"Bubbly" is a song by American singer Colbie Caillat from her debut album, Coco. Written by Caillat and Jason Reeves and produced by Mikal Blue, the song was released as the album's lead single on May 15, 2007. It remains Caillat's biggest hit in the US to date, and her only single to reach the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100. Internationally, "Bubbly" reached number one in Australia and became a top-ten hit in several European countries, including Belgium, Germany and Norway. The single's music video, directed by Liz Friedlander, aired on MTV, VH1 and CMT. A still from the music video was used as the cover for Caillat's debut album, Coco. The single is also featured in the hit PlayStation 2 karaoke game SingStar Pop Vol 2, released in late September 2008 in the United States. It was also featured in SingStar Hottest Hits in PAL regions.
Background and composition
"Bubbly" was written by Colbie Caillat and Jason Reeves. It is an alternative pop song, folk song, and acoustic song. "Bubbly" is written in the key of A and primarily features a gentle guitar instrumentation which uses a capo of seventh fret. The guitar uses open D tuning : D–A–D–F–A–D. Caillat commented on the lyrical composition of the song in an interview with Wilson County News on February 20, 2008, following her live performance on The View, "I didn't write "Bubbly" for any guy. I wrote it about the feelings you get when you have a crush on somebody, and when they give you butterflies in your stomach and they just make you smile."
Reception
Critical response
Susan Visakowitz of Billboard wrote that Caillat's "warm vocals along with a gentle acoustic arrangement effortlessly conjure the idyllic California she calls home".
Commercial performance
On the issue dated October 6, 2007, "Bubbly" rose from number 16 to number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100, eventually peaking at number five for seven weeks. It also topped the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks and Hot Adult Top 40 Tracks charts for 19 and 14 weeks, respectively. The song was placed at number two on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks year-end chart of 2008, behind Sara Bareilles' "Love Song". The single was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America on December 13, 2007, with sales of more than 2.6 million downloads in the US. It peaked at number two for three weeks on the Canadian Hot 100. In Australia—where "Bubbly" was used in a promotional video for the Seven Network soap opera Home and Away—it reached number one on the ARIA Singles Chart for the week of April 7, 2008. Elsewhere, the single reached number one in the Czech Republic and charted within the top ten in Austria, Belgium, Germany, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Slovakia, and Sweden. It did not fare as well in the British Isles, peaking at number 58 in the United Kingdom and number 48 in Ireland. On VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of the '00s, "Bubbly" ranked number 71 on the list.
Music video
Synopsis
Filmed in Colbie Caillat's hometown of Malibu and in Santa Barbara in southern California, the music video features intercut scenes of Caillat playing the guitar while dreamily singing the lyrics of the song and spending time with her lover in their home and out in nature. It is a sunny day, and some shots feature Caillat basking in sun-baked golden fields as she sings. Later in the video, Caillat drives in an old Bronco and then is pictured singing as she walks slowly along the coast of California and looks out over a cliff into the Pacific Ocean. Caillat performs clad in a simple tank top and jeans which are slightly ripped at the knees; she also is seen wearing a necklace made of sea shells.
Reception
Uploaded to Caillat's YouTube and Vevo account on December 13, 2009, the video for "Bubbly" has received a generally positive reaction from fans and has garnered over 48 million views.
