9 to 5 (Sheena Easton song)

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"9 to 5"
Morning Train - Sheena Easton.jpg
USA single sleeve
Single by Sheena Easton
from the album Take My Time
B-side"Moody (My Love)"
Released
  • 16 May 1980 (UK)
  • February 1981 (US)
Recorded1980
GenrePop
Length3:20
Label
  • EMI (original)
  • RT Industries (current)
Songwriter(s)Florrie Palmer
Producer(s)Christopher Neil
Sheena Easton singles chronology
"Modern Girl"
(1980) 		"9 to 5"
(1980) 		"One Man Woman"
(1980)
Alternative cover art
UK single sleeve
UK single sleeve

"9 to 5" (or "Morning Train") is a popular song written by British songwriter Florrie Palmer and recorded by Sheena Easton in 1980, becoming her biggest hit. It peaked at number three in the United Kingdom in August 1980 and was certified gold.[1] In February 1981, it was released in the United States and Canada under the title "Morning Train (Nine to Five)" to avoid confusion with Dolly Parton's recent hit "9 to 5". It reached number one in both countries, becoming Easton's only chart-topper in those nations.

Easton had released one single prior to "9 to 5": "Modern Girl". This had failed to chart highly, but after exposure on the BBC documentary, The Big Time, Pop Singer, both "9 to 5" and "Modern Girl" were propelled into the top ten at the same time, making her the third female artist (after Ruby Murray and Shirley Bassey) to achieve this feat.[2] "9 to 5" became a top three hit and was one of the best-selling singles of the year.[3]

Early in 1981, EMI Records decided to launch Easton in the US and released "9 to 5" as her debut single. The title of the song was changed to "Morning Train (Nine to Five)" to avoid confusion with the Dolly Parton song of the same name, which charted nearly simultaneously with Easton's record.[4] Easton's song went to #1 on both the U.S. pop and adult contemporary charts; it remained at the top for two weeks on Billboard's pop chart. On Billboard's 1981 year-end charts, it came in as the twelfth-biggest pop and thirteenth-biggest AC hit of the year 1981. It also topped the RPM magazine pop and AC charts in Canada, reigning over the former for two weeks in May 1981, while also reaching the summit in New Zealand, before being replaced by Joy Division's "Love Will Tear Us Apart".

The song is about a woman who waits at home all day for her man to come home from work.[4] The music video was filmed on the Bluebell Railway, a heritage line running between East and West Sussex in England. The video stars London and South Western Railway No. 488, a preserved LSWR 0415 Class locomotive.

Chart performance[]

Other versions[]

Easton re-recorded the song ("El Primer Tren") for her Spanish-language album Todo Me Recuerda a Tí, in 1983 for the Latin markets.

Swedish-born Norwegian singer Elisabeth Andreassen covered the song in Swedish, as "Han pendlar varje dag" ("He commutes every day") with the new lyrics by Olle Bergman, on her 1981 album Angel of the Morning.[23] This version also stayed at Svensktoppen for 9 weeks during the period 21 February-18 April 1982, with a chart peak of #4.[24]

Also in 1981, the Bulgarian-French singer Sylvie Vartan recorded a French cover of the song entitled "L'amour, c'est comme une cigarette" ("Love is like a cigarette"), with lyrics entirely unrelated to the Easton original.

In 1981, the Czech singer Helena Vondráčková recorded a cover called "Nač vlastně v půli vzdávat mač" ("Why actually give up a match in the middle?"). The Czech text was written by Zdeněk Borovec.

Idols South Africa winner Anke Pietrangeli covered the song on her album Tribute to the Great Female Vocalists in 2009.[25]

In popular culture[]

It was revealed in the documentary John Peel's Record Box that British radio DJ John Peel loved the record so much that he kept two copies of it in a small wooden box of his 142 favourite singles.[26]

It was referenced in a Not the Nine O'Clock News sketch, with Pamela Stephenson playing a housewife who sings the song while cleaning the house. Her husband, played by Rowan Atkinson returns home, and corrects the wording, beginning by pointing out that he travels to work by bus, not by train, to which Stephenson sings the lines again incorporating the corrected statements.

