When You're Gone (Bryan Adams song)


"When You're Gone" is a song by Canadian musician Bryan Adams featuring Melanie C of the Spice Girls. It is the second single from his eighth studio album On a Day Like Today, and is released by A&M Records. Melanie C was requested by Adams to be included on the track when his initial choice Sheryl Crow never responded. The song was written by Adams and Eliot Kennedy, the former also produced it with Bob Rock. It was released on November 30, 1998 in several European territories after gaining airplay on radio, charting at number three on the UK Singles Chart and number four in Australia.

Background

In November 2017, Bryan Adams revealed to the BBC that Melanie C was not actually his first choice for the duet:
When I was first doing it, I asked Sheryl Crow to do it and never heard back from her! It was getting to the point where I thought 'should this still be a duet?' I was in LA at the time and got in the lift at the hotel and in walked Mel and I said 'hey Mel!' and she said 'Hi'. I'd met her years ago on Top of the Pops when their first single broke out. I said: 'We should sing something together' and she said 'I'd love to!' Then I said: 'I've got one for you!'
The song was first released on radio formats in Europe, before being distributed as a single on November 30, 1998.

Composition

Adams and Chisolm both perform all the lyrics of the song together, which has been compared to that of The Everly Brothers. Adams shouts "When You're Gone" on the song's introduction, while Chisolm harmonizes towards the end.
The song is based on common time, the tempo is 126 BPM and is played in the key of C major. According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by EMI Music Publishing, their vocal range spans from the low note G4 to the high note of A5.

Commercial performance

"When You're Gone" peaked at number three on the UK Singles Chart and spent 15 weeks in the UK Top 40, nine of which were in the top 10. With sales of 676,947, "When You're Gone" was the 82nd-best selling single of the 1990s in the UK. It has sold 830,000 copies in the UK as of May 2019. The song also reached the top ten in several countries, including number two in Scotland, number three in Ireland, and number four in Australia. It also reached number twelve in Canada.

Music video

The music video, which was released in 1998, depicts Bryan Adams and Melanie C trapped inside a three-story, 9-room household. Individual shots of Adams and Chisolm are used to show them singing against a narrow, green-lit corridor, while quick camera cuts are used showing the two isolated from each other in separate rooms.
In some scenes, Adams is seen vacuuming the corridor, while Chisolm is seen staring at a fish tank. During the guitar solo, multiple cutaway shots are used of the two acting frustrated and running around throughout the multiple rooms. It has also been noted that Adams and Chisolm do not appear in the same shots together throughout the music video.
As of January 2020, the video has over 19 million views on YouTube.

Live performances

The song is frequently performed at Adams' concerts. He picks a female audience member to sing the song with him, which have appeared on several CD and DVD releases. In recent years, he has also performed it solo, both acoustic and with his full band. Melanie C regularly features the song in her live concerts, with guitarist Greg Hatwell singing Adams' parts, which is included on her live DVD Live Hits. Chisolm and Adams have played the song together several times in concerts and live performances; most notably during a Top of the Pops performance on January 8, 1999.
Adams has also performed the song in several international versions of The X Factor. He appeared mid-performance in Week 7 of the UK's eighth season to perform alongside the six remaining contestants, which included eventual winner Little Mix. He also performed in the first week of the live show in the third season of the Australian version.

Track listing

  1. "When You're Gone" – 3:25
  2. "Hey Baby" – 3:48
  3. "When You're Gone" – 3:25
  1. "When You're Gone" – 3:25
  2. "I Love Ya Too Much" – 4:05
  3. "What Does It Do to Your Heart" – 3:07
  1. "When You're Gone" – 3:25
  2. "Hey Baby" – 3:48
  1. "When You're Gone" – 3:25
  2. "On a Day Like Today" – 3:30
  3. "Hey Baby" – 3:48
  4. "I Love Ya Too Much" – 4:05

    Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Chart Position
Australia 83
Canada Top Singles 36
Canada Adult Contemporary 64
Europe 38
Germany 90
Netherlands 38
Netherlands 40
Sweden 85

Certifications