Take Me Away (Avril Lavigne song)

Last updated

"Take Me Away"
Avril Lavigne Take Me Away official cover.png
Promotional single by Avril Lavigne
from the album Under My Skin
A-side "Don't Tell Me"
ReleasedMay 24, 2004
Recorded2003
Studio NRG Studios, North Hollywood, California
Genre Heavy metal
Length2:57
Label Arista
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s) Don Gilmore

"Take Me Away" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne, taken as a promotional single from her second studio album Under My Skin (2004). It was written by herself and Evan Taubenfeld, whilst production was handled by Don Gilmore. The song has a metal sound and started playing on Canadian rock radio in March 2004, at around the same time that the album's lead single, "Don't Tell Me", was being promoted. [1] The song was also included as the B-side on the physical release of "Don't Tell Me" in many regions, and re-released digitally as a promotional single from the album on May 24, 2004. "Take Me Away" received mixed reviews from music critics. Some critics complimented the composition and musical styles, whilst the rest criticized her songwriting and negatively compared it to the work of fellow Canadian artist Alanis Morissette.

Contents

Background and release

"Take Me Away" was written by Avril Lavigne and Evan Taubenfeld, and was produced by Don Gilmore. [2] It serves as the opening track to her second studio album Under My Skin (2004) and was first featured as a B-side of the album's lead single, "Don't Tell Me", CD single in many regions, including Australia, Japan and Europe. [3]

On May 24, 2004, the track was re-released as a digital download on the iTunes Store as the promotional single for Under My Skin, which was released on the next day. [4] The tracks "I Always Get What I Want" and "He Wasn't", which also appeared on the parent album, were also released digitally on the same date. [5] [6]

According to the Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA), Lavigne has recorded another song also titled "Take Me Away". [2] It was written by Avril Lavigne and the music production team the Matrix (credited under all three members' name Graham Edwards, Scott Alspach and Lauren Christy). [2] The Lavigne and Matrix track was originally meant to be on Lavigne's debut studio album, Let Go (2002), but didn't make the final track listing. [7]

Composition

"Take Me Away" lasts for a duration of two minutes and fifty seven seconds. [4] It is composed in the key of E minor and is set in time signature of common time, with a moderate tempo of 99 beats per minute. [9] The song has a basic sequence of Fm-Cm-D–E as its chord progression, and features a vocal range spanning from B3 to D5. [10] [11] "Take Me Away"'s lyrics are an outcry for her being unable to handle the confusion and hoping someone will take her out of the chaos.[ citation needed ] Annabel Leathes of BBC Music compared the song to another ballad from Under My Skin, "My Happy Ending", since they both "pivot on the pain and despair of relationships going off the boil and, despite the stadium-rousing choruses." [12]

Reception

"Take Me Away" received generally mixed reviews by some critics. Annabel Leathes from BBC Music wrote that the song "pivot[s] on the pain and despair of relationships going off the boil and, despite the stadium-rousing choruses[, ...] Lavigne's whiney vocals and trite lyrics imply that madam is merely having a strop rather than wearing the hair shirt of Alanis Morissette-style suffering." [12] Lance Fiasco from idobi Radio shared that "Take Me Away" and Lavigne's previous single, "Losing Grip", are the harder-edged hair-messers that really showed her grrl badge, demonstrating the once-poisonous sting of Alanis. [13] Sal Cinquemani from Slant Magazine labelled "Take Me Away" a "head-banging" opening track from the album which conjured '80s metal with heaps of guitars and vocal overdubs. [8]

Along with the release of Under My Skin, the musical style of "Take Me Away" was strongly compared with American rock band Evanescence. [14] James R. Minchin III of Entertainment Weekly spoke out that Lavigne has transformed into a dour teen who seems to have spent way too much time listening to Evanescence. [15] Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine noted that Lavigne's sound was now much heavier and darker and compared her to Amy Lee, the co-founder and lead vocalist of Evanescence. [8]

