This is one of those tracks I didn’t hear on the radio much growing up, but when I finally caught it, it stuck. It feels like a road song, not romantic, just moving forward. The keyboard hook is what pulls me back every time.
This showed up on the album Watch in 1978, but the song had already lived a life before Manfred Mann’s Earth Band got to it. It was written by producer John Simon and Robbie Robertson, and first recorded by John Simon in 1970. Like a lot of Mann’s best work, the band took an overlooked track and rebuilt it into something that felt bigger and more direct.
The album was a studio album, but with two live songs. This is one of them, and the other was Dylan’s Mighty Quinn. This version runs on momentum. and the groove is steady. Chris Thompson handles the vocals with control, letting the melody carry the weight. Then Mann’s keyboards come in, especially the Minimoog lines, which give the track its identity.
It fits the late 70s; I’m worn out by the road, theme, without spelling everything out. The band keeps their performance grounded. No over-the-top excess, just steady music. The song became one of their biggest live and chart successes, especially in Europe, and helped define this period of the band. Like their version of Blinded by the Light, it shows how Manfred Mann had a knack for finding songs and reshaping them without losing their core.
The song peaked at #6 in the UK in 1978. The album Watch peaked at #33 in the UK, #83 on the Billboard Album Charts, #29 in New Zealand, and #85 in Canada.
Davy’s On The Road Again
Davey’s on the road againWearing different clothes againDavey’s turning handouts downTo keep his pockets cleanAll his goods are sold againHis word is good as gold againSays if you see JeanNow ask her please to pity me
Jean and I we’ve moved alongSince that day down in the hollowWhen the mind went drifting onAnd the feet were soon to follow
Davey’s on the road againWearing different clothes againDavey’s turning handouts downTo keep his pockets cleanSaid his goodbyes againWheels are in his eyes againSays if you see JeanNow ask her please to pity me
Downtown is a big townGonna set you back on your heelsWith a mouth full of memoriesAnd a load of stickers for the windshield
Shut the door, cut the lightDavey won’t be home tonightYou can wait till the dawn rolls inYou won’t see our Davey again
Davey’s on the road againDavey’s on the road againDavey’s on the road again
Wearing different clothes againDavey’s turning handouts downTo keep his pockets cleanAll his goods are sold againHis word is good as gold againSays if you see JeanNow ask her please to pity me
Jean and I we’ve moved alongSince that day down in the hollowWhen the mind went drifting onAnd the feet were soon to follow
Davey’s on the road againWearing different clothes againDavey’s turning handouts downTo keep his pockets cleanSaid his goodbyes againWheels are in his eyes againSays if you see JeanNow ask her please to pity me
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