Archaeology of a Hit Single: 'Past the Point of Rescue'

I’m going to start out by admitting that this column is an experiment. It might become something semi-regular, like Whiskey Wednesday, or my tag-team series with Stephen “Vodkapundit” Green, Underappreciated Albums. Then again, it might flame out after one or two tries.

Who knows? That’s the nature — and fun — of experiments.

The idea came to me earlier this week that it would be fun to track the origins and permutations of a hit song from its genesis to the version that most of us know and love. I have two songs in mind, and I hope to come up with more.

For this first outing, we’re going to take a look at one of my favorite country songs from the ‘90s: “Past the Point of Rescue.” The late Hal Ketchum hit number 2 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart in the spring of 1992 with his robust country-rock take on the song.

I’ve loved this song for a long time, not just because it’s musically interesting, but because, years ago, it spoke into a season of my life in a way no other song could. So it felt right to start the series here. (I’m also a sucker for upbeat songs in a minor key.)

What might surprise you is that it’s not originally a country song. It’s an Irish folk tune. Mick Hanly wrote it and first recorded it in 1988. Hanly explained the genesis of the song to American Songwriter in 2021.

“The song was loosely based on the breakup of my first marriage with a lot of sundry observations pulled in to make it as real as I could,” Hanly said. “So like all my songs, it tells a story with a creative license.”

He also described the writing process. As a "behind the scenes" guy, I appreciate stuff like this.

I know from the original copy of the lyric that the first two verses and chorus came pretty quickly. I don’t know when the third verse was written, but surprisingly, it came up to the bar that I’d set with verses one and two. From the look of the original I’d say it was written in about a half hour. I can’t remember much editing at all. Interestingly, the four or five songs that came before that one were pretty awful!

YouTube doesn’t have his 1988 version that I could find, but this is a live recording that I really enjoy:

Hanly recorded a version of it that nods to Ketchum in 2017:

In 1989, Irish folk-pop legend Mary Black recorded a version of “Past the Point of Rescue.” It has an unmistakable late ‘80s vibe with the soprano saxophone prominent. It’s a terrific interpretation of the song, and it became a big hit in Ireland.

Related: Underappreciated Albums: 'Audible Sigh'

Hanly traveled to Nashville and met Terrell Tye, who was Ketchum’s girlfriend at the time, as well as Ketchum’s producer’s business partner. He handed Tye a copy of “Past the Point of Rescue,” and a hit single was born.