The Outfield

The Outfield were an English pop and rock band formed in London in 1984. The band achieved success in the mid-1980s and are best remembered for their hit single "Your Love". The band's lineup consisted of guitarist John Spinks, vocalist and bassist Tony Lewis, and drummer Alan Jackman. They had an unusual experience for a British band in that they enjoyed commercial success in the United States but never in their homeland. The band began recording in the mid-1980s, and released their first album, Play Deep, in 1985 through Columbia Records. The album reached No. 9 on the Billboard 200 list and then reached double platinum in the United States. The band's single "Your Love" reached No. 6 on the Billboard Hot 100 as well as No. 7 on the Mainstream Rock chart, and it became their signature song. The band continued to record and tour through the 1980s and then into the early 1990s. While subsequent albums Bangin' (1987) and Voices of Babylon (1989) saw some chart successes, the group's popularity waned. After drummer Alan Jackman left in 1989, the Outfield became a duo and recorded Diamond Days in 1991. Following the disappointing response to their 1992 album Rockeye, which represented a shift towards progressive rock and arena rock, the group essentially disbanded in the 1990s. They resumed touring in 1998, and thereafter released two live albums via their website, along with a new studio album, Any Time Now in 2004, which was later re-released in 2006. In 2011, the band released their final album, Replay, with original drummer Alan Jackman re-joining the band. Spinks died in 2014 after which the group officially disbanded. On 22 March 2018, lead singer/bassist Tony Lewis announced a solo album called Out of the Darkness, which was released on 29 June 2018 through Madison Records. Lewis died on 19 October 2020, aged 62. As of 2024, Jackman and Simon Dawson (who replaced Jackman in 1989 and stayed with the band until Jackman's return in 2009), are the last surviving members of the band.