Jet Airliner

"Jet Airliner" is a song composed by Paul Pena and popularized by the Steve Miller Band. Pena wrote and recorded the song in 1973 for his New Train album; however, due to conflicts between Pena and his label, New Train sat unreleased until 2000. Ben Sidran gave an unreleased copy of New Train to musician Steve Miller, who recorded "Jet Airliner" with the Steve Miller Band for the 1977 album Book of Dreams. Miller's version of "Jet Airliner" was a hit single, and went to #8 on the charts. Pena's primary source of income in his later years were royalties from that single, which was a song about Pena's airplane trip from Boston to Montreal to play the first-ever date with T-Bone Walker's band.

In seat forty-two, just about to go insane I've been down before Riding along in this big jet plane I've been thinking about jumping out the door 'Cause my homeland is so far away And I feel like it's all been done Somebody's trying to make me stay And I've got to be on the run Oh, big old jet airliner Don't carry me too far away Oh, big old jet airliner 'Cause it's here that I've got to stay I've been sitting by the fireside Wondering where my strength is going Looking through the mirror of life Trying to find out which way the wind's blowing But my heart keeps pushing me backwards As I jump aboard that 747 Riding high, but with a tear in my eye You got to go through hell before you get to heaven Woah, big old jet airliner Don't carry me too far away Ooh, big old jet airliner 'Cause it's here that I've got to stay Oh, I know I will I'm gonna leave on my own this time Big old jet airliner Don't carry me too far away Big old jet airliner Here that I've got to stay Touching down in New England Feel the heat coming down First thought is "Lord, I said I'd be there" But I couldn't seem to quite get it down 'Cause I'm going with some hesitation I've got to go and make my way But there's so many people, Lord, to talk to And a whole lot of debts to pay Oh, big old jet airliner Don't carry me too far away Oh, big old jet airliner 'Cause it's here that I've got to stay Goodbye to old friends at home Goodbye to willing friends I've trusted I've got to go out and make my way I might get rich and I might get busted But I'm going, Lord, with so many things to clean up I've got to make my way clear before me But I don't want to get mixed up In any of that funky shit that's going down before me Ooh, big old jet airliner Don't carry me too far away Big old jet airliner 'Cause it's here that I've got to stay They're trying to pull me away Yeah, yeah, yeah Big old jet airliner Don't carry me too far away Big old jet airliner 'Cause it's California where I've got to stay Ooh, big old jet airliner