"Sober" | ||||
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Single by Kelly Clarkson | ||||
from the album My December | ||||
Released | June 12, 2007 | |||
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Length | 4:52 | |||
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Kelly Clarkson singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Sober" (Live) on YouTube |
"Sober" is a song recorded by American recording artist Kelly Clarkson taken from her third studio album, My December (2007). The song served as the album's second single on June 12, 2007, through 19 Recordings and RCA Records. Clarkson wrote it after her friend Calamity McEntire, who receives a songwriting credit, gave her the line "pick her weeds and keep the flowers", with additional writing by Aben Eubanks and Jimmy Messer, production by David Kahne, and co-production by Messer and Jason Halbert. "Sober" is an alternative rock song, with lyrics that use addiction as a metaphor for a relationship, evolving around the line "Three months and I'm still sober".
Upon its release, "Sober" was met with positive reviews from music critics, who considered it to be the musical highlight of My December. Clarkson's vocal performance and song's production received particular praise. Commercially, "Sober" failed to make an impact, charting at number 93 on Billboard 's Pop 100 component chart, based on airplay on mainstream top 40 radio stations and digital downloads, and at number 10 on Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles. No accompanying music video was recorded for the song; however, Clarkson promoted it through several live appearances, including at Live Earth and The Tonight Show with Jay Leno .
Clarkson wrote "Sober" after her friend Calamity McEntire gave her the line "pick her weeds and keep the flowers". [3] The singer said the lyrical content is about survival and knowing what to do when something goes wrong. "It's not easy getting over whatever your addiction may be," she says. "The whole point of that song is, the temptation is there, but I'm not going to give in to it." [4] When asked if the lyrics were regarding a drinking problem, Clarkson responded, "I'm not an alcoholic; that's not what it's about. It's just a metaphor. Everyone has something they are addicted to that they can do without in their life, so it could be about whatever your addiction is." [5]
"Sober" is an alternative rock ballad that uses addiction as a metaphor for a relationship, and evolves around the line "Three months and I'm still sober". [1] [5] [6] The song is composed in the key of D major and is set in time signature of common time, with a moderately slow tempo of 120 beats per minute. Clarkson's vocal range spans over an octave, from A3 to F#5. [1] It begins softly, propelled by an acoustic guitar reminiscent of U2's "With or Without You" (1987), and takes "nearly four minutes to reach its climax layering Kelly's desperate vocals over each other", as noted by Talia Kraines of BBC Music. [2] [7] Clarkson deemed "Sober" as her favorite song from My December, and commented that "musically, [the song is] almost hypnotic. You just get lost in it, it's just so beautiful." [5]
Six weeks after "Never Again" had been sent to radio, Roger Friedman of Fox News reported that RCA Records "pulled [the song] from rotations after not catching on." [8] Chuck Taylor of Billboard revealed on June 26, 2007, that "Sober" would be released as the second single from My December, and commented that the song, compared to "Never Again", was "a better bet to propel [Clarkson] back to [radio]." [9] It was officially sent to contemporary hit radio on July 10, 2007, [10] through a promotional CD single including a radio edit and a call-out hook. [11]
"Sober" received positive reviews from music critics, with many considering it as one of the album's highlights. Entertainment Weekly editor Chris Willman considered both "Never Again" and "Sober" to be "moody" and "warm-weather singles." [12] On his review of My December, Josh Love of Stylus Magazine wrote that while album track "'Hole' whips up an almost joyously liberating nihilism that blessedly bypasses goth’s obfuscation, [...] right on its heels there's 'Sober' seething with quiet restraint (at least until the end)." [13] Boston Globe reporter Sarah Rodman thought "Sober" was the album's "centerpiece," praising it as "the set's second best vocal [performance]." [14] Sam Lansky of PopCrush considered "Sober" as Clarkson's 2nd best song, commenting that, even though it had a "dismal" chart performance, the song still is "one of the tracks most beloved by hardcore Clarkson fans." [15] Lansky continued to praise the "riveting vocal performance, heartbreaking lyrics, and haunting production that recedes to the background so [the singer's] incredible voice can shine." [15]
Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine said "Sober" is a "slower-burning ballad", [16] while Bill Lamb of About.com considered it one of the top tracks from My December. [17] Two different reviews by staff members of Sputnikmusic praised the song. On the first review, Dave de Sylvia said the song was not radio-friendly, but added that "it is beautifully arranged, taking in bouncy Sting-like synthesised strings and an excellent vocal performance." [18] On the second review, Channing Freeman wrote that "Sober" is "one of the few tracks [on the album] where Clarkson gets away with her vocal restraint, mainly because at the end she lets loose and gives one of the best performances of her career, making the two or so minutes of waiting worthwhile." [19] Chuck Taylor of Billboard praised "Sober" as a single that would "reintoxicate [Clarkson's] deserved stance as a staple act". [9]
The song failed to make impact, charting at number 93 on Billboard's Pop 100 component chart, based on airplay on mainstream top 40 radio stations and digital downloads. [20] Additionally, it peaked at number 10 on Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles. [21] As of February 11, 2010, "Sober" has sold 113,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen Soundscan. [22]
On July 7, 2007, Clarkson performed "Sober" during her set at the New York area concert of Live Earth. [23] It was the one Clarkson performance selected for a Warner Bros. CD/DVD release from the Live Earth concerts. [24] She performed the song during a special titled Nissan Live Sets on Yahoo! Music, [25] on The Early Show , [26] Sessions@AOL, [27] Take 40's Live Lounge, [28] and on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno . [29] On October 19, 2011, while promoting her fifth studio album Stronger at nightclub The Troubadour, Clarkson performed "Sober" after it was requested by the fans. [3] Jason Scott of Billboard opined that "Clarkson certainly doesn't "crash and burn," so to speak; instead, she rips into the track until there's nothing left but lyric and heart." [30] The performance was listed as one of Clarkson's ten "most powerful and undeniable performances" as compiled by Billboard in 2016. [30] On October 10, 2013, the singer performed the song during a special Fair Trade concert for Green Mountain Coffee Roasters. [31] Clarkson included "Sober" on the set list of the album's supporting concert tour, titled My December Tour (2008). [32] She also performed the song as a fan request during her co-headlining concert tour with The Fray, titled 2012 Summer Tour, on July 22, 2012. [33] "Sober" was featured on the hit television show Smallville on the episode "Bizarro", which is the opener for Season 7. [34]
Chart (2007) | Peak position |
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US Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles [36] | 10 |
US Billboard Pop 100 [37] | 93 |
Country | Date | Format | Label |
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United States [10] | June 12, 2007 [38] | Contemporary hit radio | RCA Records |
Kelly Brianne, known professionally as Kelly Clarkson, is an American singer, songwriter, and television personality. She rose to fame after winning the first season of American Idol in 2002, which earned her a record deal with RCA Records. Her debut single, "A Moment Like This", topped the US Billboard Hot 100, and became the country's best-selling single of 2002. It was included on her debut studio album, Thankful (2003), which entered the Billboard 200 at number one, and also yielded the top-10 single "Miss Independent". Trying to reinvent her image, Clarkson parted ways with Idol management and shifted to pop rock for her second studio album, Breakaway (2004). Supported by four US top-ten singles – the title track, "Since U Been Gone", "Behind These Hazel Eyes", and "Because of You" – Breakaway sold over 12 million copies worldwide and won two Grammy Awards.
Breakaway is the second studio album by American pop singer Kelly Clarkson, released on November 30, 2004, by RCA Records. The album is the follow-up to her successful debut album, Thankful (2003). Breakaway sees Clarkson collaborating with various producers and songwriters for the first time, primarily Dr. Luke, Max Martin, John Shanks, Kara DioGuardi, Ben Moody, and David Hodges; the latter two are former members of American rock band Evanescence. Despite the established commercial success of Thankful, music critics still continued to typecast Clarkson as an American Idol winner and were also critical of her attempts of establishing a commercial appeal on her own. Wanting to stray from those, she was convinced by Davis to work with Dr. Luke and Martin in Stockholm, and with Moody and Hodges in Los Angeles, in pursuit of a pop rock direction. This also led her to part ways with her manager Simon Fuller and hire the management services of Jeff Kwatinetz before the album's release. Breakaway is primarily a pop rock record with elements of rock and soul music, marking a departure from the R&B-oriented sound of Thankful; its lyrics explore themes of heartbreak, love, and escapism.
