diff --git a/lib/response.js b/lib/response.js
index fede486c06..553766f22a 100644
--- a/lib/response.js
+++ b/lib/response.js
@@ -904,12 +904,7 @@ res.cookie = function (name, value, options) {
  */
 
 res.location = function location(url) {
-  var loc = url;
-
-  // "back" is an alias for the referrer
-  if (url === 'back') {
-    loc = this.req.get('Referrer') || '/';
-  }
+  var loc = url === 'back' ? this.req.get('Referrer') || '/' : url;
 
   // set location
   return this.set('Location', encodeUrl(loc));