"Way Out West" is the debut single by Australian band

the Dingoes The Dingoes are an Australian country rock band. They were initially active from 1973 to 1979, and reformed in 2009. Initially based in Melbourne, the band relocated to the United States from 1976. The most stable line-up comprised John Bois on ...

. It was released in October 1973 and peaked in the top 40 of the Australian

Kent Music Report The Kent Music Report was a weekly record chart of Australian music singles and albums which was compiled by music historian David Kent from May 1974 through to January 1999. The chart was re-branded the Australian Music Report (AMR) in July 19 ...

singles chart, NOTE: Used for Australian Singles and Albums charting from 1970 until

ARIA In music, an aria (, ; : , ; ''arias'' in common usage; diminutive form: arietta, ; : ariette; in English simply air (music), air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrument (music), instrumental or orchestral accompan ...

created their own

charts A chart (sometimes known as a graph) is a graphical representation for data visualization, in which "the data is represented by symbols, such as bars in a bar chart, lines in a line chart, or slices in a pie chart". A chart can represent t ...

in mid-1988 reaching number 26 in Melbourne. The song became the band's signature tune.

Lyrics

The song explains the life of mining in Australia, telling the story of a man who has left his job and wife in the city to work for a company drilling for oil and enjoys "living and a working on the land".

Charts

James Blundell and James Reyne version

Australian country artists James Blundell and

James Reyne James Michael Nugent Reyne Order of Australia, OAM (born 19 May 1957) is an Australian musician. He achieved fame as the lead singer of Australian Crawl, and subsequently went on to a successful solo career. Biography Early years Reyne was born ...

covered the song and released it as a single in 1992. Their version became a hit in Australia the same year, peaking at number two on the

ARIA Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...

. It was the highest-charting single for both singers. Their version set in the key of G. At the APRA Music Awards of 1992, the song won Country Song of the Year.

Chart performance

"Way Out West" debuted at number 28 on 29 March 1992. The next week, it entered the top 10, then reached its peak of number two on 26 April. It remained in the top 10 for four more weeks and the top 50 for a further three weeks.

Track listing

CD and cassette single # James Blundell and James Reyne – "Way Out West" (3:59) # James Blundell – "She Won't Let You Down" (3:08) # James Reyne – "Long Yard Rider" (1:54)

Credits and personnel

Credits are lifted from the Australian CD single and ''

The Best Best or The Best may refer to: People * Best (surname), people with the surname Best * Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer Companies and organizations * Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain * Best Lock Corporatio ...

'' liner notes. Studios * Recorded at Metropolis Studios (Melbourne, Australia) * Mixed at Studios 301 (Sydney, Australia) Personnel * The Dingoes – writing * James Blundell – vocals * James Reyne – vocals, acoustic guitar, production, arrangement *

Paul Gildea Paul Gildea (born November 1957) is an Australian musician, music educator and talent manager. He is best known as the guitarist and backing vocalist for the band Icehouse. Early life Gildea was born in Coburg, Victoria on 30 November 1957, on ...

– guitars * Mark Punch – additional guitar *

Brett Goldsmith Brett Hugh Goldsmith (born 4 June 1961) is an Australian-born songwriter, music programmer/producer and photographer. Personal life Goldsmith is the son of British-born actress Rona Newton-John (1941–2013) and Melbourne nightclub owner Bri ...

– bass * Lee Borkman – keyboards * Davey Porter – drums * Justin Brady – harmonica *

Garth Porter Garth Ivan Richard Porter (born 24 September 1948) is a New Zealand-born Australian multi-instrumental musician, songwriter and record producer. He was a member, on keyboards and backing vocals, of the pop group, Sherbet (1970–84), and co-wr ...

– mixing * Ted Howard – mixing * Doug Brady – engineering

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Other versions

Adam Brand and the Outlaws ''Adam Brand and the Outlaws'' is the thirteenth studio album by Australian recording artist Adam Brand; this one credited to Adam Brand and the Outlaws. The outlaws consists of Australian country musicians Drew McAlister, Travis Collins, Matt C ...

covered the song on the 2016 album ''

''. James Reyne and

Ella Hooper Ella Keighery Hooper (born 30 January 1983) is an Australian rock music singer-songwriter, radio presenter and TV personality. Hooper is the lead singer of Killing Heidi. The band formed in 1996 (when Ella was 13) and also featured her older br ...

released a version in 2023.

References

{{Authority control 1973 singles 1973 songs 1992 singles APRA Award winners EMI Records singles James Blundell (singer) songs James Reyne songs Mushroom Records singles