"Since U Been Gone" is a song recorded by American singer Kelly Clarkson from her second studio album, Breakaway (2004). The song, which was written and produced by Max Martin and Lukasz "Dr. Luke" Gottwald, was released as the lead single from Breakaway two weeks before the album was released. It is an uptempo pop rock and power pop power ballad that infuses electronic sounds with a mixture of a soft and loud pop rock sound. Martin originally wrote "Since U Been Gone" with Pink in mind, but she turned it down. It was then given to Hilary Duff, but she rejected the song because she could not reach its higher notes. The song was finally given to Clarkson after Clive Davis convinced the writers to give it to her. Clarkson decided to add heavier guitars and harder drums to the song after noticing that the demo had an obvious pop sound. Lyrically, the song is written from a woman's point of view where she expresses her sense of relief with the end of her troubled relationship.
"Behind These Hazel Eyes" is a song by American singer Kelly Clarkson for her second studio album, Breakaway (2004). It was written by Clarkson with the song's producers Max Martin and Dr. Luke. The song was released on April 12, 2005, as the second single from the album. Clarkson considered "Behind These Hazel Eyes" as one of her favorite songs and she once intended to name Breakaway after the song. "Behind These Hazel Eyes" is an uptempo song that incorporates crunchy guitars which are pulsated with driving beats and anthemic choruses; it narrates Clarkson's broken relationship with her ex-boyfriend.
"Breakaway" is a power ballad song recorded by American singer Kelly Clarkson. The song, written by Matthew Gerrard, Bridget Benenate, and Avril Lavigne, was originally intended for Lavigne's debut studio album, Let Go (2002). After being deemed unsuitable for the album, it was passed to Clarkson to be recorded as a soundtrack for the film The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement (2004). Clarkson, who was finishing her second studio album at that time, recorded "Breakaway" to tide her fans over until the first single from her new album was released. However, the song's success prompted its inclusion on Clarkson's second album, while the record label decided to name the album after the song. "Breakaway" was first released as the first single from The Princess Diaries 2 soundtrack on July 19, 2004. In May 2006, "Breakaway" was reissued as the fifth and final single from the album of the same name.
"Because of You" is a song recorded by American pop singer Kelly Clarkson for her second studio album, Breakaway (2004). It was written by Clarkson along with its producers David Hodges and Ben Moody, both from Evanescence. It was released on August 16, 2005, by RCA Records, as the third single from Breakaway. Clarkson originally wrote "Because of You" when she was 16 years old to cope with the emotional distress caused by her parents' divorce. She wanted the song to be included on her debut studio album, Thankful (2003), but her record label rejected the song. She then polished the song with Hodges and Moody before successfully convincing her label to include it on Breakaway.
My December is the third studio album by American singer Kelly Clarkson. The album was released on June 22, 2007, through RCA Records. Clarkson confirmed the name of the album in her journal on her fanclub website on February 27, 2007.
"Never Again" is a song recorded by American singer Kelly Clarkson for her third studio album, My December (2007). Clarkson co-wrote the song with Jimmy Messer, which was produced by American producer and musician David Kahne. Clarkson stated that the song was written as a counterpart to the songs from her second studio album, Breakaway (2004), and was almost removed because of its harsh lyrical nature. RCA Records serviced the song to mainstream radio in the United States on April 24, 2007, which was Clarkson's 25th birthday. "Never Again" features a stronger rock sound than Clarkson's previous releases, but maintains some pop undertones. It relies on strings, guitar riffs and drums and is centered on angry, abrasive lyrics.
The My December Tour was the fourth headlining concert tour by American pop rock recording artist Kelly Clarkson, and followed the release Clarkson's third studio album, My December (2007). Originally a large-scale summer tour timed to coincide with the June 2007 availability of the album, public career battles and poor ticket sales in North America led Clarkson to cancel it before it began. A considerably smaller-scale tour commenced in September 2007 and ran to April 2008, with the international legs in Europe and Australia remaining at arena venues.
"One Minute" is a song recorded by American recording artist Kelly Clarkson taken from her third studio album, My December (2007). The song served as the album's second single in Australia on September 18, 2007, through 19 Recordings and RCA Records. Clarkson originally wrote it for her second studio album, Breakaway (2004), with songwriters Kara DioGuardi, Chantal Kreviazuk and Raine Maida; however, it did not make the final track listing. It was then reworked for My December, being produced by David Kahne, and co-produced by Jason Halbert and Jimmy Messer. "One Minute" is an alternative rock song with electropop influences, and consists of "rapid-fire give-and-take verses".
