 " Take Me Home " is another song in which the meaning was originally very vague . At first listening , it appears that the song is about going home , but this is not true . Collins has stated that the song lyrics refer to a patient in a mental institution , and that it is very much based on the novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo 's Nest . Peter Gabriel , Helen Terry , and Sting all provide backing vocals . While recording " Long Long Way to Go " , Collins asked Sting to provide backing vocals for this song . The music video ( shot during the NJR tour ) features Collins in multiple cities around the world , including London , New York , Tokyo , Moscow , Sydney , Paris , St. Louis , Los Angeles ( Hollywood ) , San Francisco , and Memphis ( Graceland ) . At the end of the music video , Collins arrives home and hears a woman ( presumably his wife ) from inside the house asking him where he has been . He replies by saying he has been to some of the cities mentioned above . The woman replies " You 've been down at the pub , haven 't you ? " , as Collins grins at the camera . 
