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When You're Gone (Bryan Adams song)

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Wikipedia article




{{Infobox song

| name = When You're Gone

| cover = Whenyou'regonecover.jpg

| alt = Bryan Adams is seen walking forwards with a guitar slung behind his back in a sepia filter. The song title and artist are positioned above him.

| type = single

| artist = Bryan Adams featuring Melanie C

| album = On a Day Like Today

| B-side =

* "Hey Baby"

* "I Love Ya Too Much"

* "What Does It Do to Your Heart"

| released =

| recorded = JuneAugust 1998

| studio = The Warehouse, Vancouver, Canada

| genre =

* Pop

* pop rock

* soft rock

| length = 3:25

| label = A&M

| writer =

* Bryan Adams

* Eliot Kennedy

| producer =

* Adams

* Bob Rock

| chronology = Bryan Adams

| prev_title = On a Day Like Today

| prev_year = 1998

| next_title = Cloud Number Nine

| next_year = 1999

| misc =

}}

"'When You're Gone'" is a song by Canadian musician Bryan Adams, featuring English singer Melanie C, from Adams' eighth studio album, 'On a Day Like Today' (1998). The song was written by Eliot Kennedy and Adams, while produced by Adams and Bob Rock. It was released by A&M Records on November 30, 1998, as the second single from the album in addition to being Melanie C's debut single outside the Spice Girls. Musically, it contains genres of pop, pop rock and soft rock, and is performed as a duet between Adams and Melanie C with a guitar solo.

"When You're Gone" received generally favorable reviews from music critics, who praised the production but criticized Melanie C's vocals. The song peaked at number three on the UK Singles Chart and at number four on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart. An accompanying music video was released by German film director Marcus Nispel, which depicts Adams and Melanie C inside a house. Adams recorded another version of "When You're Gone" with Canadian-American actress Pamela Anderson for his compilation album, 'Anthology' (2005), and performed the song at several televised events.

Background and release



"When You're Gone" was written by Bryan Adams and Eliot Kennedy during production of the former's eighth studio album 'On a Day Like Today' (1998). Adams initially sought American musician Sheryl Crow to perform the song as a duet, but did not receive a response from her. He unexpectedly encountered Melanie C inside a hotel elevator in Los Angeles, where he asked her to appear on "When You're Gone". Adams first met Melanie C on British music chart television show 'Top of the Pops' ('TOTP'), during the Spice Girls' performance of their 1996 song "Wannabe". The song was recorded at the Warehouse Studio in Vancouver, Canada, from June to August 1998, with Adams and Bob Rock handling production.

"When You're Gone" was first released on radio airplay in Europe before being distributed as a single on November 30, 1998. In the United States, A&M Records serviced the song to contemporary hit radio on March 2, 1999. "When You're Gone" is Melanie C's debut single since becoming the first member of the Spice Girls to begin a solo career, and is Adams' second single from 'On a Day Like Today'. In 2005, Adams recorded a duet of "When You're Gone" with Canadian-American actress Pamela Anderson for his compilation album titled 'Anthology' (2005). He phoned Anderson five times to convince her to record the song, who initially thought she was being 'Punk'd'.

Composition and critical reception



Musically, "When You're Gone" is a pop, pop rock and soft rock song, which contains similarities to jangle-pop. The song is performed as a duet between Adams and Melanie C. A guitar solo consisting of 16-bars is played midway through the song. According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by EMI Music Publishing, "When You're Gone" is based on common time, the tempo is 126 beats per minute, and is played in the key of C major. The vocal range of both artists spans from the low note of G4 to the high note of A5.

Dave Simpson of 'The Guardian' wrote that "When You're Gone" was Adams' best written song, while 'NME' writer Alexandra Haddow opined in a 2021 article that it is "one of the best pop songs of the last twenty years". JC Villamere of 'Entertainment Tonight Canada' regarded the song to be an "absolute banger", and the 'Daily Record' stated that it is a "catchy tune". Writing for 'Billboard', Chuck Taylor praised the natural melody, radiant hook, and infectious energy of the song, which he compared to Adams' 1985 song "Summer of '69", but critiqued that Melanie C's "rousing background vocals" is a gimmick to give the song exposure in the United Kingdom. However, Sam Taylor of 'The Observer' considered the song to be "jarring" and described Melanie C's vocals as "wailing atonally". Writing about the rendition performed by Adams and Anderson, Keith Caulfield of 'Billboard' criticized the latter's "featherweight background vocals", which were buried in the song and considered "novelty" for radio stations.

Commercial performance



"When You're Gone" debuted at the peak of number three on the UK Singles Chart dated December 12, 1998, where it remained for 15 weeks. The song sold 921,000 combined equivalent-sales in the United Kingdom as of May 2021, and was certified platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) as a result. In Scotland, it bowed at number two on the Scottish Singles Sales Chart dated December 6, 1998. The song peaked at number three on the Irish Singles Chart, where it remained for 16 weeks. "When You're Gone" peaked at number six on the Norwegian VG-lista, where it spent 15 weeks on the chart, and was certified gold by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI). On the Swedish Sverigetopplistan, the song bowed at number eight, where it remained on the chart for 17 weeks.

On the Australian ARIA Singles Chart, "When You're Gone" debuted at number 29 on the chart dated December 6, 1998. The song peaked at number four on the chart dated January 24, 1999, and charted for 21 weeks. It received a platinum certification by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), for selling 70,000 equivalent units in the country. In New Zealand, "When You're Gone" charted at number 15 on the New Zealand Singles Chart, where it spent 13 weeks on the chart. In Canada, the song peaked at number 12 on the 'RPM' Top 100 Singles chart dated February 15, 1999.

Music video and live performances



An accompanying music video was directed by German film director Marcus Nispel and released in 1998. It depicts Adams and Melanie C running around a house. Writing for 'The Guardian', Richard Benson described Adams' appearance as "green of face". On May 22, 2020, a high-definition (HD) version of the video was uploaded on YouTube.

"When You're Gone" is frequently performed at Adams' concerts as an acoustic version, which he picks an audience member to sing the song alongside him. Melanie C regularly included "When You're Gone" on the setlist of her live concerts. On January 8, 1999, Melanie C and Adams appeared on 'TOTP' to perform "When You're Gone" as a duet. Adams performed "When You're Gone" in the first week of the live show on the third season of 'The X Factor Australia' in September 2011. In November 2011, Adams appeared halfway through the contestants' group performance of the song on the eighth season of 'The X Factor UK'. Melanie C performed "When You're Gone" with Irish singer Nathan Carter on the second season of 'The Nathan Carter Show' on RT One in November 2017.

Track listing



'UK CD single 1'

'UK CD single 2'

'UK cassette single'

'Australian CD single'

Charts



Weekly charts



Year-end charts



Certifications



References



Category:1998 debut singles

Category:1998 songs

Category:A&M Records singles

Category:Bryan Adams songs

Category:Malefemale vocal duets

Category:Melanie C songs

Category:Song recordings produced by Bob Rock

Category:Songs written by Bryan Adams

Category:Songs written by Eliot Kennedy

Category:Torch songs

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