA) [4] 78
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40) [5] 6
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders) [6] 35
Canada Top Singles ( RPM ) [7] 32
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100) [8] 30
France (SNEP) [9] 30
Ireland (IRMA) [10] 11
UK Singles (OCC) [11] 10
US Mainstream Rock ( Billboard ) [12] 11
West Germany (GfK) [13] 35
Chart (2013)Position
Slovenia (SloTop50) [14] 44
Chart (2015)Position
Poland (Polish Airplay Top 100) [15] 100
Chart (2018)Position
Slovenia (SloTop50) [16] 49

References

  1. ↑ Hodgkinson, Will (13 September 2002). "Chris Rea". The Guardian. Guardian News and Media Limited. Retrieved 18 December 2014.
  2. ↑ Danny Scott (3 December 2017). "Me and My Motor: singer Chris Rea". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 10 December 2017.
  3. ↑ William Shaw (18–31 October 1989). "Singles: Chris Rea – "The Road to Hell (Part Two)"". Smash Hits . No. 284. Peterborough: EMAP Metro. p. 77. ISSN   0260-3004 . Retrieved 1 May 2025– via Flickr.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  4. ↑ "The ARIA Australian Top 100 Singles Chart – Week Ending 28 Jan 1990 (61–100) (from The ARIA Report Issue No. 3)". ARIA . Retrieved 9 January 2017– via Imgur.
  5. ↑ "Chris Rea – The Road to Hell (Part 2)" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  6. ↑ "Chris Rea – The Road to Hell (Part 2)" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  7. ↑ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 9078." RPM . Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  8. ↑ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles". Music & Media . Vol. 6, no. 45. 11 November 1989. p. V.
  9. ↑ "Chris Rea – The Road to Hell (Part 2)" (in French). Le classement de singles. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  10. ↑ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – The Road to Hell". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  11. ↑ "Chris Rea: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  12. ↑ "Chris Rea Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  13. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Chris Rea – The Road to Hell (Part 2)" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 6 July 2022.
  14. ↑ "SloTop50: Slovenian official singles weekly chart" (in Slovenian). SloTop50 . Retrieved 3 February 2013.
  15. ↑ "Listy bestsellerów, wyróżnienia :: Związek Producentów Audio-Video". Polish Airplay Top 100. Retrieved 23 November 2015.
  16. ↑ "SloTop50: Slovenian official singles weekly chart" (in Slovenian). SloTop50 . Retrieved 5 September 2018.
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