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"
Released7 October 1985 (1985-10-07)
Length
  • 6:14
  • 4:09 (7-inch)
LabelAtlantic
Songwriters
ProducerChristopher 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, finishing 1986 as that chart's most successful song.

Paul Carrack provided lead vocals on the song. 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. 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."