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"500 Miles Away From Home"
"500 Miles Away From Home"
Single by Bobby Bare
from the album 500 Miles Away From Home
B-side	"It All Depends on Linda"
Released	September 1963
Genre	Countrypolitan
Label	RCA Victor
Songwriter(s)	Hedy West
Producer(s)	Chet Atkins
Bobby Bare singles chronology

"500 Miles" (also known as "500 Miles Away from Home" or "Railroaders' Lament") is a song made popular in the United States and Europe during the 1960s folk revival. The simple repetitive lyrics offer a lament by a traveler who is far from home, out of money and too ashamed to return.

History

The song is generally credited as being written by Hedy West,^[1]^[2] and a 1961 copyright is held by Atzal Music, Inc.^[1] "500 Miles" is West's "most anthologized song".^[3] Some recordings have also credited Curly Williams, or John Phillips as co-writers,^[4] although Phillips admitted he had only rearranged it and "didn't deserve the credit".^[5] David Neale writes that "500 Miles" may be related to the older folk song "900 Miles" (Roud 4959),^[6] which may itself have origins in the Southern American fiddle tunes "Reuben's Train" and "Train 45".^[4]^[7] Johnny Cash is known to have included "500 Miles" on his list of 100 essential country songs in the early 1970s.^[8]

Folklorist Norm Cohen writes that 900 miles, rather than 500, is the most common distance referenced in versions of the traditional song, but other distances including 400 miles and 10,000 miles also appear.^[7]

The melody of "500 Miles" is very close to that of “You’ll Never Miss Your Mother Till She’s Gone", written by Harry Birch, an alias of Charles A White, and published by White, Smith, and Company of Boston, Massachusetts in 1885.^[9] Both "You'll Never Miss Your Mother Till She's Gone" and "900 Miles" were first recorded by Fiddlin' John Carson in 1923-4.^[10]

Bobby Bare version

The most commercially successful version of the song was Bobby Bare's in 1963. His version became a Top 10 hit on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, as well as a Top 5 hit on both the Country and Adult Contemporary charts.

Chart history

Weekly charts

Chart (1963)	Peak position
Canada CHUM Chart^[12]	7
US Billboard Hot 100^[13]	10
US Billboard Adult Contemporary^[14]	4
US Billboard Country	5
US Cash Box Top 100^[15]	15

Year-end charts

Chart (1963)	Rank
US Billboard Hot 100^[16]	100

Other cover versions

The song appears on the 1961 eponymous debut album by The Journeymen;^[17] this may have been its first release.
The song was heard on the February 1962 Kingston Trio live album College Concert (a 1962 US #3).
It was further popularized by Peter, Paul and Mary, who included the song on their debut album in May 1962.^[18]^[19]
It appears as "Nine Hundred Miles“ on the 1962 album When I Was a Young Girl from folk-singer Barbara Dane (released in October 1962).
American country music singer Bobby Bare recorded a version with new lyrics, which became a hit single in 1963.^[3]
Dick and Dee Dee released a version of the song on their 1964 album, Turn Around.^[20]
The song was covered by Sonny & Cher on their 1965 album Look at Us. This version was played over the credits of the 1966 BBC TV film Cathy Come Home.
The lyrics feature heavily in the Bob Dylan song "I Was Young When I Left Home."
Bluegrass versions were recorded by The Country Gentlemen on their album 25 Years^[21] and The Seldom Scene on their album Act I.^[22]
The Hooters recorded a version of this song with additional lyrics, dedicated to the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989. Peter, Paul and Mary provided background vocals for them, as well. This version is on the album Zig Zag.^[23]
It has also been recorded by Terry Callier (as ″900 Miles″ on The New Folk Sound of Terry Callier), Lonnie Donegan, The Brothers Four, Glen Campbell, Johnny Rivers, Reba McEntire, Jackie DeShannon, The Seekers, Elvis Presley, Peter and Gordon, Eric Bibb, Hootenanny Singers, Joan Baez, Takako Matsu, The Persuasions, Slater Rhea, Bad Astronaut and many others.^[24]
The song was performed by Justin Timberlake, Carey Mulligan and Stark Sands for the soundtrack of the film Inside Llewyn Davis.^[25]
Rosanne Cash covered the song on her 2009 album The List.
In 2012 the song was recorded by American bluegrass band, The Special Consensus for their album Scratch Gravel Road.
Niger's pioneer of electronic music Mamman Sani recorded an instrumental version, which is included in the compilation album Unreleased Tapes 1981-1984.^[26]
The song's tune with a few slight lyric changes has been incorporated into the reggae song Roach Killer by Super Chick.^[27]
The song is also covered by Clint Eastwood & General Saint in their hit song "Stop That Train", although the covered part is not to be heard until halfway into the song.
Being a well-documented song publicised by English Folk Dance and Song Society,^[28] and Mainly Norfolk,^[29] the song was recorded by Jon Boden and Oli Steadman for inclusion in their respective lists of daily folk songs "A Folk Song A Day"^[30] and "365 Days Of Folk".^[31]

