Don't Walk Away (Electric Light Orchestra song)

"Across the Border" is a song written by Jeff Lynne and performed by Electric Light Orchestra.

It is track 4 on their highly successful 1977 album Out of the Blue. In 1980, the track became the B-side to the hit single "Don't Walk Away".

The song opens with a steam train and horn sound effect, then switching into a small bridge with the violin and the moog, then switching to an upbeat rock song, with the opening verse being reminiscent of The Beach Boys track "Heroes and Villains". Mik Kaminski plays violin and the song also has a Latin mariachi style brass section.

"Listen out for the train noises first, also some Spanish style trumpets. Big finish with much phasing on the drums". - Bev Bevan (1977 - Japanese Out of the Blue LP liner notes)

In 1980, after the release of the UK box set Four Light Years, the song was intended to be the lead track on a proposed Across the Border EP which also included "Don't Bring Me Down", "Telephone Line" and "Mr. Blue Sky". For reasons unknown, the EP was withdrawn and the intended EP artwork which matched the parent box set was used as the slip cover for ELO's 1982 double A-side single "Here Is the News/Ticket to the Moon" instead. The EP version of the song first appeared on the 1997 compilation album, Light Years.

• Jeff Lynne – lead vocals, backing vocals, electric guitars, acoustic guitars, keyboards, synthesizers
• Bev Bevan – drums, percussion, tympani
• Richard Tandy – pianos, synthesizers, keyboards
• Kelly Groucutt – bass guitar, backing vocals

Additional personnel

• Strings by Louis Clark
• Mack – engineer

A successful foreign version was the Italian Mi mancherai ("I will miss you"), recorded in 1981 by Sicilian singer Marcella Bella as a theme for a popular TV show, on air on Sunday afternoons for Rete Uno (today's RaiUno). The Italian text was written by Giorgio Calabrese.