[1] Anderson explained: "Dun Ringill" [is] about the ruins of an old hillside in the Isle of Skye, off the west coast of Scotland, where Nordic invaders would have landed to pillage and plunder and the local folk would have hidden the women and children and the sheep under fortifications.
[2]"Dun Ringill" features a spoken-word introduction by Thames Television meteorologist Francis Wilson, who also appears on the album's opening track, "North Sea Oil".
"[5] Writer Daniel de Visé of Allmusic spoke glowingly of the song in a retrospective review, commenting, "The crown jewel of [Stormwatch] is 'Dun Ringill,' a sort of Nordic fairy tale set to a beautiful melody and answered by a lovely contrapuntal figure on Ian's acoustic guitar.
"[6] "Dun Ringill" has appeared intermittently in the band's live setlist, being performed on the first date of the Stormwatch tour in Jacksonville, Florida on 2 October 1979.
[1] Following the Stormwatch tour, Jethro Tull performed an acoustic rendition of the song on 14 April 1980 for a radio show hosted by Richard Digance—replete with Wilson making a guest appearance to reprise his spoken-word introduction on the track.