Lindsey Buckingham – Holiday Road

I found out long ago
It’s a long way down the holiday road

This song is super likable…when I hear it..it makes me want to see Vacation…again. It’s hard to believe this wasn’t a larger hit.

This is a great road song, Lindsey Buckingham wrote “Holiday Road” for the 1983 Chevy Chase movie National Lampoon’s Vacation, where it plays over the opening credits.

This song was used in all of the Vacation sequels… National Lampoon’s European Vacation (1985), Vegas Vacation (1997) and Vacation (2015). In 2015 movie, three different versions are used: the original, and a cover by Matt Pond, and a version by The Zac Brown Band.

The song peaked at #82 in the Billboard 100 in 1983.

Lindsey Buckingham: Obviously, I knew it had to be somewhat uplifting and a little bit funny, which it is, but somehow we nailed it beyond his expectations certainly. He was like, “Holy crap.” A lot of that was just luck. Then when I got asked to do the title song for Ghostbusters, I said, “Nah, you know, I did this really well once. It’s not something I want to get into as a repetitive part of my identity.” 

From Songfacts

National Lampoon’s Vacation follows the misadventures of the Griswold family as they set out from Illinois to California in the trusty station wagon en route to Wally World. The film did very well, helping to popularize this song.

In his work with Fleetwood Mac and as a solo artist, Buckingham wrote songs of depth and meaning. “Holiday Road” allowed him to step outside of these constraints to compose a simple, jaunty song with no relation to his other work. He kept it simple; the chorus is simply the words “holiday road” repeated four times, and the verses are very basic:

I found out long ago
It’s a long way down the holiday road

Jack be nimble, Jack be quick
Take a ride on the West Coast kick


I found out long ago
It’s a long way down the holiday road

Buckingham could come off as serene (as he was portrayed on Saturday Night Live), but this song showed he had a healthy sense of humor.

Fleetwood Mac was on hiatus when Buckingham released this song. He had already released one solo album, Law and Order (1981), which contains the #9 hit “Trouble.” His next album, Go Insane, was released in 1984 with a title track that reached #23. But ask just about anyone to name one of his solo songs, and they will likely recall “Holiday Road,” which thanks to the Vacation movies became his most popular song.

In 2015, this was used in a commercial for the Infinity QX60 that spoofs a scene where Chevy Chase ogles Christie Brinkley who drives past him in a convertible. In the spot, Brinkley is a passenger in the family car, and she chastises her husband for checking out a girl who drives past him. “Honey, a blonde in a convertible, seriously?,” she says.

Holiday Road

I found out long ago
It’s a long way down the holiday road
Holiday road
Holiday road

Jack be nimble, Jack be quick
Take a ride on the West Coast kick
Holiday road
Holiday road
Holiday road
Holiday road

I found out long ago
It’s a long way down the holiday road
Holiday road
Holiday road
Holiday road
Holiday road

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Author: Badfinger (Max)

Power Pop fan, Baseball, Beatles, Alternative music, old movies, and tv show fan. Also anything to do with pop culture in the 60s and 70s... I'm also a songwriter, bass and guitar player. Not the slightest bit interested in politics at all.

29 thoughts on “Lindsey Buckingham – Holiday Road”

  4. “Trouble” was a fine single, the only one I really instantly think of when I think of Lindsey outside of FM. This one sounds good, only vaguely familiar – I’ve seen those VAcation movies at times, but somehow never really noticed this song. That is a cool record sleeve – I wouldn’t mind having a poster based on that design.

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  5. I had no idea this was a Buckingham song! All this time I thought it was Kenny Loggins (maybe because Caddyshack theme song which is a similar type of movie?) Great tune that they sure got a lot of use out of for the Vacation movies. Funny about the 2015 commercial with Christie Brinkley.

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  10. Oh, yeah…with the barking at the end. I loved the song when it came out but, grew tired of it and the damn movies always repeating. Plus, for me, the whole series is an embarrassment on so many levels. My mother’s maiden name is Griswold so there is a bit of a running joke in my family. Past that, I have grown to despise Chase.

    I’ve enjoyed Lindsey’s music on the whole.

    Speaking of Kenny Loggins, I miss his soundtracks. GOD, what a talent and vocal range… Yeah. I know…too commercial but, it’s good. 😉😎

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    1. Now Chase…I do NOT like. I do like the first and second movie…after that they killed it.

      No comment on the Kenny Loggins! lol. I do like the one theme he did…the Caddyshack…that one I liked…and him and what’s his name… Annie’s Song….that was them right? Loggins and Messina?

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      1. Yeah. He was with Jim Messina (Poco & Buffalo Springfield) and his second cousin is Dave Loggins (Please Come to Boston).

        Danny’s Song was their’s. Annie’s Song is Denver’s. They also had Your Mama Don’t Dance & My Music. They made some good stuff for the limited time they were together.

        Caddyshack, Footloose, Top Gun, Over The Top, Caddyshack II, One Fine Day…

        Vox Humana is a great song. One of my favorites. I miss his music in the radio.

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