Songfacts®:

• Introducing this song at the Regal Theatre, Hitchin, in 1983, Thin Lizzy leader Phil Lynott said it is the only slow number on the new album - Thunder And Lightning - it is, he said, a deep, meaningful song.
• Co-written with new boy Darren Wharton, this would be the band's last single, and is one of Phil Lynott's most acclaimed compositions. Released on the Vertigo label August 6, 1983 in both 7-inch and 12-inch formats, it was backed by "Baby Please Don't Go." Running to a full 6 minutes 19 seconds - surprisingly long for a single - it was produced by the band and Chris Tsangarides. In keeping with the spirit of the track, it features some fine, subdued guitar rather than the customary twin lead manic soloing. The single reached only #52 in the UK charts.
• "The Sun Goes Down" is one of those songs that is open to a myriad interpretations, but undoubtedly Lynott's own inner demons played a part in it. Less than three years later, he would be dead. >>

  Suggestion credit:
  Alexander Baron - London, England, for above 3