Silent Running (On Dangerous Ground)

"Silent Running (On Dangerous Ground)"
European picture sleeve
Single by Mike + The Mechanics
from the album Mike + The Mechanics
B-side	"Par Avion" / "I Get the Feeling"
Released	7 October 1985 (1985-10-07) [1]
Length	6:14 4:09 (7-inch)
Label	Atlantic
Songwriters	Mike Rutherford B. A. Robertson
Producer	Christopher Neil
Mike + The Mechanics singles chronology
"Silent Running (On Dangerous Ground)" (1985) "All I Need Is a Miracle" (1986)
Music video
"Silent Running (On Dangerous Ground)" by Mike + The Mechanics on YouTube

"Silent Running (On Dangerous Ground)" is a song by English rock supergroup Mike + The Mechanics. Written by Mike Rutherford and B. A. Robertson, it is the first track on their 1985 self-titled debut album. It was released as the band's first single, peaking at number six on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and number one on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart for five weeks, ^[2] finishing 1986 as that chart's most successful song.

Paul Carrack provided lead vocals on the song. ^[3] Alan Murphy was hired as a session guitarist and provided lead guitar on the track. The song's original title was simply "Silent Running"; the name extension was given when the song was chosen to appear in the 1986 movie On Dangerous Ground , which was titled Choke Canyon in the United States.^{[ citation needed ]} The single was re-released in the UK in January 1986 to tie-in with the film, and peaked at number 21 on the UK Singles Chart.

The song was banned by the BBC during the Gulf War due to its address of war, nationalism and religion, as well as a direct reference to weaponry in the line, "There's a gun and ammunition just inside the doorway." ^[4]

Composition

"Silent Running" was one of the first songs to emerge from the Rutherford/Robertson songwriting partnership. It was among a series of songs that the pair wrote in order to test the results of their collaboration. When producer Christopher Neil heard the song on a demo tape that Rutherford played, he recommended that it be used for the album. ^[5]

According to Rutherford, the song

... is about a guy who's travelled light-years away, out in space somewhere, and he's ahead in time. Therefore he knows what's going to happen to his wife and kids back home, on Earth. And he's trying to get the message to them to say what's going to happen, the kind of anarchy, the breakdown of society, to tell them to be prepared. ^[5]

Rutherford named the song after the film Silent Running "because I remembered that film so well, and our song had a spacey feel to it." ^[6]

Music video

The song's video features several clips from the film Choke Canyon , but it is primarily based on the completely unrelated story upon which the song's lyrics are based. ^[7] Billy Drago makes a cameo appearance in the video. It was produced by Paul Flattery and directed by Jim Yukich, who had directed many videos for Phil Collins and Genesis.

Personnel

Mike + The Mechanics

• Mike Rutherford – rhythm guitar, bass guitar, backing vocals
• Paul Carrack – lead vocals
• Paul Young – backing vocals
• Adrian Lee – keyboards
• Peter Van Hooke – drums

Additional personnel

• Dereck Austin – keyboards
• Ian Wherry – keyboards
• Alan Murphy – lead guitar
• Luís Jardim – percussion
• Alan Carvel – backing vocals
• Christopher Neil – backing vocals
• Linda Taylor – backing vocals

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1985–1986) Peak position Australia (Kent Music Report) [8] 23 Canada Retail Singles ( The Record ) [9] 15 Canada Top Singles ( RPM ) [10] 8 Ireland (IRMA) [11] 21 Netherlands (Single Top 100) [12] 39 UK Singles (OCC) [13] 21 US Billboard Hot 100 [14] 6 US Adult Contemporary ( Billboard ) [15] 7 US Top Rock Tracks ( Billboard ) [16] 1 West Germany (GfK) [17] 8

Year-end charts Chart (1986) Rank Canada Top Singles (RPM) [18] 77 US Billboard Hot 100 [19] 70 US Album Rock Tracks (Billboard) [20] 1 West Germany (Media Control) [21] 65

References

1. "Music Week" (PDF). p. 20.
2. Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits (8th ed.). Billboard Books. p. 425. ISBN   0-8230-7499-4.
3. Mike + The Mechanics (Media notes). 1985.
4. Kirby, Mark; Kidd, Warren; Koubel, Francine; Barter, John; Hope, Tanya; Kirton, Alison; Madry, Nick; Manning, Paul; Triggs, Karen (2000). Sociology in Perspective. Heinemann. p. 164. ISBN   978-0-435-33156-6.
5. Neer, Dan (1985). Mike on Mike [interview LP], Atlantic Recording Corporation.
6. Casey Kasem's American Top 40 – The 80's from 15 February 1986
7. Mike + the Mechanics: Silent Running (On Dangerous Ground)[promotional video]. 1986.
8. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 . St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.
9. Nanda Lwin (1999). Top 40 Hits: The Essential Chart Guide. Music Data Canada. ISBN   1-896594-13-1.
10. "Top RPM Singles: Image 7803". RPM . Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
11. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Silent Running". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
12. "Mike & the Mechanics – Silent Running (On Dangerous Ground)" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
13. "Official Singles Chart on 15/3/1986 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
14. "Billboard Hot 100" . Billboard . 8 March 1986. Retrieved 24 February 2026.
15. "Adult Contemporary" . Billboard. 22 March 1986. Retrieved 24 February 2026.
16. "Mainstream Rock Airplay" . Billboard. 28 December 1985. Retrieved 24 February 2026.
17. "Offizielle Deutsche Charts (West Germany)" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. To see the peak chart position, click 'TITEL VON', followed by the artist's name. Retrieved 21 April 2025.
18. "Top 100 Singles of '86". RPM . Retrieved 21 April 2025– via Library and Archives Canada.
19. "Number One Awards: Top Pop Singles". Billboard. Vol. 98, no. 52. 27 December 1986. p. Y-21.
20. "Number One Awards: Top Rock Tracks". Billboard. Vol. 98, no. 52. 27 December 1986. p. Y-38.
21. "Top 100 Singles–Jahrescharts 1986" (in German). GfK Entertainment . Retrieved 21 April 2025.