Out In The Fields

Album: Run For Cover (1985)
Charted: 5
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This uptempo commercial rock track is one of the finest collaborations of two of the greatest musical talents ever to come out of Ireland.

    Although he was born in England and was half-Black, Phil Lynott was Dublin to the core, while Gary Moore was born in Belfast. The significance of this combination will not be lost on students of Irish history, and at the time they recorded this anti-war song, "The Troubles" were far from history. Lynott died in January 1986; the month following his death 25 years later, in a tribute program screened by BBC Northern Ireland, Moore said in an archived interview that in spite of the accompanying video, "Out In The Fields" was not written specifically about Northern Ireland, but was "a general anti-war song."
  • On most if not all of his recordings, Lynott was lead vocalist, but the two men shared the vocals on this track, the end of which includes a few bars of "When Johnny Comes Marching Home" or perhaps its Irish "precursor Johnny I Hardly Knew Ye," which has the same melody.
  • "Out In The Fields" was written by Moore; the B-side of the single, "Military Man," by Lynott. The record reached #5 in the UK, #3 in Ireland, and did well throughout Europe. >>>
    Suggestion credit:
    Alexander Baron - London, England, for above 3

Comments: 1

  • Stephen Foster from Margate South Africa At the end of the song what is the percussion instrument that plays? It is a great song by the way.
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat World

Jim Adkins of Jimmy Eat WorldSongwriter Interviews

Jim talks about the impact of "The Middle" and uses a tree metaphor to describe his songwriting philosophy.

Song Titles That Inspired Movies

Song Titles That Inspired MoviesSong Writing

Famous songs that lent their titles - and in some cases storylines - to movies.

Jim McCarty of The Yardbirds

Jim McCarty of The YardbirdsSongwriter Interviews

The Yardbirds drummer explains how they created their sound and talks about working with their famous guitarists.

Ian Gillan of Deep Purple

Ian Gillan of Deep PurpleSongwriter Interviews

Deep Purple frontman Ian Gillan explains the "few red lights" in "Smoke On The Water" and talks about songs from their 2020 album Whoosh!

Superman in Song

Superman in SongSong Writing

Not everyone can be a superhero, but that hasn't stopped generations of musicians from trying to be Superman.

Rick Astley

Rick AstleySongwriter Interviews

Rick Astley on "Never Gonna Give You Up," "Cry For Help," and his remarkable resurgence that gave him another #1 UK album.