"Holiday Road" by Lindsey Buckingham

Song#:  1554
Date:  08/06/1983
Debut:  92
Peak:  82
Weeks:  5
Genre:  Pop, Soundtrack



Pop Bits:  Fleetwood Mac's Buckingham kept busy during the band's break and issued his first solo album in 1981. Law and Order would do well thanks to the #9 showing of "Trouble" (#12 Rock, #14 AC). Following the success of his solo LP and the Mac's new Mirage disc, Buckingham contributed two songs to the soundtrack for the comedy film National Lampoon's Vacation. This song, which was released as a single, and the track "Dancin' in the USA" served as bookends on the soundtrack LP. Despite the film being a big hit, both the single and soundtrack failed to get attention and disappeared quickly.

ReduxReview:  This is a cute little ditty that worked well for the film, but as a single it comes up a bit short - almost quite literally coming in at just over 2 minutes. It's a fun tune with a catchy chorus that conjures up images of the Griswolds and their wacky vacation. Beyond that, there is little to grab onto here. 

ReduxRating:  5/10

Trivia:  Double Shot!  1) The film was a hit on initial release, but its popularity grew over the years thanks to home video and airings on TV. Because of that added exposure, the song became synonymous with the movie. In fact, it's basically been recognized as the movie's unofficial theme song. The tune would then end up getting used in all of the Vacation sequels, including 2015's revamp with Ed Helms.  2) When Buckingham goes solo, sometimes he really goes solo. Besides his co-producer Richard Dashut, Buckingham did everything else on these tracks - writing, playing, recording, etc. A veritable one-man operation.

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