In other languages

Albanian

Ilirët sang in Albanian.^[32]

Assamese

Jayanta Hazarika sang in Assamese "Ketiyaba Bejarote"(English: Sometimes when in grief) in 1962. Again, in 2018, Zubeen Garg sang "Kot Mur Maa" (English: Where’s my mom) for a drama of Aawahan Mobile Theatre group.

Bengali

Bengali singer Anjan Dutt sung the song in Bengali called "Mr. Hall" in his 1997 album Keu Gaan Gaye.

Chinese

In 2017, a Chinese adaptation of the song called "别送我" (English: "Don't send me off") was released on the soundtrack of Duckweed and sung by Chen Hongyu, Su Zixu, Liu Hao Lin, and Han Luo.^{[citation needed]}

Czech

Czech version was recorded in 1967 as "Tisíc mil" (English: "Thousand Miles") with the lyrics by Ivo Fischer, sung as a duet by Waldemar Matuška and Helena Vondráčková.^[33] and other version 500 mil performed by Rangers-Plavci

Finnish

In Finnish, the song has been recorded under at least five different scorded yet again, by Jukka Raitanen. This time it was called "Liian kaukana" (English: "Too Far Away"). Lyrics were written by Raul Reiman. This song was released on Raitanen's album Yölinjalla. "Yölinjalla(in)" song is a Finnish version of the song "I Walk the Line" by Johnny Cash.^[34]

Moreover, "500 Miles" has also been released with religious content under the name "Lapsuuden usko" (English: "Childhood Faith"), with lyrics by Matti Nyberg. This version has been recorded at least three times: 1973, 2005 and 2011.^[35] It was released by a parish singer group Dominicones in 1973.^[36] In 2005 it was recorded by actor and singer Mikko Leppilampi. The song was released on album "Tilkkutäkki" (English: "Quilt", by various artists), and targeted to people who want to nostalgize the time of their confirmation on Lutheran church.^[37]^[38] In 2011 it was recorded by Petrus (real name Petri Kokko, born 1970) in his album Enkelten laulut (English: "The Songs of Angels").^[39]

French

Richard Anthony had a hit with a French version of the song, "Et j'entends siffler le train" (English: "I Hear the Whistle of the Train").^[40] It reached number-one in France in 1962. Anthony's version was covered by Franco Battiato on his 1999 album Fleurs.

German

In 1963 a German version, "Und dein Zug fährt durch die Nacht" (English: "And Your Train Goes Through the Night"), was a success for Peter Beil. Also in German, Santiano in 2012 released a marine-themed version, "500 Meilen", on their album Bis ans Ende der Welt.

Hebrew

There is a Hebrew version by Aviva Marks called, "500 מייל" in 1966. The meaning of the name is "500 mile", and it came part of her album Sweeter than Wine ("מתוק מיין"). The song is mostly translation to Hebrew.

Hindi

Indian composer Rajesh Roshan used the tune to compose song 'Jab Koyi Baat Bigad Jaaye' (English: "When Things Go Wrong")^[41]^[42]^[43] in 1990's movie Jurm.

Indonesian

The tune of this song has been used in religious contents in Indonesia, in the widely popular book of songs and praise for Catholics in Indonesia, "Madah Bakti", song #366 "Ya Tuhan Kami Datang".

Japanese

The Japanese duo Wink included it as the B-side of their 1989 single 淋しい熱帯魚 (Samishii Nettaigyo), under the title 背中まで 500 マイル (Senaka Made 500 Mairu; 500 Miles Back).^{[citation needed]} In 2018, Japanese singer Kiyoe Yoshioka sang a Japanese version of the song, "500 Mairu" (500マイル) on her debut album Uta Iro.^[44]

Slovenian

The Slovene singer Lado Leskovar wrote a 1965 hit based on the song titled "Poslednji vlak" (English: "The Last Train").^[45]

Spanish

Costa Rican rock band Los Rufos recorded a Spanish version under the title "500 Millas" in 1967.^[46] A similar version was recorded by the Nicaraguan band Los Rockets.^[47]

Vietnamese

There are two versions in Vietnamese. One is "Tiễn em lần cuối" ("Send You Off for the Last Time") sung by Trung Hanh, another one is "Người tình ngàn dặm" ("Thousands-mile-away Lover") sung by Ngọc Lan.

