Far Far Away (song)
| "Far Far Away" | ||||||||||||||
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| Single by Slade | ||||||||||||||
| from the album Slade in Flame | ||||||||||||||
| B-side | "O.K. Yesterday Was Yesterday" | |||||||||||||
| Released | 11 October 1974 | |||||||||||||
| Format | 7" Single CD Single (Germany, 1993) |
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| Genre | Glam rock | |||||||||||||
| Length | 3:33 | |||||||||||||
| Label | Polydor Records | |||||||||||||
| Songwriter(s) | Noddy Holder, Jim Lea | |||||||||||||
| Producer(s) | Chas Chandler | |||||||||||||
| Slade singles chronology | ||||||||||||||
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"Far Far Away" is a song by the British rock band Slade, released in 1974 as the lead single from the band's first soundtrack album and fifth studio album Slade in Flame, in promotion of the upcoming film of the same name. The song was written by lead vocalist Noddy Holder and bassist Jim Lea, and produced by Chas Chandler. It reached No. 2 in the UK, remaining in the charts for six weeks. The song was certified UK Silver by BPI in November 1974.
By 1974, Slade had become a big success in the UK, Europe and beyond, however the band felt that continuing to provide 'more of the same' was not what they wanted to do. The band's manager Chas Chandler suggested Slade do a movie, to which the band agreed. Rather than producing a film portraying the band's "happy-go-lucky" image, the subject matter was based on the gritty tale of the rise and fall of a fictional 1960s group called Flame. To accompany the film, Holder and Lea began writing material for a soundtrack album, which would continue to see the band break out of their successful formula and try different musical ideas. "Far Far Away" was selected as the album's lead single and was released in October 1974, reaching No. 2 in the UK.
"Far Far Away" originated with Holder. While on tour in America, he came up with the opening line while sitting on a balcony overlooking the Mississippi river in Memphis. Manager Chas Chandler urged him to go away and write the song immediately. Holder went to his hotel room and returned half an hour later having completed a basic version of the song, with the title "Letting Loose Around the World". Lea later further developed the song and, in particular, the chorus. In the band's 1984 biography Feel the Noize!, Lea recalled: ""Far Far Away" was a real collaboration between Nod and myself. The verse was Nod's and the chorus was mine. I wanted to record it like a barrelhouse song with a very airy feel for us but Chas wasn't keen."
In a 1986 fan club interview, guitarist Dave Hill spoke of the song's lyrics: "The song was written about being abroad wasn't it? "Yellow lights go down the Mississippi" and all that - being in the States and wanting to go back home. They were just experiences. Obviously, when you are on the road, you are writing about being on the road, you're writing about what's going on."
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