You Can Go Home

"You Can Go Home"
Single by The Desert Rose Band
from the album True Love
B-side	"Glory and Power"
Released	22 October 1991
Format	7", CD, Cassette
Genre	Country, country rock
Length	3:33
Label	MCA/Curb
Writer(s)	Chris Hillman, Jack Tempchin
Producer(s)	Tony Brown
The Desert Rose Band singles chronology
"Come a Little Closer" (1991) "You Can Go Home" (1991) "Twilight is Gone" (1991)

"You Can Go Home" is a single by American country rock band The Desert Rose Band.^[1] The song was released as the lead single in 1991 from the band's fourth studio album True Love. It was also the band's third single release of 1991 in total.^[2]

Background

Continuing the band's commercial decline on both the American and Canadian Country Singles Charts, the single was commercially unsuccessful, just like the True Love album, which failed to chart altogether. The commercial slide began for the band at the beginning of 1991, whilst the single itself fared better on the charts in comparison to the previous 1991 single "Come a Little Closer". "You Can Go Home" peaked at number 53 on the American Billboard Hot Country Songs,^[3] after originally debuting at number 61.^[4] In Canada, the single peaked at number 64 on the RPM Country Singles Chart for a total of eight weeks,^[5][6] after debuting at a lowly number 95 in October.^[7]

The song was written by the band's frontman Chris Hillman and American musician and singer-songwriter Jack Tempchin, who is best known for writing The Eagles 1972 hit "Peaceful Easy Feeling".^[8] It was produced by American country music record producer and pianist Tony Brown, who produced the entire True Love album.^[2]

For the True Love album, Curb Records released a press release, which spoke of the song in comparison to the album which "balances elements of traditional country music with bold new ideas", whilst the song's themselves focus on "adult relationships" and "the heart of country music", noting that the songs display "feelings that come from the heart, but the attitude is one of introspection rather than overt display". The press release stated "The first single, co-written by Hillman and Jack Tempchin, illustrates this unique combination of elements with a thoughtful truism expressed as a traditional country hook line: "You can go home (but you can't go back)."^[9]

In an October 27, 1991, issue of the Palm Beach Post, it was stated that three tracks from the True Love album would be included in the November playlist for the fantasy pirate radio station Y-NOT, which consisted of "Glory and Power", "You Can Go Home" and "It Takes a Believer".^[10][11]

In an August 1993 article from Billboard Magazine, Hillman spoke of the single's performance in relation to the record company pressure the band endured with the True Love album. Hillman stated "We were mildly seduced by the record company to go into a direction which they felt would break us through. So we compromised on a lot of things. We got resistance at radio on the first single "You Can Go Home", and the record company bailed."^[12]

Release

The single was released in America and Canada only, via Curb Records (under MCA), on 7" vinyl, cassette^[13][14] and promotional CD.^[15] The 7" vinyl featured the True Love album track "Glory and Power" as the B-Side,^[1] which was written by Hillman and frequent collaborator Steve Hill.^[16] The Cassette version featured both tracks on each side, whilst for the promotional CD single release, "You Can Go Home" was the only track, which came in a standard CD single case with an insert.

Although the 7" vinyl release featured no artwork, it was issued in a standard MCA Records coloured sleeve,^[17] whilst the promotional CD single had an insert that featured some basic artwork, using a patterned brown coloured background and text.^[18] This artwork design was also used for the CD version of the following 1991 single "Twilight is Gone".^[19][20]

The single was distributed by UNL Distribution Corp.^[21]

Promotion

The main form of promotion for the single was the song's music video, which was directed by Gustavo Garzón.^[22] The video was licensed under MCA Records and produced by ET/VideoLink,^[23] a division of Edwards Technology Video, located in Burbank, California.^[24]

The video was the only one to be created for a song on the True Love album.

The video was shot on the 8th of May or June in 1991, at both Nashville in Tennessee and Tennessee Railroad Museum in Chattanooga.

In a mid-October 1991 issue of the Billboard Magazine, "You Can Go Home" was listed in 'The Clip List'. The music video aired on the TNN (The Nashville Network), where it received medium rotation, whilst it was also aired on CMT (Country Music Television), where the video received heavy rotation.^[25]

The band would also perform the song live around the time and along with five other tracks from the album, a live performance was professionally recorded at Billy Bob’s, Fort Worth, Texas on 25 August 1991.^[26] An audience recording of a full live concert is also in existence, which includes the song. It was recorded at the band’s concert at Guitars & Cadillac's, Kansas City, MO on 18 July 1991.^[27]

Track listing

7" Single

1. "You Can Go Home" - 3:33
2. "Glory and Power" - 3:24

Cassette Single

1. "You Can Go Home" - 3:33
2. "Glory and Power" - 3:24

CD Single (American promo)

1. "You Can Go Home" - 3:33

Critical reception

In the November 21, 1991, issue of The Albany Herald, the daily newspaper for southwest Georgia, a review of the True Love album spoke of the song, stating "Hillman as lead vocalist easily leads the Desert Rose Band through easy-listening music. "You Can Go Home" could have been a poignant wish for the good, old days, but in Hillman's hands becomes the realization that maybe you shouldn't want to go back to the way it was."^[28]

In the 2007 Italian book 24.000 Dischi (24,000 discs), written by Riccardo Bertoncelli and Cris Thellung, a review of the True Love album highlighted the song, stating "Always open to collaboration with other authors, Hillman signing the opening track, You Can Go Home, with Jack Tempchin. The Desert Rose Band proceeds as a perfect device but a bit too true to itself."^[29]

Stephen Thomas Erlewine from Allmusic had highlighted "You Can Go Home" as an album standout by labeling it an AMG Pick Track.^[30]

Chart performance

Personnel

• Chris Hillman - Lead vocals, acoustic guitar
• Herb Pedersen - Acoustic guitar, backing vocals
• John Jogenson - Lead guitar, backing vocals
• Bill Bryson - Bass guitar
• Steve Duncan - Drums
• Tom Brumley - Pedal steel guitar

Additional personnel

• Tony Brown - Producer
• Writers of "You Can Go Home" - Chris Hillman, Jack Tempchin
• Writers of "Glory and Power" - Chris Hillman, Steve Hill

Footnotes