In media

Peter, Paul & Mary's version of the song was used in the following:

Rocky Mountain Express: 2011 Canadian film which chronicles the early history of the Canadian Pacific Railway while following restored steam locomotive Canadian Pacific 2816 along the route.
Mr Inbetween: 2018-21 Australian TV series used it in Season Two, Episode Eight: "You'll See Me in Your Dreams."
Professor T.: 2021 Crime Drama featuring Ben Miller used the version in Season One: Episode Four: 'Mother Love'.
In the 2022 film Bullet Train, a version of the song is used by Song For Memories.
Episode 4 in Season 2 of BBC Drama "The Responder" ends with The Journeymen version of the song.

References

^ ^a ^b Blood, Peter and Annie Patterson (eds), Rise Up Singing, Sing Out Corporation, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania , United States, 1992, p. 232
^ Anderson, Yohann (ed), Songs, Songs and Creations, Inc., San Anselmo, California, United States, 1983, p. 29
^ ^a ^b Hunt, Ken (3 August 2005). "Obituary: Hedy West". The Independent. Archived from the original on 15 January 2009. Retrieved 17 September 2009.
^ ^a ^b "Elvis Presley: Original Versions of Songs He Sang". Archived from the original on 20 September 2008. Retrieved 8 September 2008.
^ Phillips, John: Papa John. An Autobiography, Doubleday & Co. 1986, ISBN 978-0440167839, p. 118
^ "Five Hundred Miles / Nine Hundred Miles". Mainly Norfolk: English Folk and Other Good Music. Retrieved 24 March 2020. Nine Hundred Miles is a lament of a traveller far from home that is from the beginning of the last century or earlier. Hedy West rewrote this song as Five Hundred Miles with a different tune but several overlapping verses.
^ ^a ^b Cohen, Norm (2000). Long Steel Rail: The Railroad in American Folksong, 2nd Ed. Urbana: University of Illinois Press. pp. 503–517. ISBN 0-252-06881-5. Retrieved 19 February 2012.
^ Gross, Terry (5 October 2009). "Rosanne Cash Runs Down Her Father's 'List'". Npr.org. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
^ "Song: You'll Never Miss Your Mother Till She's Gone written by Charles A White | SecondHandSongs". secondhandsongs.com. Retrieved 19 August 2024.
^ "Fiddlin' John Carson - Discography of American Historical Recordings". adp.library.ucsb.edu. Archived from the original on 16 July 2024.
^ Marsh, Dave (1989). The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made. Plume. p. 571. ISBN 0-452-26305-0.
^ "CHUM Hit Parade - November 11, 1963".
^ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
^ Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 24.
^ "Cash Box Top 100 Singles, November 23, 1963". Archived from the original on 10 September 2017. Retrieved 10 September 2017.
^ "Top 100 Hits of 1963/Top 100 Songs of 1963 | Music Outfitters". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
^ "The Most Trusted Place for Answering Life's Questions". Answers. 3 August 2016. Retrieved 26 September 2016.
^ Eder, Bruce. "Peter, Paul and Mary - Peter, Paul and Mary | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 26 September 2016.
^ "Top Selling Folk Artists". Billboard Magazine. Nielsen Business Media, Inc.: 18 19 January 1963. ISSN 0006-2510.
^ "Dick & Dee Dee* - Turn Around (Vinyl, LP, Album) at Discogs". Discogs.com. 1964. Retrieved 26 September 2016.
^ Joyce, Mike (31 December 1982). "25 Years of The Country Gentlemen". The Washington Post. Retrieved 24 March 2020. John Duffey's whispery tenor graces ... 500 Miles
^ Lankford, Ronnie D. Jr. "Act 1 - The Seldom Scene". ALLMUSIC. Retrieved 24 March 2020. bluegrass fans would not have objected to "Darling Corey" or "500 Miles"
^ "Zig Zag - The Hooters | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 28 November 2018.
^ "Hedy West". AllMusic. Retrieved 26 September 2016.
^ "Various artists: Inside Llewyn Davis". Music.avclub.com. 12 November 2013. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
^ "Unreleased Tapes 1981-1984 | Mamman Sani". Bandcamp. Retrieved 8 October 2022.
^ Super Chick - Roach Killer 10Inch (1980) Hit Bound on YouTube
^ "Five Hundred Miles / Nine Hundred Miles (Roud index 4959)". Retrieved 18 January 2024.
^ "Five Hundred Miles / Nine Hundred Miles". Retrieved 18 January 2024.
^ "A Folk Song A Day: Song List". 12 October 2016. Retrieved 12 January 2024.
^ "365 Days Of Folk: Song List". Retrieved 12 January 2024.
^ "Iliret - Treni I Fundit". Teksteshqip.com. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
^ "Helena Vondráčková | Tisíc mil". Vondrackova.cz. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
^ "Jukka Raitanen – Yölinjalla (1979, Vinyl)". Discogs.com. 1979. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
^ "Cover versions of 500 Miles written by Hedy West". Secondhandsongs.com. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
^ "Dominicones – Ihminen (1973, Vinyl)". Discogs.com. 1973. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
^ "Tilkkutäkki - Kitara, Tähdet Ja Taivas (2005, CD)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Mikko Leppilampi - Lapsuuden usko". YouTube. 31 May 2012.
^ "Petri Kokko". Secondhandsongs.com. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
^ "InfoDisc: Les Bilans Récapitulatifs (Chansons, Tubes ou Succès) des Titres N° 1". Archived from the original on 22 December 2011. Retrieved 31 December 2011.
^ "'Jab Koi Baat Bigad Jaaye' copied from 'Five Hundred Miles'". Bollywoodcopy.com. 21 August 2017. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
^ "Jab koi baat bigad jaye–500 miles away from home". Chennairavi.wordpress.com. 28 May 2014. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
^ "Five Hundred miles / Jab koi baat bigar jaie comparison". YouTube. 21 December 2009. Archived from the original on 19 December 2021.
^ "Ikimonogakari Vocalist Kiyoe Yoshioka Announces Debut Solo Album "Uta Iro"". Jpopasia.com. Retrieved 25 October 2018.
^ "Iz naftalina: Lado Leskovar – Poslednji vlak - siol.net". Siol.net. Retrieved 13 July 2017.
^ "Los Rufos – Ven Amorcito Ven / 500 Millas (Vinyl)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 20 December 2021.
^ "Los Rockets – Thelma / 500 Millas (1965, Vinyl)". Discogs.com. 1965. Retrieved 20 December 2021.

