The Way It Was (The Killers song)

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"The Way It Was"
Song by The Killers
from the album Battle Born
ReleasedSeptember 17, 2012 (2012-09-17)
Recorded2012
Studio
Genre Rock ballad [1] [2]
Length3:51
Label Island
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s) Brendan O'Brien

"The Way It Was" is a song by American rock band the Killers. It is the third track of the band's fourth studio album, Battle Born (2012). It was written by Brandon Flowers, Dave Keuning, Mark Stoermer, Ronnie Vannucci Jr., and Daniel Lanois. Despite not being a single, "The Way It Was" is one of the Killers' most popular and well received songs, notably the heartfelt storytelling in the lyrics. [3] [4]

Contents

Background

The song is written in the key of C# Minor and tells the story of a man driving through a desert after a breakup, before wondering if he continued with the relationship, if it could be "the way it was", before the man thinks about what could've happened to the girl. The song makes multiple direct references to Elvis' 1956 song Don't Be Cruel. [5]

Release and reception

The Way It Was was released on September 17, 2012, along with the rest of Battle Born. The song garnered generally positive reviews from critics. NME called The Way It Was a "blustering ballad", [4] while Vivian W. Leung of The Harvard Crimson called it "an example of the generic, deflated instrumental development". [6] Jon Dolan of Rolling Stone magazine called it a "doomed romantics' epic" that "packs Meat Loaf into a red Corvette and drives him out to 'the lonely Esmeralda County line'", a direct reference to the song's lyrics. [7] [8] Tosha R. Taylor of the Journal of Popular Romance Studies describes how the song "juxtaposes carefree images of young romance with a more mature man’s sense of loss". [9]

The song was included on the bands first greatest hits album, Direct Hits (2013), despite not being a single. Of the choice, frontman Brandon Flowers said "with 20/20 hindsight, this song probably should’ve been a single. That’ll probably be what’s written on its headstone! When we play it live and Dave’s riff starts, it’s magic. We all love that song, so that’s why it’s on here." [10]

Live performances

The Way It Was has been performed live 350 times as of July 2025. The song was notably played during many shows on the Battle Born World Tour, and later on the Wonderful Wonderful World Tour. [11] During these tours, The Way It Was was commonly played directly after Spaceman and Somebody Told Me. [12] [13] [14]

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of the deluxe edition of Battle Born. [15]

Studios

Personnel

The Killers

Additional personnel

References

  1. ↑ MARTIN, CATIE MARIE. "The Killers, Battle Born reviewed". The Reflector. Retrieved July 24, 2025.
  2. ↑ NME (September 14, 2012). "The Killers - 'Battle Born'". NME. Retrieved July 24, 2025.
  3. ↑ MARTIN, CATIE MARIE. "The Killers, Battle Born reviewed". The Reflector. Retrieved July 24, 2025.
  4. 1 2 NME (September 14, 2012). "The Killers - 'Battle Born'". NME. Retrieved July 24, 2025.
  5. ↑ The Killers – The Way It Was , retrieved July 24, 2025
  6. ↑ "The Killers Settle for Generic and Forgettable Pop-Rock | Arts | The Harvard Crimson". www.thecrimson.com. Retrieved July 24, 2025.
  7. ↑ Dolan, Jon (September 18, 2012). "Battle Born". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on June 23, 2021. Retrieved July 24, 2025.
  8. ↑ The Killers – The Way It Was , retrieved July 24, 2025
  9. ↑ Taylor, Tosha R. (October 3, 2018). "Murder to Marriage: Love and the Evolution of The Killers". Journal of Popular Romance Studies.
  10. ↑ Blog, N. M. E. (November 8, 2013). "Brandon Flowers On The Stories Behind The Killers' Greatest Hits". NME. Retrieved September 16, 2025.
  11. ↑ "The Way It Was by The Killers Song Statistics | setlist.fm". www.setlist.fm. Retrieved July 24, 2025.
  12. ↑ "The Killers Setlist at Benicàssim 2018". setlist.fm. Retrieved July 24, 2025.
  13. ↑ "The Killers Setlist at RDS Arena, Dublin". setlist.fm. Retrieved July 24, 2025.
  14. ↑ "The Killers Setlist at Eventim Apollo, London". setlist.fm. Retrieved July 24, 2025.
  15. ↑ Battle Born (deluxe edition liner notes). The Killers. Island Records. 2012. B0017295-02.
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