The song was featured twice in the NBC sitcom Seinfeld. It first appeared in a scene from the season 8 episode "The Bizarro Jerry"', in a montage of Kramer's "work" experience.[27] Its second appearance was in the season 9 episode "The Butter Shave", where George Costanza pretends to be handicapped at work.[28][4]

In 2001, it was featured in the South Park episode 513, Kenny Dies.

The song features in the 2004 movie EuroTrip: the character of Scotty is forced to sing it in a Manchester United backer's bar.

The song’s melody is interpolated heavily in ‘My Baby Wants A Baby’, on St. Vincent's sixth studio album, Daddy’s Home.

The song is featured in the NBC series Good Girls in season 3, episode 4, "The Eye in Survivor".

See also[]

  • Cashbox Top 100 number-one singles of 1981
  • List of Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles of 1981

References[]

  1. ^ BPI - search Sheena Easton (Certification and UK release date) Archived 11 May 2011 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ "Biography : Sheena Easton - The Official Website". Sheena Easton. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  3. ^ "Official Charts Company". Archived from the original on 5 April 2015. Retrieved 29 April 2009.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b c Breihan, Tom (4 May 2020). "The Number Ones: Sheena Easton's "Morning Train (Nine To Five)"". Stereogum. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
  5. ^ "Ultratop.be – Sheena Easton – 9 to 5 (Morning Train)" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  6. ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 20 June 1981. Retrieved 28 May 2020.
  7. ^ "Toutes les Chansons N° 1 des Années 70" (in French). InfoDisc. 24 July 1981. Retrieved 22 December 2019.
  8. ^ "Irish Singles Chart – Search for song". Irish Recorded Music Association. Archived from the original on 2 June 2009. Retrieved 6 July 2011.
  9. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Sheena Easton" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
  10. ^ "Charts.nz – Sheena Easton – 9 to 5 (Morning Train)". Top 40 Singles.
  11. ^ "SA Charts 1965–March 1989". Retrieved 1 September 2018.
  12. ^ Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  13. ^ "Swisscharts.com – Sheena Easton – 9 to 5 (Morning Train)". Swiss Singles Chart.
  14. ^ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
  15. ^ "Sheena Easton".
  16. ^ "Cash Box Top 100 5/16/81". Tropicalglen.com. 16 May 1981. Archived from the original on 10 May 2017. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  17. ^ "UK Singles of the Year" (PDF). Record Mirror. London: Spotlight Publications. 27 December 1980. p. 30. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  18. ^ "Kent Music Report No 393 – 4 January 1982 > National Top 100 Singles for 1981". Kent Music Report. Retrieved 4 March 2021 – via Imgur.com.
  19. ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  20. ^ "Top Selling Singles of 1981 | The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Nztop40.co.nz. 31 December 1981. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  21. ^ "Top 100 Hits of 1981/Top 100 Songs of 1981". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  22. ^ "The CASH BOX Year End Charts: 1981".
  23. ^ "Angel of the morning - Svensk mediedatabas". Smdb.kb.se. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  24. ^ "Svensktoppen" (TXT). Sr.se. 1982. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  25. ^ Niel Bekker. "Anke - Tribute to the Great Female Vocalists". Channel24.co.za. Retrieved 16 October 2016.
  26. ^ Barnes, Anthony (30 October 2005). "Revealed: John Peel's 142 favourite records". The Independent. Retrieved 27 June 2008.
  27. ^ Trinacria, Joe (13 April 2017). "The Songs That Should Win SEPTA's Commute Playlist Contest". Philadelphia. Retrieved 4 May 2020.
  28. ^ Tracy, Liz. "Ten Best Seinfeld Musical Moments". New Times Broward-Palm Beach. Retrieved 4 May 2020.

External links[]

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