Percy Sledge (born 25 November 1940 in Leighton, Alabama; died 14 April 201… Read Full Bio ↴Percy Sledge (born 25 November 1940 in Leighton, Alabama; died 14 April 2015 in Baton Rouge) was an American R&B and soul performer who most notably recorded the single "When a Man Loves a Woman" in 1966, an international top 40 hit that the RIAA has certified as gold. Having achieved his best successes in the mid-to-late 60s and early 70s with a series of emotional soul songs, in his later years he received the Rhythm and Blues Foundation's Career Achievement Award and was inducted in 2005 into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Percy Sledge worked in the fields in Leighton before he worked as an orderly at Colbert County Hospital in Sheffield. By the mid-1960s, Sledge was touring the Southeast with the Esquires Combo on weekends and working at the hospital. A former patient who was a friend of producer Quin Ivy introduced the two, an audition followed, and Sledge was signed to a recording contract.

Sledge's smooth voice was perfect for the series of soul ballads produced by Ivy and Marlin Greene, which rock critic Dave Marsh called "emotional classics for romantics of all ages."

"When a Man Loves a Woman" was the first song recorded under the contract (released in 1966), and it became not only an international hit (it reached #1 in the US) but was also the first gold record released by Atlantic Records. The magnificent soul anthem became the cornerstone of Sledge's career and was followed by "Warm and Tender Love," "Take Time to Know Her," and "Cover Me."

Sledge charted with "I'll Be Your Everything" and "Sunshine" during the 1970s, and has become an international concert favorite throughout the world, especially in the Netherlands, Germany, and on the African continent.

His career enjoyed a renaissance in the 1980s when "When a Man Loves a Woman" re-entered the Top 10 in the UK after being used in a Levi's commercial.

Sledge was an inaugural Rhythm and Blues Foundation Pioneer Award honoree in 1989. In 2005, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Out of Left Field
Percy Sledge Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

When least expected
Fate stumbles in
Bringing light to the darkness
Oh, what a friend

I needed someone to call my own
Suddenly, out left field
Out left field, out left field

Love came along, ooh

I was walking down a road that went no where
Building dreams that were all left by the way side
And then outta the blue
Honey, I found you, oh, yeah

Sugar and peaches in a paradise land
Good love and sweetness, have taken their stand
She made a mountain of love
From a little grain of sand

Suddenly, out of left field
Came a lover and a friend
She was a lover and a friend
Came out of nowhere

She made me a man

Every thing is alright
How sweet it is

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Percy Sledge's "Out of Left Field" express the sudden and unexpected entrance of love in the singer's life, who describes love as a friend that brings light to his darkness. He had been walking down a road with no destination, with dreams that all ended up abandoned. However, fate intervenes unexpectedly to bring love to his life. The singer is grateful for the arrival of love that made him feel complete, as she also became a friend who he could count on.

The metaphor of love coming out of left field is inspired by baseball, where players must be alert as balls can be hit towards left field where they are not expecting it. The singer uses this metaphor to describe how love came into his life when he least expected it. The singer describes the qualities of his lover, such as sugar and peaches in a paradise land, emphasizing how much she means to him. She transformed his life and made everything seem alright.

Line by Line Meaning

When least expected
Just when I thought I couldn't find anyone, you arrived

Fate stumbles in
Destiny brought us together

Bringing light to the darkness
You showed me love when I thought I'd never find it

Oh, what a friend
You're not just my lover, but also my closest confidant

I needed someone to call my own
I was lonely and yearned for a partner

Suddenly, out left field
When I least expected it, you showed up

Out left field, out left field
Your arrival was so unexpected

Love came along, ooh
You brought love into my life

I was walking down a road that went no where
I felt lost and unsure of where I was headed

Building dreams that were all left by the way side
I had given up on my hopes and dreams

And then outta the blue
Unexpectedly, you came into my life