Please Forgive Me

Last updated
"Please Forgive Me"
Please forgive me.jpg
Single by Bryan Adams
from the album So Far So Good
ReleasedOctober 15, 1993 (1993-10-15)
Genre Soft rock [1]
Length5:55
Label A&M
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Bryan Adams
  • Robert Lange
Bryan Adams singles chronology
"Touch the Hand"
(1992)		"Please Forgive Me"
(1993)		"All for Love"
(1993)
Music video
"Please Forgive Me" on YouTube

"Please Forgive Me" is a song by Canadian rock musician Bryan Adams. It was released in October 1993 by A&M Records as the only single and bonus track from his first greatest hits compilation album, So Far So Good (1993). The single reached number seven on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number two on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. In the United Kingdom, it peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart. It is his only Australian number-one single not written for a motion picture, and it also topped the charts of Belgium, Canada, France, Ireland, Norway, and Portugal. The accompanying music video was directed by Andrew Catlin and filmed in a recording studio, featuring a dog.

Contents

Background

"Please Forgive Me" was written by Adams and producer Robert Lange. The song has an instrumental intro, which is only found on the album version of the song. Adams told Songfacts that it was one of the first songs that he agreed to use a modulation in. [2]

The single reached number two in the United Kingdom, number seven in the US, and number one in Australia, Belgium, Canada, Ireland, Norway and Portugal. The song was praised by critics upon its release, and gave Adams one of his best chart performances, his most highly successful being the 1991 international chart-topping hit "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You". The song helped So Far So Good reach number one on the UK Albums Chart and in Canada and Australia.

The studio band, who also appear in the video which was filmed live during the tracking dates, included keyboard players David Paich and Robbie Buchanan, guitarist Shane Fontayne, bassist James "Hutch" Hutchinson, guitarist Keith Scott, drummer Mickey Curry and producer Mutt Lange. The song was co-written and produced by Mutt Lange. It was a radio hit all over the world, and became a hit amongst Adams fans. The single has sold over three million copies worldwide.

Critical reception

Larry Flick from Billboard felt that the song "casts him in a familiar role: mournful romantic", and stated that the "guitar-framed rock ballad is an easy smash, thanks to Adams' friendly, world-weathered rasp, and an infectious chorus." He also described it as a "stately tune" and a "delicious hit of ear candy." [3] Dave Sholin from the Gavin Report commented, "Among rock's most talented balladeers, Adams once again collaborates with "Mutt" Lange on a sensational production." [4] A reviewer from Liverpool Echo viewed the song as "another husky ballad with the kind of simple structure and simple sentiment which should ensure the widest appeal." [5] Pan-European magazine Music & Media wrote that it is a "unmistakably part of the Adams' family of great rock ballads." [6] Pete Stanton from Smash Hits gave "Please Forgive Me" two out of five, feeling that it "treads the same path" as "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You", "but doesn't grab the heartstrings in the same way. The throaty vocals are still there". [7]

Music video

The accompanying music video for "Please Forgive Me" was directed by English photographer, artist, director, cinematographer and filmmaker Andrew Catlin. [8] It was filmed in a recording studio and features Adams, his band and a dog. Adams and his bandmates befriended the dog—who belonged to the studio owner—whilst recording the track. The video also received a large amount of TV airplay. The video for Adams' 2008 single "I Thought I'd Seen Everything" resembles the music video.

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."Please Forgive Me (Radio Mix)" 
2."Can't Stop This Thing We Started (Live)" 
3."There Will Never Be Another Tonight (Live)" 
4."C'mon Everybody (Live)" 

Charts

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA) [50] 2× Platinum140,000^
Austria (IFPI Austria) [66] Gold25,000*
Germany (BVMI) [67] Gold250,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ) [68] Gold5,000*
Sweden (GLF) [69] Gold25,000^
United Kingdom (BPI) [70] Gold400,000^

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Release history

RegionDateFormat(s)Label(s)Ref.
EuropeOctober 15, 1993CD A&M [20]
United KingdomOctober 18, 1993
  • 7-inch vinyl
  • CD
  • cassette
 [71]
JapanDecember 20, 1993Mini-CD [72]

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