| One Way Ticket Home | |
| Artist: | Phil Ochs |
| Album: | Greatest Hits |
| Published: | 1970 |
| Released: | 1970 |
| Genre: | Rock |
| Length: | 2:39 |
| Label: | A&M |
| Producer: | Van Dyke Parks and Andrew Wickham |
| One Way Ticket Home | |
| Cover: | One Way Ticket Home.jpg |
| Caption: | Promotional copy of "One Way Ticket Home" |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | Phil Ochs |
| B-Side: | My Kingdom for a Car |
| Released: | 1972 |
| Genre: | Rock |
| Length: | 2:39 |
| Label: | A&M |
| Producer: | Van Dyke Parks |
| Prev Title: | My Life |
| Prev Year: | 1969 |
| Next Title: | Kansas City Bomber |
| Next Year: | 1973 |
"One Way Ticket Home" is a 1970 song by Phil Ochs, an American singer-songwriter best known for the protest songs he wrote in the 1960s.
"One Way Ticket Home" is the first song on Greatest Hits, which—despite its title—was a collection of new songs.[1] Musically, it signals a return by Ochs to his musical roots in country music and early rock and roll.[2]
In the song, Ochs announces that he wants to buy a "one-way ticket home". Inspired by a recent Elvis concert in Las Vegas, Ochs declares "Elvis Presley is the king/I was at his crowning." But something is wrong: "My life just flashed before my eyes/I must be drowning." Referring to the political climate in the United States, Ochs says he "would be in exile now/But everywhere's the same" and decides he wants a "one-way ticket home".[3] [4]