I Wanna Go Back

For other uses, see I Wanna Go Back (disambiguation).

"I Wanna Go Back" is a 1984 song by American rock band Billy Satellite, written by band members Monty Byrom, Danny Chauncey, and Ira Walker. A 1986 cover version of the song by American rock singer Eddie Money was a top 20 hit in 1987.

"I Wanna Go Back"
Single by Billy Satellite
from the album Billy Satellite
B-side	"Rockin' Down the Highway"
Released	December 1984
Genre	AOR, pop rock
Length	3:52
Label	Capitol Capitol 5409
Songwriters	Danny Chauncey Monty Byrom Ira Walker
Producer	Don Gehman
Billy Satellite singles chronology
"Satisfy Me" (1984) "I Wanna Go Back" (1984)
Audio
"I Wanna Go Back" on YouTube
Audio sample
file help

"I Wanna Go Back"
Single by Eddie Money
from the album Can't Hold Back
B-side	"Broken Down Chevy"
Released	December 1986
Genre	Pop rock hard rock
Length	3:59
Label	Columbia Columbia 38-06569
Songwriters	Danny Chauncey Monty Byrom Ira Walker
Producers	Richie Zito Eddie Money
Eddie Money singles chronology
"Take Me Home Tonight" (1986) "I Wanna Go Back" (1986) "Endless Nights" (1987)
Audio sample
file help
Music video
"I Wanna Go Back" on YouTube

Billy Satellite version

Released in 1984 as Billy Satellite's second single from their debut album, the song debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on December 8, 1984. It charted for three weeks, peaking at number 78 and at number 72 on Cash Box. Billy Satellite's version is mid-tempo song reliant on synthesizers but containing a short guitar solo in the bridge and some guitar in the outro. The music video begins with the members of the band driving a jeep to Alameda, California, to the site of a previous live show; the latter portion features the band playing in a bar there.

Gregg Rolie version

Gregg Rolie recorded a cover of "I Wanna Go Back" in 1985.

Eddie Money version

Eddie Money covered the song on his 1986 album Can't Hold Back, and it was released as a follow-up single to the Top 10 hit "Take Me Home Tonight". "I Wanna Go Back" reached number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100, number 33 on the Adult Contemporary chart, and number three on the Album Rock Tracks chart in early 1987.

Music video

The music video to Money's version features him revisiting a high school interspersed with him and his band playing before a concert audience. He briefly follows a mysterious figure through the crowd at the school dance; that figure represents the girl who got away. The video was filmed on Blackwell Street and the then-Dover High School (now The Kubert School) in Dover, New Jersey.

Critical reception

Upon its release, Billboard described "I Wanna Go Back" as a "hard rock ballad" which "capsulizes grown-up regret". Cash Box called it a "hook-laden mid-tempo rocker" which shows off Money's "grainy, expressive voice" and provides a "solid follow up" to "Take Me Home Tonight". AllMusic's Mike DeGagne said that Money's version of the song had "sincere, semi-ballad charm".

Charts

Chart (1986–87)	Peak position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	14
U.S. Billboard Album Rock Tracks	3
U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary	33
Canadian RPM Top Singles	42