All I Ever Wanted is the fourth studio album by American singer Kelly Clarkson, released on March 6, 2009, by RCA Records. After the controversies that surrounded her previous studio album, My December (2007), which was seen as much darker than her two previous albums, Clarkson went on to record a more pop-oriented album. In order to do so, she enlisted her previous collaborators Max Martin, Dr. Luke,, Sam Watters and Louis Biancaniello, and new collaborators, Ryan Tedder, Howard Benson and Dre & Vidal.
The All I Ever Wanted Tour was the fifth headlining concert tour by American pop rock recoding artist Kelly Clarkson in support of her fourth studio album, All I Ever Wanted (2009). It began on October 2, 2009, in Uncasville, Connecticut and finished on May 8, 2010, in Macau. The tour visited North America, Europe, Africa, Oceania, and Asia.
"Already Gone" is a song performed by American pop singer-songwriter Kelly Clarkson from her fourth studio album, All I Ever Wanted. It is co-written by Clarkson and Ryan Tedder, who also produced it. The song was released as the album's third single in August 2009. Lyrically, "Already Gone" is about the breakup of a relationship; the music consists of an arrangement using a piano, drums, and string instruments.
"Don't You Wanna Stay" is a duet recorded by American singers Jason Aldean and Kelly Clarkson. It was written by Andy Gibson, Paul Jenkins, and Jason Sellers. It was released as the second single from Aldean's fourth studio album My Kinda Party, following Aldean's and Clarkson's performance on the 44th annual Country Music Association Awards on November 10, 2010, due to strong demands of radio stations, and was also included on the deluxe edition of Clarkson's fifth studio album Stronger (2011). The song contains elements of country and pop, and its lyrics speak of the difficulties of finding and maintaining love.
Stronger is the fifth studio album by American singer Kelly Clarkson, released on October 21, 2011, by RCA Records. The thirteen-song track-list features Clarkson collaborating with various new producers as well as with Howard Benson, whom she collaborated with on her previous album, All I Ever Wanted (2009). Wanting to stray away sonically from her previous albums, Clarkson's main objective was to record her vocal performances as it is heard in her live sets, and used as little auto-tune processing as possible. The album also marked the first release by Clarkson that did not cause a conflict with RCA; her previous records, most notably My December (2007), were released amidst conflict and controversy.
"Catch My Breath" is a song by American pop artist Kelly Clarkson, from her first greatest hits album, Greatest Hits – Chapter One. One of the three newly recorded songs for Chapter One, it was released as the album's lead single through RCA Records on October 10, 2012. It was written by Clarkson, and co-written and produced by her musical director Jason Halbert, along with producer Eric Olson.
"Don't Rush" is a song by American pop recording artist Kelly Clarkson, from her first greatest hits album, Greatest Hits – Chapter One (2012). The song was released as the second single from the greatest hits album by RCA Records. It is also one of the three newly recorded songs for the compilation. Written by Blu Sanders, Natalie Hemby, and Lindsay Chapman, and produced by Dann Huff, it features country music singer Vince Gill on backing vocals. The song premiered on WSIX-FM radio station on October 29, 2012, and was made available for purchase on iTunes store on the following day. It was officially sent to country radio stations on November 15, 2012. Musically, "Don't Rush" is a country song with influences of country soul and soft rock. It is Clarkson's second country single as a main act.
"Be Still" is a song by American recording artist Kelly Clarkson, from her third studio album, My December (2007). Written by Clarkson and her guitarist Aben Eubanks, and produced by David Kahne, "Be Still" is an acoustic folk blues ballad set moderately slow acoustic and electric guitars. Clarkson wrote the song as an introspective ballad based on her exhaustive experience from touring and promoting her second studio album, Breakaway (2004). Inspired by one of her favorite Bible verses, Psalm 46:10, the song is about taking a break from everyday things and taking a moment to appreciate one's life.
Wrapped in Red is the sixth studio album by American singer Kelly Clarkson, released on October 25, 2013, by RCA Records. The album is a follow-up to her first greatest hits album, Greatest Hits – Chapter One, and its companion extended play, The Smoakstack Sessions Vol. 2. Produced by Greg Kurstin, it is her first Christmas album and her only record to be solely released by RCA. Wrapped in Red consists of sixteen tracks, featuring five original songs co-penned with Kurstin and eleven cover versions of Christmas standards and carols, two of which are duets featuring singers Ronnie Dunn, Reba McEntire and Trisha Yearwood.
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