A Life of Illusion
| "A Life of Illusion" | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Single by Joe Walsh | |
| from the album There Goes the Neighborhood | |
| B-side | "Rockets" |
| Released | May 1981 |
| Genre | Rock |
| Length | 3:30 |
| Label | Asylum |
| Songwriter(s) | Joe Walsh, Kenny Passarelli |
| Producer(s) | Joe Walsh |
| Audio | |
| "A Life of Illusion" on YouTube | |
"A Life of Illusion" is a song by the American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Joe Walsh, which became a hit and one of his most recognizable songs. It appears as the fifth track on his 1981 album, There Goes the Neighborhood. The majority of the track was originally recorded in 1973 as part of The Smoker You Drink, The Player You Get sessions.
Release[]
The song was a hit in the United States, peaking at #34 on the Billboard Hot 100, and also reaching #1 on the magazine's Top Tracks chart,[1] where his former bandmates Don Henley and Glenn Frey would also score #1 hits.
Chart history[]
| Chart (1981) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canada RPM Top Singles[2] | 37 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100[3] | 34 |
| U.S. Billboard Mainstream Rock | 1 |
| U.S. Cash Box Top 100[4] | 35 |
Cover versions[]
In 2002, the Foo Fighters recorded a cover of the song as a B Side, which later appeared on their covers album Medium Rare in 2011.
In popular culture[]
The song is used as the musical background to the opening scene in the film The 40-Year-Old Virgin, and appears as the first track on the soundtrack album. The song is also referenced in author Rick Riordan's The Burning Maze, the third book in The Trials of Apollo series.
See also[]
References[]
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 8th Edition (Billboard Publications), page 666.
- ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 1981-08-29. Retrieved 2018-08-19.
- ^ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
- ^ Cash Box Top 100 Singles, July 11, 1981[permanent dead link]
External links[]
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- 1981 singles
- Joe Walsh songs
- 1981 songs
- Songs written by Joe Walsh
- Asylum Records singles
- Songs written by Kenny Passarelli
- 1980s rock song stubs