Live performances

Lavigne performed the acoustic version of "Take Me Away" at 2004 Sessions@AOL on February 29, 2004. [16] The audio performance of the song was later included on Lavigne's fourth extended play, Avril Live Acoustic, which features other five audio performances at the concert and was released on July 1, 2004 by Arista Records. [17]

The song also appeared on Lavigne's setlist for her worldwide tour, Bonez Tour (2004–05). The performance of "Take Me Away" during the tour at Nippon Budokan in Tokyo, Japan is included on Lavigne's second full-length DVD Bonez Tour 2005: Live at Budokan (2004). [18] The DVD was released exclusively in Japan and was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ). [19]

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of "Don't Tell Me" CD single. [3]

Recording and management

Personnel

Release history

Release dates and formats for "Take Me Away"
RegionFormatDateLabelRef.
France Digital download May 24, 2004 Arista [4]
Israel [20]
United Kingdom [21]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Avril Lavigne</span> Canadian singer-songwriter (born 1984)

Avril Ramona Lavigne is a Canadian singer-songwriter. She is considered a key musician in the development of pop-punk music, as she paved the way for female-driven, punk-influenced pop music in the early 2000s. Her accolades include eight Grammy Award nominations, among others.

<i>Let Go</i> (Avril Lavigne album) 2002 studio album by Avril Lavigne

Let Go is the debut studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne. It was released on June 4, 2002, by Arista Records. For a year after signing a record deal with Arista, Lavigne struggled due to conflicts in musical direction. She relocated to Los Angeles, where she recorded her earlier material for the album, the sound of which the label did not approve. She was paired with the production team the Matrix, who understood her vision for the album. Critics have described Let Go as an alternative rock album with a pop-punk and post-grunge-oriented sound.

<i>Under My Skin</i> (Avril Lavigne album) 2004 studio album by Avril Lavigne

Under My Skin is the second studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne. It was released on May 19, 2004, by Arista Records and RCA Records. Lavigne wrote most of the album with singer-songwriter Chantal Kreviazuk, who invited her to a Malibu in-house recording studio shared by Kreviazuk and her husband Raine Maida, where Lavigne recorded many of the songs. The album was produced by Maida, Don Gilmore, and Butch Walker. It is Lavigne's second and final studio album to be released on Arista, following Let Go (2002). It was also her first album for RCA.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Complicated (Avril Lavigne song)</span> 2002 single by Avril Lavigne

"Complicated" is the debut single by Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne from her debut album, Let Go (2002). It was released on 11 March 2002 by Arista Records. Lavigne and production team the Matrix are credited as writers. Production on the song was helmed by the Matrix. According to Lavigne, the song is about being honest with oneself rather than "putting on a face".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I'm with You (Avril Lavigne song)</span> 2002 single by Avril Lavigne

"I'm with You" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne from her debut studio album Let Go (2002). It was released to radio as the third single from the album on November 18, 2002, by Arista Records. The song was written by Lavigne and the production team the Matrix, who solely helmed its production. According to Lavigne, the song was inspired by feelings of loneliness she experienced over being single.

Matt Brann is a Canadian drummer, mainly known for his work with Avril Lavigne.

<i>Live at Budokan</i> (2005 film) 2005 film

Live at Budokan is a DVD by pop rock singer-songwriter Butch Walker, released on December 13, 2005, by Epic Records. It contains two concerts — a 40-minute full-band set, recorded in Tokyo, Japan during Walker's 2005 tour with Avril Lavigne, and 75-minute acoustic set, recorded in Atlanta, Georgia in 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Losing Grip</span> 2003 single by Avril Lavigne

