Holland–Dozier–Holland and the
Funk Brothers band gave the song a large, hard-driving instrumentation sound similar to the sound of Martha and the Vandellas' prior hit "
Dancing in the Street" with
snow chains used as percussion alongside the
tambourine and
drums. A performance of the song, filmed at a
Mustang assembly line at the
Ford River Rouge Plant in
Detroit, opened the June 28, 1965
CBS-TV special ''
Murray The K – It's What's Happening, Baby.''
Billboard described the song as a "good
dance beat piece of material which features a
gospel piano and a wailin' vocal."
Cash Box described it as "a hard-driving, fast-moving, raunchy
bluesy stomper with a contagious teen-oriented, danceable beat."
Record World said it features "a strong, strong beat and wailing by all the girls in concert." Included on their 1965 third album,
Dance Party, "Nowhere to Run" hit number eight on the
Billboard Pop Singles chart, and number five on the
Billboard R&B Singles chart. It also charted on the
UK singles chart peaking at number twenty-six on the chart. The single release was
backed with "Motoring". This version was ranked #358 on
Rolling Stone's list of
The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time in 2004 and #367 in 2010. This song is featured in the films
Vinyl (1965),
The Warriors (1979),
Good Morning, Vietnam (1987),
Crimson Tide (1995),
Bringing Out the Dead (1999),
Baby Driver (2017), and the 2012 video game
Spec Ops: The Line. In July 1988, following the success of the film
Good Morning, Vietnam, the song was re-released in the UK by
A&M Records, with
James Brown's "
I Got You (I Feel Good)" on the flip side. The single spent three weeks on the UK chart reaching its highest position of number 52 by 24 July 1988. ==Covers==