Driving The Last Spike (track)
by Genesis
Year: 1991
From the album We Can't Dance (track #3)
Listen on Spotify
Driving The Last Spike appears on the following album(s) by Genesis:
- We Can't Dance (track #3) (this album) (1991)
- The Way We Walk, Volume Two: The Longs (track #2) (1993)
- 1983-1998 (track #20) (compilation) (2007)
- BBC Broadcasts (track #22) (compilation) (2023)
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Driving The Last Spike ratings
Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AVwhere:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
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| Rating | Date updated | Member | Track ratings | Avg. track rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 11/16/2025 21:59 | Exist-en-ciel | 21,653 | 69/100 |
| ! | 10/02/2025 09:36 | dukeboxkool | 6,555 | 75/100 |
| ! | 08/26/2025 13:34 | 12,159 | 86/100 | |
| ! | 04/10/2025 02:05 | 34,018 | 76/100 | |
| ! | 04/16/2024 06:42 | zsolti | 6,644 | 80/100 |
Rating metrics:
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This track is rated in the top 3% of all tracks on BestEverAlbums.com. This track has a Bayesian average rating of 82.2/100, a mean average of 82.5/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 83.2/100. The standard deviation for this track is 12.5.
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Much like Domino from the previous album, Driving the Last Spike is a 10-plus-minute pop track that draws from prog influences, though perhaps not as strongly as Domino. You wouldn't guess that from the first couple minutes, which sound like any ordinary easy-listening pop hit, but it kicks it right into second gear at the three-minute mark with some kick-ass guitar and keyboard riffs and Collins' frantic drumming. The moment doesn't last long enough, as it eventually reprises the intro and turns into a regular driving pop tune for the final couple minutes, but at least it comes with a lot more vigor than the relatively boring introductory minutes. The lyrics about a British railway worker contrasting his internal struggles and doubts with the toil of his labor along the railroad tracks wax pretty poetic, though I do think they play second fiddle to the music in this instance. In short, a good song with some excellent moments and others not so much, but those excellent moments do capture a piece of that Genesis magic.
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