[rus-1] Blood, Peter and Annie Patterson (eds), Rise Up Singing, Sing Out Corporation, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania , United States, 1992, p. 232

[songs-2] Anderson, Yohann (ed), Songs, Songs and Creations, Inc., San Anselmo, California, United States, 1983, p. 29

[indp-3] Hunt, Ken (3 August 2005). "Obituary: Hedy West". The Independent. Archived from the original on 15 January 2009. Retrieved 17 September 2009.

[elvis-4] "Elvis Presley: Original Versions of Songs He Sang". Archived from the original on 20 September 2008. Retrieved 8 September 2008.

[5] Phillips, John: Papa John. An Autobiography, Doubleday & Co. 1986, ISBN 978-0440167839, p. 118

[Roud_500_Miles-6] "Five Hundred Miles / Nine Hundred Miles". Mainly Norfolk: English Folk and Other Good Music. Retrieved 24 March 2020. Nine Hundred Miles is a lament of a traveller far from home that is from the beginning of the last century or earlier. Hedy West rewrote this song as Five Hundred Miles with a different tune but several overlapping verses.

[COHEN-7] Cohen, Norm (2000). Long Steel Rail: The Railroad in American Folksong, 2nd Ed. Urbana: University of Illinois Press. pp. 503–517. ISBN 0-252-06881-5. Retrieved 19 February 2012.

[8] Gross, Terry (5 October 2009). "Rosanne Cash Runs Down Her Father's 'List'". Npr.org. Retrieved 13 July 2020.

[9] "Song: You'll Never Miss Your Mother Till She's Gone written by Charles A White | SecondHandSongs". secondhandsongs.com. Retrieved 19 August 2024.

[10] "Fiddlin' John Carson - Discography of American Historical Recordings". adp.library.ucsb.edu. Archived from the original on 16 July 2024.

[Marsh_1989-11] Marsh, Dave (1989). The Heart of Rock & Soul: The 1001 Greatest Singles Ever Made. Plume. p. 571. ISBN 0-452-26305-0.

[12] "CHUM Hit Parade - November 11, 1963".