"Losing Grip" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne, released as the fourth single and the first track from her debut album, Let Go, in March 2003. The song was written by Lavigne and Clif Magness, and produced by Magness. The song, which is lyrically about Lavigne "losing grip" with her boyfriend as they are just not meant to be, is much heavier with grunge oriented sounds than most of the songs on Let Go that had a more poppy feel. She performed "Losing Grip" at the Juno Awards of 2003. The song's video single was certified Gold by the RIAA on September 22, 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Don't Tell Me (Avril Lavigne song)</span> 2004 single by Avril Lavigne

"Don't Tell Me" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne from her second studio album, Under My Skin (2004). "Don't Tell Me" was written by Lavigne and Evan Taubenfeld, while it was produced by Butch Walker. The song has been noted as having a "grungy sound". "Don't Tell Me" was released on March 15, 2004, by Arista Records as the lead single from Under My Skin and peaked at number 22 on the US Billboard Hot 100 that same year. In an AOL Radio listener's poll, "Don't Tell Me" was voted Lavigne's ninth-best song.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">My Happy Ending (song)</span> 2004 single by Avril Lavigne

"My Happy Ending" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne, written by herself and Butch Walker for her second studio album, Under My Skin (2004). Structurally, the song is written in 4/4 style and has a repeated hook in both the chorus and in the intro and outro.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nobody's Home (Avril Lavigne song)</span> 2004 single by Avril Lavigne

"Nobody's Home" is the third single released from Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne's second studio album, Under My Skin (2004). The track was written by Lavigne and former Evanescence guitarist Ben Moody, who also plays guitar on the song. "Nobody's Home", produced by Don Gilmore, is generally slower-paced than Lavigne's previous singles from Under My Skin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">He Wasn't</span> 2005 single by Avril Lavigne

"He Wasn't" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne, released as the fourth and final single from her second studio album, Under My Skin (2004). The song was written and produced by Lavigne and Chantal Kreviazuk. It was not released in the United States; instead, "Fall to Pieces" was released. "He Wasn't" was issued in Australia, Europe, and the United Kingdom and received airplay on Canadian radio. AllMusic highlighted the song as one of the most significant post-grunge songs of all time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Avril Lavigne discography</span>

Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne has released seven studio albums, nine extended plays (EPs), 33 singles, and 40 music videos, and she has appeared on several movie soundtracks and charity albums. With worldwide sales of 40 million albums and 50 million singles, Lavigne is ranked as the third top-selling Canadian female artist in history. Billboard listed her as the eighth best-selling Canadian artists of the Nielsen Music Canada era. According to Recording Industry Association of America, Lavigne has sold 28.07 million albums and singles in the United States.

<i>The Best Damn Thing</i> 2007 studio album by Avril Lavigne

The Best Damn Thing is the third studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne. It was released on April 11, 2007, by RCA Records. as her second studio album on the label. The album represents a musical departure from her previous studio album Under My Skin (2004), which incorporated more elements of post-grunge. The Best Damn Thing is seen by critics as Lavigne's most commercial effort. The album was noted as her first effort to feature a wide range of producers, including Matt Beckley, Rob Cavallo, Dr. Luke and Lavigne herself, who was credited as the executive producer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hot (Avril Lavigne song)</span> 2007 single by Avril Lavigne

"Hot" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne, taken as the third single from her third studio album, The Best Damn Thing (2007). The song was written by Lavigne and Evan Taubenfeld, while it was produced by Lukasz "Dr. Luke" Gottwald. The pop rock ballad talks about her feelings about a boyfriend, who makes her "hot". The song received positive reviews from music critics, who praised its "old-style" vibe and its anthemic nature. A version of the chorus in Mandarin was released in China and a version of the chorus in Japanese was released in Japan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Always Get What I Want</span> 2004 promotional single by Avril Lavigne

"I Always Get What I Want" is a song recorded by Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne for her second studio album Under My Skin (2004). The song was written by Lavigne and Clif Magness, while Magness solely handled production. The song was released digitally as a promotional single in the United States on May 24, 2004 by Arista Records. The song is included as a bonus track on European and Japanese versions of the album, then later included as an iTunes bonus track globally.

