I Want Out (Matchbox song)

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"I Want Out" is a song by the English rockabilly band Matchbox, featuring Kirsty MacColl. It was released in February 1983 as the third and final single from their sixth studio album, Crossed Line (1982). The track, 2:42 long, was written by Brian Hodgson, Ray Peters and Tony Colton and produced by Hodgson, with the B-side titled "Heaven Can Wait." It came out on Magnet Records.

In the UK, the single did not reach the top 100, peaking at 137 on the Gallup top 200. It did reach 86 on Record Business magazine’s Top 100 Airplay chart on 31 January 1983, and climbed to 58 on the West German Singles Chart in March 1983. To promote the song in Germany, Matchbox and MacColl performed it on Musikladen on 10 February 1983. In the UK, MacColl joined a Matchbox concert at the Venue in London in 1983 to perform the song with the band, along with her own hit.

Critical reception was mixed. The Hartlepool Mail called it a “belting rocker,” noting a Sixties-style intro and exciting duet. The Mansfield and Sutton Recorder said it had the true Matchbox sound enhanced by Kirsty MacColl. Smash Hits suggested the track was saved by Kirsty’s rootsy vocals. Frank Edmonds of the Bury Free Press gave it 6.5 out of 10, while Jim Reid of Record Mirror criticized the attempt at redneck American vocals as embarrassing.