[13] Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X

[14] Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 24.

[15] "Cash Box Top 100 Singles, November 23, 1963". Archived from the original on 10 September 2017. Retrieved 10 September 2017.

[16] "Top 100 Hits of 1963/Top 100 Songs of 1963 | Music Outfitters". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 20 December 2021.

[17] "The Most Trusted Place for Answering Life's Questions". Answers. 3 August 2016. Retrieved 26 September 2016.

[18] Eder, Bruce. "Peter, Paul and Mary - Peter, Paul and Mary | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 26 September 2016.

[19] "Top Selling Folk Artists". Billboard Magazine. Nielsen Business Media, Inc.: 18 19 January 1963. ISSN 0006-2510.

[20] "Dick & Dee Dee* - Turn Around (Vinyl, LP, Album) at Discogs". Discogs.com. 1964. Retrieved 26 September 2016.

[Washington_Post_25_Years-21] Joyce, Mike (31 December 1982). "25 Years of The Country Gentlemen". The Washington Post. Retrieved 24 March 2020. John Duffey's whispery tenor graces ... 500 Miles

[AllMusic_Act_1-22] Lankford, Ronnie D. Jr. "Act 1 - The Seldom Scene". ALLMUSIC. Retrieved 24 March 2020. bluegrass fans would not have objected to "Darling Corey" or "500 Miles"

[23] "Zig Zag - The Hooters | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 28 November 2018.

[24] "Hedy West". AllMusic. Retrieved 26 September 2016.

[25] "Various artists: Inside Llewyn Davis". Music.avclub.com. 12 November 2013. Retrieved 7 April 2021.

[26] "Unreleased Tapes 1981-1984 | Mamman Sani". Bandcamp. Retrieved 8 October 2022.

[27] Super Chick - Roach Killer 10Inch (1980) Hit Bound on YouTube

[28] "Five Hundred Miles / Nine Hundred Miles (Roud index 4959)". Retrieved 18 January 2024.

[29] "Five Hundred Miles / Nine Hundred Miles". Retrieved 18 January 2024.

[30] "A Folk Song A Day: Song List". 12 October 2016. Retrieved 12 January 2024.

[31] "365 Days Of Folk: Song List". Retrieved 12 January 2024.

[32] "Iliret - Treni I Fundit". Teksteshqip.com. Retrieved 20 December 2021.

[33] "Helena Vondráčková | Tisíc mil". Vondrackova.cz. Retrieved 20 December 2021.

[34] "Jukka Raitanen – Yölinjalla (1979, Vinyl)". Discogs.com. 1979. Retrieved 20 December 2021.

[secondhandsongs.com-35] "Cover versions of 500 Miles written by Hedy West". Secondhandsongs.com. Retrieved 20 December 2021.

[36] "Dominicones – Ihminen (1973, Vinyl)". Discogs.com. 1973. Retrieved 20 December 2021.

[37] "Tilkkutäkki - Kitara, Tähdet Ja Taivas (2005, CD)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 20 December 2021.

[38] Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Mikko Leppilampi - Lapsuuden usko". YouTube. 31 May 2012.

[39] "Petri Kokko". Secondhandsongs.com. Retrieved 20 December 2021.

[40] "InfoDisc: Les Bilans Récapitulatifs (Chansons, Tubes ou Succès) des Titres N° 1". Archived from the original on 22 December 2011. Retrieved 31 December 2011.

[41] "'Jab Koi Baat Bigad Jaaye' copied from 'Five Hundred Miles'". Bollywoodcopy.com. 21 August 2017. Retrieved 20 December 2021.

[42] "Jab koi baat bigad jaye–500 miles away from home". Chennairavi.wordpress.com. 28 May 2014. Retrieved 20 December 2021.

[43] "Five Hundred miles / Jab koi baat bigar jaie comparison". YouTube. 21 December 2009. Archived from the original on 19 December 2021.

[44] "Ikimonogakari Vocalist Kiyoe Yoshioka Announces Debut Solo Album "Uta Iro"". Jpopasia.com. Retrieved 25 October 2018.

[45] "Iz naftalina: Lado Leskovar – Poslednji vlak - siol.net". Siol.net. Retrieved 13 July 2017.

[46] "Los Rufos – Ven Amorcito Ven / 500 Millas (Vinyl)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 20 December 2021.

[47] "Los Rockets – Thelma / 500 Millas (1965, Vinyl)". Discogs.com. 1965. Retrieved 20 December 2021.

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500 Miles