<i>Bonez Tour 2005: Live at Budokan</i> 2005 video by Avril Lavigne

Bonez Tour 2005: Live at Budokan is a DVD from Avril Lavigne's second tour, Bonez Tour, released in 2005. It was only released in Japan. The DVD comes with an insert with lyrics of the songs in Japanese and English, along with some behind-the-scenes information.

<i>B-Sides</i> (Avril Lavigne album) 2001 compilation album by Avril Lavigne

B-Sides, also known as Let Go: B-Sides, is a promotional album by Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne. It was published before her debut studio album Let Go by Arista Records in 2002. The compilation contains demo and original tracks not included on the final Let Go release. The songs were written and produced in 2001 under the management of Nettwerk in Los Angeles by Lavigne, her post manager Clifford Fabri, the production team the Matrix, and songwriter Cliff Magness after Arista sent her to Terry McBride, CEO of Nettwerk, in an attempt to fit her image and attitude with her voice. Though Lavigne would release Let Go through Arista, she continued with Nettwerk for her management.

References

  1. Denis Armstrong (November 30, 2004). "Avril gets fans mall worked up". Jam! . Archived from the original on March 9, 2016. Retrieved December 26, 2009.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  2. 1 2 3 "Take Me Away". Australasian Performing Right Association . Retrieved May 23, 2014.
  3. 1 2 "Avril Lavigne – Don't Tell Me". Discogs . Retrieved October 19, 2014.
  4. 1 2 3 "Take Me Away - Single by Avril Lavigne". iTunes Store . Apple. Archived from the original on October 3, 2014. Retrieved May 24, 2004.
  5. "I Always Get What I Want - Single by Avril Lavigne". iTunes Store . Apple. Archived from the original on August 22, 2014. Retrieved May 24, 2004.
  6. "He Wasn't - Single by Avril Lavigne". iTunes Store . Apple. Archived from the original on May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 24, 2004.
  7. "Take Me Away Chords by Avril Lavigne". Ultimate Guitar Archive . Retrieved May 14, 2016.
  8. 1 2 3 Sal Cinquemani (May 20, 2004). "Avril Lavigne: Under My Skin". Slant Magazine . Retrieved May 14, 2016.
  9. "Take Me Away Sheet Music by Avril Lavigne". Onlinesheetmusic.com. Retrieved August 22, 2013.
  10. "Take Me Away Chords version 1 by Avril Lavigne". Ultimate Guitar Archive . Retrieved March 10, 2013.
  11. "Take Me Away By Avril Lavigne - Digital Sheet Music". Music Notes. Retrieved March 10, 2013.
  12. 1 2 Annabel Leathes. "Avril Lavigne Under My Skin Review". BBC Music . Retrieved May 14, 2016.
  13. Lance Fiasco (November 5, 2004). "Avril Lavigne Uses Own Voice To Mezmorize Crowd – Review". idobi Radio . Retrieved May 14, 2016.
  14. "REVIEW: Avril Lavigne – Under My Skin (2004 w/ bonus track)". Mikeladano.com. September 30, 2014. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
  15. James R. Minchin III (May 28, 2004). "EW Reviews: Under My Skin". Entertainment Weekly . Retrieved May 14, 2016.
  16. "EP: Avril Live Acoustic". Avrillavigne.com. Archived from the original on April 24, 2007. Retrieved August 23, 2016.
  17. "Avril Lavigne – Avril Live Acoustic". Discogs . Retrieved October 19, 2014.
  18. "Bonez Tour 2005 Live at Budokan". Cdjapan.co.jp. Retrieved August 21, 2016.
  19. ゴールドディスク認定作品一覧 2005年12月 (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan.
  20. "Take Me Away - Single by Avril Lavigne". iTunes Store . Israel: Apple. Archived from the original on May 14, 2016. Retrieved May 24, 2004.
  21. "Take Me Away by Avril Lavigne". HMV . Retrieved May 24, 2004.