Credited to Rick Davies and Roger Hodgson, it was a top-ten hit in the UK[3] and a live version of the song reached No.

The inner sleeve of the 1979 Breakfast in America album lists one musician – Roger Hodgson or Rick Davies – as composer for each song.

"[9] According to Ultimate Classic Rock critic Nick DeRiso, Hodgson started writing the song as a teenager, and Davies later "helped sharpen the lyrics".

In 2005, rap rock band Gym Class Heroes released the hit song "Cupid's Chokehold", which features the chorus from "Breakfast in America".

Billboard writer David Farrell praised John Helliwell's "Benny Goodman-flavoured clarinet solo".